The Cottonwood Papermill in Cottonwood Heights, Utah was built by the LDS Church in 1883 in order to keep up with the paper supply needed to meet the demand for their record keeping and publications. Originally, it was a pulp mill that ground logs from nearby forests and even old rags and other clothes and manufactured them into pulp and paper. It operated for nearly 10 years before being sold to the Granite Papermills Company.
However, on April 1, 1893, a fire broke out in the mill. Despite the ringing of alarms, nobody attended to the fire. People thought it was an April Fool’s prank. The building was burnt into a hollowed-out stone shell of what it once was. In 1927, the Old Mill was partially rebuilt and converted into an open-air dance hall, called the Old Mill’s Club. Since then, it held rock concerts in the 60s and by the 70s and 80s became the venue for haunted houses and a small craft business. It has been declared a Historic monument; however, it is currently condemned.
There have been many stories of hauntings throughout The Old Mill’s history. One involves the story of two men who died in the paper mill along with their dog. There have been reports of hearing dogs bark when there are none around, doors opening or closing on their own, and lights flickering on and off despite there being no electricity hooked up to the old building. One person commented having thought that their dog would often behave as if it was playing with another dog whenever they visited the old place. Having been used as a haunted house, it’s possible that its reputation as a haunted house was amplified during this time amplified due to the creepy experiences that people would have had.
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