Ghosts of King's Tavern (Natchez, MS)

King’s Tavern Circa 1920 Source: Mississippi State University Libraries

Located on Jefferson Street in Natchez’s On-Top-Of-The-Hill Historic District, The King’s Tavern is the oldest building in the state’s oldest city. The tavern dates back to 1769 when it was built by the British as a blockhouse for nearby Fort Panmure. The construction of the building is pretty interesting in and of itself. Aside from the sun-dried bricks used, the wood for the three-story tavern came from two main sources. First, wood was recycled from scrapped sailing ships in New Orleans, which were brought in via mules. But, the majority of construction materials came from the flat riverboats that sailed down the Mississippi, loaded with supplies. Since these types of boats couldn’t go back UP river, they were dismantled and sold, and their captains and crew returned north via the Natchez Trace.

After the Revolutionary War, the British left the area, and the old blockhouse was sold to Richard King in 1789. King, originally from New York, moved his family down south and opened the place up as a tavern and inn catering to the riverboat men and those taking the stagecoach. Comfortable accommodations could be found on the third floor, while good drink and food could be found in the tavern. During this time, King’s Tavern also served as a social center for locals, as King acted as the town’s postman, receiving and sending out the residents’ mail. The family was held in high regard throughout the community…but that may have just been their outward impression. More on that later…

King’s Tavern, December 2023 Photo by Theresa Natchez Ghost Tour

Riverboat men and other travelers weren’t the only ones who stayed at the inn. During this time, the Natchez Trace was the main route back up north, and thus, was the route that many of the riverboat owners, now with their pockets stuffed with the cash from the goods unloaded and boats scrapped, traveled to go back home. Outlaws and highwaymen were known to frequent this route, robbing and often brutally murdering travelers. Some of the worst of these criminals were the Harpe Brothers, who were regulars at the tavern. In one story, it is said that Micaja ‘Big’ Harpe even killed his own daughter when she wouldn’t stop crying! He was hunted down by a posse and killed in Kentucky in 1799. His head was displayed on a pike–a warning to other criminals that the good citizens were through with this type of behavior.

It wasn’t long until steamboats replaced the old riverboats, and these vessels COULD travel UP the Mississippi, lessening the need for an inn at this location. In 1817, the property was sold to the Postalwaith family, and from 1823 to 1973, the old inn was converted into a private residence passed down through the family for several generations. That year, it was sold to an investor and became a restaurant. After a brief closure, it reopened as a farm-to-table style restaurant, but is currently closed and up for sale. Perhaps like many local restaurants and similar establishments, King’s Tavern couldn’t recover from the Covid-19 closures. Or maybe, people weren’t too sure about having a meal in the state’s most haunted restaurant!

There’s been quite a bit of reported activity at King’s Tavern over the years. Objects moving, shadow figures, and mysterious sounds have all been documented. On the third floor, people have even heard the sounds of a baby crying, accompanied by a wailing mother. One story to explain this was that Big Harpe (remember him?) was staying at the inn one night and a mother and infant were staying in another room. The baby wouldn’t stop crying, which kept the infamous outlaw awake. He calmly barged into the woman’s room, grabbed the crying child from her arms, dashed it against the wall, then calmly handed the now silenced (and deceased) child back to its mother. Without an ounce of regret, he went back to his room and finally fell asleep. As seen earlier, there was a story that Harpe had killed his own daughter for crying….could this unnamed child actually have been his own?

King’s Tavern in Daylight Source: Haunted Houses

Arguably, the tale of the crying baby ghost is the most horrific from King’s Tavern…but the story of Madeline is a close second. Madeline was a beautiful young girl who worked for the King family. An affair began between Mr. King and Madeline, and eventually Mrs. King found out about it. The perfect family wasn’t so perfect after all. One day, Madeline went missing. She wasn’t seen alive ever again. But, it is believed that she WAS found.  In the 1930′s, work on the brick chimney revealed a hidden wall. Behind the wall were three skeletons; two men and one woman. Along with the remains was found a bejeweled dagger. It’s not known who exactly the men were, but the woman is thought to obviously be Madeline. It is theorized that Mrs. King either killed her herself, or had her killed and bricked up her remains and murder weapon behind the wall. The two men who joined her in death may have been the hitmen, killed to cover up the crime, or two additional witnesses/accomplices who knew the truth behind Mrs. King’s evil smirk.

Madeline is the main ghost of the King’s Tavern, and is blamed for the majority of activity. Although no longer in service, the fireplace where her remains were found always seems much warmer than the rest of the room, as if there’s a fire burning. Things around the bar are moved around, and a woman wearing old-fashioned clothes has been spotted throughout the building. But, Madeline’s favorite ‘calling card’ is her footprints. Many employees have been vexed by a line of bare footprints traipsing through the wet floor that they JUST mopped, even though they know for sure no LIVING person could have passed through. 

Unfortunately, this place was closed during my stay, but we did get to see it AND hear about its haunted history from Scott McCoy of the Natchez Ghost Tour! This was a really awesome tour, full of anecdotes and scary stories from the town’s most haunted hot spots. I’ll be doing a blog post dedicated to that tour soon, so keep an eye out. And as always….stay spooky everyone!

*Haunted Houses has a wonderful summary and plenty of pictures of this location. Please check the link provided for more information!*