Do you believe in ghosts or spirits of the departed? Ones who can return to visit places that meant a lot to them when they were alive? Surely, you will agree, that the Gold Range Hotel is probably haunted, especially around Halloween.
It was a legendary place, much beloved by many of its patrons. It was a place to meet old friends and make new ones. A place to talk, to party and to dance. Plus, you never knew what might happen.
For some reason when I think of the Range, the song ‘Ballroom Blitz’ by a band called Sweet comes to mind. Taking a bit of leeway with its lyrics, here is a sample:
“Oh Yeah! It was like lightning.
Everyone was frightened.
And the man in the back said, ‘Everyone attack’.
And the girl in the corner said ‘Boys I want to warn you,
It’ll turn into a ballroom blitz’.”
After a stint in the bush, it was the first place many people would go to party, to dance, and to see friends and acquaintances. And some would stay there, partying for days or even weeks until they had to go back out to the bush again. People would travel into Yellowknife from one of the communities and a visit to the Gold Range was an important tradition. The folks back home would want some fresh stories.
Over the years, the Gold Range has certainly had a number of … well, let’s call them notable patrons.
There was Two Gun Kelly. He was the town boss for a diamond drill company and his office was a table at the range. He would sit there drinking with a big wad of cash in his pocket. When a crew came in from the field, they would arrive and get paid in cash. People who wanted work would often get an advance to get geared up and, of course, suppliers would drop by and some even had invoices for Kelly.
He also had a loaded handgun in each of his coat pockets, which was a pretty good deterrent against crime or attempted theft.
There were several Queens of the Range. There was the Caribou Queen, who grew up on a trap line and liked to dress up. She was usually the best-dressed person in the bar. There was the River Boat Queen, who was banned from the bar a couple of times for instigating Conga-line dances. The stomping feet literally shook the building and caused a shower of dust to fall from the ceiling. Then there was the Harvest Queen, who sold various concoctions, potions, and herbs, some of which may not have been strictly legal at the time.
There was Soggy Holly Jolly who was a buddy to all. He had a long name for sure but late at night, in a rollicking bar, names often become superfluous. He was a diamond driller who liked to drink when he was in town. He would rent a room in the hotel and between it and the bar, he lived in the building. Well, the years took their toll, and he spent more time drinking than working. He had become a fixture of the place and when he ran out of money, he set up a cot in the basement.
Now, there is a scary thought the Gold Range has a subterranean cavern jokingly called a basement. Soggy Holly Jolly slept in the basement, then came up and was an unofficial swamper doing odd jobs like mopping up the washrooms. I once asked him when the last time he had been outside was. He said during the last year, he had been outside once. Why go outside when you have a bar to live in?
So, on Halloween night, I can image Soggy Holly Jolly sitting with Two Gun Kelly and one or more of the Queens, watching the band play along with Stan The Man playing his air guitar.
Hope everyone has a happy and safe Halloween with good memories and maybe a few haunting thoughts.