Every city has its own unique history; different cities have distinct histories and timelines, depending on when they were founded. Johnson City has a long history beginning in 1856, but today we’re going to focus on one specific building’s history with a bloody backstory, the Charles Building
The Charles Building was constructed in the late 1920s and originally was a two-story department store. The Charles Department Store remained open until the 1980s when it was acquired by Street’s Kitchen Outlet. This outlet was only open for about 10 years before it became an art studio for MC Designs. The studio was open for about five years before it was bought and turned into a venue. Today, the Charles Building houses different suites for different businesses, but is mainly used as an inclusive wedding venue known for its hardwood floors and exposed brick.
With the timeline established, we can begin to understand some context. For starters, Johnson City was known as ‘Little Chicago’ during the prohibition era. The area was known for bootlegging and many other illegal and underground activities. Johnson City was such an influential part of the prohibition era that it is rumored that even infamous mobster Al Capone and his crew were known to do business in the area. During this time, the Charles Building was supposedly a well-established speakeasy.
During this time, with all the illicit activity happening, it was a well-known fact that most altercations were going to be handled with physical violence, most often leading to someone being seriously injured or murdered. One of the most prolific tales that originates from the Charles Building was that over a dozen different informants who were against Al Capone were executed one by one on the main level of the building.
Many people believe that since there was so much violence and bloodshed in the building, there have to be hauntings, and many different people who have worked or visited the building have experienced paranormal activity. Most people assume that the informants who were murdered in the building still haunt it and show themselves by flickering the lights. Other common experiences include visitors hearing the floor creak, as if someone is walking across it, even though no one is there, or for the elevator to open and close by itself.
Though the majority of the building is still original, it has been remodeled multiple times. This means that there is little to no evidence to be gathered to prove whether or not this mass murder occurred in the building or at all. But when all is said and done, is it too unbelievable to expect that a city with so much history wouldn’t have at least one haunted building?
