My Spooky Overnight Stay In Butte’s Haunted Dumas Brothel

BUTTE, MT - No point in beating around the bush on this one. Let's hop right into it.

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Last Friday, I had the opportunity to stay inside the Dumas Brothel in Uptown Butte, thanks to a hook-up by the Dumas' current owner, David. I had planned to go in, take some photos and some audio recordings, and leave shortly after. However, after speaking to David and other friends on the matter, I ended up deciding on something much more scary, but much more exciting.

I decided I would stay the night, by myself, inside the Dumas, with nothing but a camera, a recorder, and myself. Here's my account from that night, recorded by me in my journal. (At the bottom, you can find the full photo series from that night.)

10:22 PM

I am now officially inside the Dumas. [My girlfriend] just dropped me off, and I am currently sitting in one of the lady's rooms. The couch I'm sitting on is surprisingly comfy, and not as dusty as I would expect. I honestly thought I'd sit on it and a dust cloud would shoot up, resembling a skull and crossbones. Very Scooby-Doo of me. I don't like the window behind me...it feels like someone is looking through, though obviously no one is.

 

I'm going to walk around and take some photos and see if I can get anything on camera, even if it is a little early.

11:29 PM

Almost an hour in so far and nothing has really happened. Not to sound like that guy, but one of the photos I took upstairs looked like it had something interesting in it. Like a blob of some sort. Other than that: no weird feelings (besides the overall dread of being in a spooky old building by myself at night), no sightings, and no sounds. A little bummed so far, but everyone knows that the activity starts at like 3am or whatever. Right?

11:50 PM

By far the creepiest part of the whole brothel is the stairwell leading down to the basement—and, of course, the basement itself is nothing short of scary. Speaking of being scared: every single time, without fail, I get spooked by a mannequin at the bottom of the stairs. She seems nice, but I can't help but think that David put her there to scare people. If so, it's working, man.

 

I have been hearing an odd noise from the last room on the right on the first floor, what looks to be the main office of sorts. A few loud *clicks* here and there, and they are not pleasant to listen to, especially since all the lights are off. Other than that, not much to report. Heading to explore the basement here soon.

1:03 AM

Okay, the basement? Not fun. I mean, it's really cool, but damn... So much spookiness down here. The first thing you notice is the temperature drop; it quite literally felt like at least a 20-degree difference. Refreshing at first, until you realize why and hope it isn't what you think.

 

The next thing? The air. The air feels so damp and, coupled with the history of the brothel, brings a feeling of sadness with it. I feel empathy for the girls who had to work down here. Couldn't have been the best.

 

Then you notice the long, dark, terrifying hallway, full of dark, (hopefully) empty rooms, all with open doorways. I couldn't really see anything until I threw on a light or two, but that felt like I was cheating and turned them off. I could see shadows both with and without lights, but I'm positive my eyes were playing tricks on me.

 

I'm currently hanging out in one of the rooms, hoping to see or hear something definitive. I'm starting to regret this whole idea altogether. But, I gotta say, I'm having a lot of fun...

1:11 AM

Just had to throw in there that I got jump-scared AGAIN by a stupid mannequin... AGAIN.

2:20 AM

Alright, now this is worth writing about. Nothing had happened for a while until...

 

I was comfy, hanging out in "my" room down here in the basement, and I heard something fall. It was quiet enough that I wasn't sure at first, but loud enough that I definitely had heard something. It sounded heavy, but it didn't drop on something hard; in fact, it sounded like a "thump" as it hit whatever it hit. I stumbled out of the room and down the hallway, reluctantly peering into each room, hoping to find the source of the noise.

 

Though I'm not 100% positive, I'm pretty darn sure that it was a brick in the room across from me. The room looks normal at first, until you notice the huge hole in the floorboards, revealing a well. I immediately thought of that movie The Ring and freaked myself out some more. But that's the only thing I can think of: a brick fell into the soft earth below. Now, what could've caused that?

3:06 AM

Okay, I've made it. The "witching hour," as many have called it. I'm back upstairs on the first floor hoping to get something... At least up here, I would be able to hear anything that happens in here.

 

Speaking of which, that clicking noise from earlier has stopped... Weird.

 

It was nice to spend some time upstairs, though, as I got to learn a lot about the brothel from what I'm calling the "information room." Probably the least-spooky room in the whole joint.

From there, I was disappointed that nothing had happened during the infamous "witching hour" and left shortly after. I also was desperate for some sleep, since I hadn't stayed up that late since my friend's wedding... three years ago.

All in all, hearing a very strange noise and capturing a very strange anomaly on camera ended up making the trip worth it. Plus, how often do you get to stay in a haunted brothel?