It was eighty years ago this week, the Paso Robles Inn burned to the ground. December 19, 1940.
The late Cliff Tucker told KPRL about his experience that day. He said he and his brother heard the siren, which sent a clear message he never forgot.
The fire burned most of the Paso Robles Inn. The ballroom still stands, because it was not connected to the main building.
Tucker said it was a really cold night on December 19th, 1940 in Paso Robles.
The Paso Robles Inn was rebuilt, but the story doesn’t end there. Over the years, there have been phantom phone calls, more recently to 911 from room 1007.
Some believe the calls came from the ghost of J. H. Emsley, the hotel night clerk. Emsley discovered the fire on the second floor and rushed downstairs to the first floor. He sounded the fire alarm, and then died of a heart attack on the spot. Thanks to his effort, all the hotel guests were safely evacuated. Only one fatality, J. H. Emsley, the night clerk, who was found dead behind his desk.
Some believe Emsley’s ghost is making the phantom phone calls from the Inn.
Incidentally, historian Cliff Tucker died two years ago, in February of 2019. After Paso Robles high school, he attended San Jose state where he was on the Spartan boxing team. After teaching for many years in Bakersfield, he retired to his hometown of Paso Robles. He wrote a book about his life growing up in Paso Robles. The book is called, “Paso Robles 1930-1950, When Highway 101 Was Main Street Through My Hometown.”
