Located in Seattle, Washington, the Arctic Club provided a stepping-off point for those interested in striking gold up in Alaska during the times of the famous Klondike Gold Rush. Having made quite a fortune themselves, E. A. Von Hasslocher and A. D. Coulter decided to build the Arctic Club in 1907 as a hotel and social club for other gold miners and arctic explorers to meet and share stories of their grand adventures.
The building itself is quite distinguishable, with terracotta walruses and polar bears adorning the outside of the building. At the same time, inside there are various arctic memorabilia including maps and photos of the north including the Inuit People. It was considered extraordinarily lavish and along with hotel suites it included a cigar store, a barber, private dining rooms, ladies’ tea rooms, cards, billiards rooms, and a rooftop garden. Though the Arctic Club saw all types of people, one of the most famous was Marion Zioncheck, a U.S. Congressman elected in 1932. He was known as a far-left enthusiast who was often finding himself amidst scandals in the press, leading to mental instability. In 1936, this led him to take his own life as he jumped out of a window of the Arctic Club. His poor wife happened to be in the car below next to where he came crashing down. Some say that his body still haunts the hallways, elevators, and even the sidewalk where he fell. Guests have reported feeling chills, hearing footsteps, and strange voices that some think may belong to Zioncheck primarily on the fifth floor of the building. There are also those who claim to have caught glimpses of him lying bloody on the pavement below the window before suddenly vanishing. Could it really be poor Zioncheck eternally reliving the memory of his suicide?
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