What hotel inspired the haunted mansion?

The Disneyland Haunted Mansion was largely inspired by the Shipley-Lydecker House in Baltimore, Maryland, pictured in Decorative Art of Victoria's Era, a book found in the Walt Disney Imagineering Information Research Center in Glendale, California.



The Hamilton-Turner Inn in Savannah, Georgia, is frequently cited as a primary architectural inspiration for the Haunted Mansion at Disney World (Orlando). Built in 1873, the inn features a striking Second Empire style with a mansard roof and ornate details that mirror the "stately" but eerie aesthetic of the Mansion. While the Disneyland (California) version was inspired by the Shipley-Lydecker House in Baltimore, the Orlando version drew from the grand, Gothic-revival mansions of the American South. The Hamilton-Turner Inn's history of being the first residence in Savannah with electricity—which led to local rumors of "mysterious glows"—only adds to its connection to the supernatural themes of the ride. Today, the inn operates as a luxury boutique hotel, allowing fans to stay in a building that captures the same "spirit" as the iconic Disney attraction.

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If the Hamilton-Turner mansion at 330 Abercorn Street looks familar, it might just be because you've seen it before. The Hamilton-Turner home was rumored to be the early inspiration behind Walt Disney's Haunted Mansion (based off the first designs of Harper Goff in the 1950's).

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While much of the mansion's interiors were created on soundstages, exterior shots of the mansion feature the stunning Garden District home known as The Buckner Mansion, which is located at 1410 Jackson Avenue.

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Instead, they decided to base it on The Nightmare Before Christmas after considering which Disney character would celebrate Christmas in the Haunted Mansion, should Santa Claus ever land there on his journey.

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Back in July, Disney released its remake of Haunted Mansion, which didn't really light the world on spectral fire when it came out.

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Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, 2003 The very first film based on the somewhat hokey Disney ride of the same name was a smash, and gave Depp's Captain Jack Sparrow a permanent spot in pop culture history.

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The underwhelming start might be attributed to the lack of interest in and popularity of Haunted Mansion. The movie earned mixed reviews for being a fun ride and an improvement over the 2003 version. Still, its lack of intensity and urgency made it difficult to compete with other summer blockbusters.

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