The Haunted Le Meridien Hotel
Posted: 12.17.2024 | Updated: 05.06.2025
There is another world that lies under Tampa, one filled with stories of the unknown mixed with a history of violence and tragedy. They’re what lead many to believe that apart from its plethora of venues and beach life activities, this vibrant city is home to an abundance of haunted locations.
One in particular is the Le Meridien Hotel located in the heart of Downtown Tampa at 601 N., Florida Ave. It was once a federal courthouse, a presiding model of justice that stood in the midst of a once-thriving criminal empire.
Countless of Tampa’s most ruthless criminals faced justice within its walls, but what makes many believe it’s haunted is what the most ruthless of them all did here.
Curious about what lurks in the shadows of Tampa, Florida, after dark? Visit our website today, and come see for yourself by booking a Tampa ghost tour with Tampa Terrors.
Why is the Le Meridien Hotel Haunted?
Before it was a boutique hotel with modern charm, Le Meridien in Tampa held something far grittier behind its grand stone columns.
Known back then as the Old Federal Courthouse, this building once sat at the heart of Tampa’s dark and dangerous past—a time when the city was crawling with crime, corruption, and cold-blooded criminals.
Back in the early 20th century, Tampa wasn’t the sunshine-soaked destination we know today. It had a violent underbelly ruled by notorious gangsters and crime kingpins, and this courthouse saw it all.
Some of the most infamous names in organized crime stood trial here, including one who many say signed his death warrant the day he testified within these very walls. Others say his ghost never left.
Now transformed into a luxurious stay, the Le Meridien Courthouse Hotel may look polished, but whispers of its past still echo through the halls. Footsteps with no source. Doors that close on their own. Cold spots in empty rooms. Could it be the spirits of old gangsters still holding court?
This is one of the most chilling haunted hotels in Tampa, and it’s hiding in plain sight.
Curious what other secrets the hotel keeps tucked between its bricks and courtrooms? Read more to uncover the full haunted history!
History of Le Meridien Tampa Hotel
The Le Meridien in Tampa, was constructed in 1905 with French neoclassical Beaux-arts architecture. Originally a customs house and post office for the port city of Tampa, it was later repurposed as a courthouse.
The courthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. It operated until 1998, when the Sam M. Gibbons Courthouse was built two blocks north on Florida Avenue.
The very same building where so many had awaited the judgment of their fate was now awaiting its own, but it wasn’t by any means a speedy trial.
The City of Tampa acquired the building for $1 in 2003, and was considered for a brief time as the future home of the Tampa Museum of Arts. The building remained abandoned, however.
That is, until the fall of 2011, when Mayor Buckhorn contacted several architectural firms to help redesign the courthouse from a place of justice to a place of hospitality.
Construction began in February 2011 with a simple but by no means easy task ahead of The Beck Group of Tampa, the architectural firm responsible for overseeing the former courthouse’s renovation: balancing the past with the present.
It was a long three-year wait, but it was worth it for guests when the old courthouse softly opened on June 16, 2014, as Le Meridien Hotel.
Its Corinthian pillars, once an intimidating sign of justice, are now a sample of the architectural and artistic grandeur that awaits inside. Much of which pre-existed the courthouse’s renovations: original marble walls and terrazzo floors, along with the original marble wainscoting.
Historical remnants sprinkled throughout the building pay homage to its past and add to the guest experience, starting with the concierge desk that was once a judge’s desk.
Hauntings Overview
There is a darker past to Tampa, FL, that many don’t know about. It dates back to an era when no city was untouchable for the mafia, making names like Santo Trafficante Jr. live in infamy.
What’s even more obscure is the name of Charlie Wall, a Tampa-born mobster who built the very foundation for a criminal enterprise to reign under the city’s balmy backdrop.
Dubbed the “dean of Tampa’s underworld,” you would never know by Wall’s white suit and straw hat that he was an underworld kingpin.
Nonetheless, he maintained a thriving illegal gambling and racketeering empire, maintained by ruthlessness and bribery of city officials. It was only a matter of time before he attracted the wrong kind of people, specifically the Sicilian mob.
However, that didn’t bother Charlie as he bragged to the press about several attempts made on his life. It wasn’t until his best friend was murdered that Wall faded into retirement in the late 1930s.
That was short-lived, with his love for the limelight as he resurfaced again in 1950. This time, it was before the Kefauver Commission held at the old courthouse, now named Le Meridien in Tampa.
Wall publicly testified to everything he knew in the commission’s attempt to expose organized crime in the United States. To add insult to injury, the retired mobster publicly denounced the Sicilian mafia.
It came as no surprise when Wall was found dead in his home, severely beaten. The crime remains unsolved to this day, but many claim they still see his ghost hanging around on the steep steps leading up to the hotel. Perhaps in a sense of otherworldly irony, he’s seeking justice for his own murder now.
Haunted Tampa
Tampa carries a boatload of history into its vibrant present as a pulsating city overlooking the gulf, where the beach life comfortably sits minutes away from a tropical urban paradise.
Yet a whisper still lingers in the air and carries through the rustling palm trees, past its historical graveyards and age-old establishments, tales of murder, shipwrecks, and the unknown that send a shiver up your spine. They all reside right here in the city of Tampa, where some believe it’s not just the city that comes alive after dark.
The Le Meridien Courthouse Hotel may now welcome guests with crisp sheets and craft cocktails, but its foundation is soaked in secrets. Once the site of trials that shook Tampa’s criminal world, it’s no wonder it ranks high among the most chilling haunted hotels in Tampa.
Some say the ghost of Charlie Wall, Tampa’s most infamous crime boss, still lingers—restless, watching. Is he seeking justice? Revenge? Or is he forever tied to the very place where his empire began to crumble?
Spirits and frightening haunts are sprawling in the city of Tampa. You’re only a click away from experiencing them firsthand with Tampa Terrors! Be sure to visit our site and book a Tampa ghost tour with us today that you won’t soon forget.
Until then, read up on our blog for more chill-ridden stories, and stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
Sources:
- https://theclio.com/entry/25192
- https://www.tampabay.com/news/business/tourism/judges-get-sneak-peek-at-historic-tampa-courthouses-new-life-as-boutique/2183991/
- https://www.tampabay.com/arts-entertainment/2020/06/11/meet-charlie-wall-the-dean-of-tampas-early-underworld/
- https://tampamafia.com/charlie-wall-the-bolita-kingpin/
- https://www.hauntedrooms.com/florida/tampa/haunted-places
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