The 13th Floor Haunted House

Where is the 13th Floor, and why is it absent in so many buildings? Come with us, as we attempt to explain the legend of the 13th floor, and introduce you to Denver’s most horrifying haunted experience, the 13th Floor Haunted House.

The levels of a multi story building are frequently numbered sequentially, from “basement”, “lobby”, “ground”, “one”, “two” etc. In some countries, as it is here in the United States, the number 13 is considered unlucky and building owners will sometimes purposefully omit a floor numbered 13. Hence, the 13th floor is sometimes given the number 14. Even building owners who are not superstitious realize that the desirability of units on a floor numbered 13 might be compromised because of superstitious tenants, or commercial tenants who worry about losing superstitious customers.

Based on an internal review of records, the Otis Elevator Company estimates that 85% of the buildings with their elevators do not have a named 13th floor. So why does this happen? Why are even skeptics so easily convinced that the majority would just rather avoid this floor? What has happened in history to create such a stigma about a 13th floor? For whatever reasons there may be, there seems to be a multitude of stories about what happens on the 13th floor of numerous buildings, some documented, some not. It seems that it has become largely accepted to just leave it alone, brush it under the rug, and don’t talk about it.

A good example is that some have suggested the 13th floor in government buildings is not really missing, but actually contains top-secret governmental departments, or more generally that it is proof of something sinister or clandestine going on.

It should be noted that to place a floor between those accessible from an elevator, it is necessary to either take longer to travel between the neighboring floors, or accelerate, both of which would be noticed by the riders. It would also be noticeable from the exterior, requiring either an extra row of windows or a conspicuous gap between rows.

Thus, it would make much more sense to build a secret floor, such as the 13th floor as a basement, making it much easier to hide 13th floor locations, in what appear to be single story buildings, underground.

The creators of the 13th Floor Haunted House have discovered locations, right here in Denver, Colorado, constructed in the manor described above. Not completely sure of what all of their past uses may have been, it seems that the majority of these locations are currently inhabited by unfortunate souls, living and dead. They have discovered their secret locations when seeking shelter from the environment, or society. Various species of rats, snakes and spiders have also taken up residence here, living in secret, and by their own rules.

(Source: 13th Floor Haunted House)