Kehoe House

Iron-foundry owner William Kehoe built the house in 1892 for his wife and 10 children; it later served as a funeral parlor before becoming an inn.

Kehoe House began as the family home of Savannah industrialist William Kehoe and his wife, Anne Flood Kehoe.

William Kehoe built his career in Savannah's iron industry, eventually owning the foundry that bore his name. He married Anne Flood in 1868, and the couple raised a large family.

As his business prospered, Kehoe purchased land across Columbia Square from the family's earlier home and commissioned Savannah architect DeWitt Bruyn to design a larger residence.

The new house was completed in May 1892 at a reported cost of $25,000. William and Anne moved in with their 10 children.

The building itself was an advertisement for Kehoe's trade. Exterior stairways, columns, window treatments, fences, gates, balustrades, and other decorative features were made from cast iron associated with his foundry. The result remains one of the most visually distinctive houses on Columbia Square.

The Kehoe family eventually left the property, and the heirs sold it in 1927.

Over the following decades, the building had several uses. The hotel's own history records periods as a private residence and funeral parlor. It was also owned for a time by football star Joe Namath.

Namath sold the property in 1990. Following a two-year renovation, it reopened as a historic bed and breakfast.

Today, Kehoe House operates as a 13-room adults-only inn overlooking Columbia Square in Savannah's Historic District.

Kehoe House's most famous ghost story — that two children died in the house — is called "completely unsubstantiated" by Visit Savannah.

Kehoe House has a prominent place in Savannah's paranormal tourism, but its best-known ghost story also demonstrates why documented history and folklore need to be separated carefully.

The inn openly acknowledges its haunted reputation. Its own website discusses reports involving:

• Children
• Anne Kehoe
• William Kehoe
• Room 201
• The house's cupola

One frequently repeated legend claims that two Kehoe children died accidentally inside the house and remained there as spirits.

That story should not be presented as established history.

Visit Savannah describes the claim that two of the Kehoe children died in the house as completely unsubstantiated. Other versions of the legend place children inside a chimney or fireplace, but reliable historical evidence supporting those deaths has not been established.

The documented facts are different. William and Anne Kehoe did live in the house with a large family, and the building later served for a period as a funeral parlor.

Those facts likely helped create fertile ground for later ghost stories, but neither establishes the origin of modern paranormal reports.

Kehoe House therefore has a strong haunted reputation without a verified tragedy behind its most famous legend.

Unlike many historic properties where room numbers circulate without a traceable source, Kehoe House itself identifies several locations in its paranormal material.

That does not prove they are haunted. It does make the association easier to document.

Room 201

Room 201 is the clearest room-specific paranormal location identified by Kehoe House.

The inn's haunted-history material associates the room with reported apparitions interpreted as William and Anne Kehoe.

Specific sightings remain anecdotal, and there is no evidence that can establish the identity of an apparition.

Second-Floor Rooms

Kehoe House also says that two rooms on the second floor have been associated with reports from guests who woke after feeling what seemed like the touch of small children.

The hotel does not use those experiences as proof of the famous story about Kehoe children dying in the house.

That distinction matters because the death legend itself is unsubstantiated.

The Hallways

Reports of children running or playing in the hallways are among the most repeated stories associated with Kehoe House.

Because the inn currently restricts overnight guests to adults 21 and older, reports of childlike voices or footsteps naturally stand out when they occur.

They remain unexplained reports rather than confirmation of a paranormal cause.

The Cupola

The house's cupola is another location associated by the property with apparitions interpreted as William or Anne Kehoe.

It is also one of the building's most distinctive architectural elements, making it a natural focal point in both the history and folklore surrounding the property.

Kehoe House is a small, romantic bed and breakfast rather than a conventional full-service hotel.

The property has 13 individually styled guest rooms spread through the historic house. Room categories include queen and king rooms as well as accommodations with private or semi-private balconies.

Many rooms retain the proportions and character of a 19th-century residence. Layouts, ceiling heights, balcony access, bathrooms, and architectural details vary.

Current stay details include:

• Minimum guest age of 21, unless the entire house is rented for an eligible private event
• No pets, though ADA service animals are permitted
• Chef-prepared breakfast, served in the courtyard, parlor, veranda, or guest room when available
• Evening wine and hors d'oeuvres reception in the parlor
• Freshly baked cookies delivered to guest rooms at night

Kehoe House faces Columbia Square at 123 Habersham Street. Broughton Street is about a block away, while museums, historic houses, restaurants, ghost tours, and other downtown attractions are within walking distance.

The historic design does include many steps. An elevator provides access to all property levels, and the inn recommends that travelers with mobility concerns contact staff when selecting a room.

The overall experience is quiet and intimate. The paranormal reputation is part of the house's identity, but Kehoe House primarily presents itself as an upscale romantic Savannah inn.

The Davenport House sits next door, and Columbia Square, Colonial Park Cemetery, and Broughton Street are all a short walk away.

Davenport House Museum

The Davenport House Museum is next door to Kehoe House.

The restored Federal-style residence is important to Savannah's preservation history and provides a useful contrast with the later Victorian-era architecture of Kehoe House.

Columbia Square

Kehoe House directly faces Columbia Square, one of the historic public spaces that define Savannah's original urban plan.

It is an easy starting point for exploring the surrounding Historic District on foot.

Owens-Thomas House & Slave Quarters

The Owens-Thomas House & Slave Quarters is about a block away.

Its interpretation of architecture, wealth, slavery, and urban life provides essential historical context for understanding 19th-century Savannah beyond the city's ghost stories.

Colonial Park Cemetery

Colonial Park Cemetery is only a few minutes away on foot.

The historic burial ground contains graves from Savannah's colonial and early national periods and appears frequently in local ghost-tour narratives.

Broughton Street

Shopping, restaurants, cafés, and nightlife on Broughton Street are roughly a block from the inn.

River Street

Savannah's riverfront is also within walking distance, giving guests easy access to historic commercial buildings, restaurants, shops, and views of the Savannah River.

Kehoe House is particularly well suited to couples and adult travelers looking for a small historic property with a strong sense of place.

Its 13-room scale offers a different experience from a larger hotel. Breakfast, the evening reception, balconies, courtyard spaces, and Columbia Square location all support a slower romantic stay.

Haunted-travel readers have another reason to consider it.

The inn openly acknowledges its paranormal stories, including reports involving children, Anne and William Kehoe, Room 201, and the cupola. At the same time, travelers can appreciate the property without accepting those accounts as supernatural.

Architecture enthusiasts may find the house especially rewarding because William Kehoe's iron business is visible throughout the exterior design.

Kehoe House is not suitable for most family trips because overnight guests must currently be at least 21 years old.

Travelers who want a large modern hotel, extensive resort facilities, or standardized rooms may also prefer another property.

Yes, particularly for couples and travelers who prefer intimate historic inns.

Kehoe House has enough documented history and architectural character to justify a stay without relying on paranormal claims. The 1892 residence remains closely tied to William Kehoe's success as an iron founder, and its elaborate cast-iron details make that history visible before guests even step inside.

Its location is another major advantage. Columbia Square, historic houses, restaurants, shopping, cemeteries, and ghost-tour routes are all close enough to make walking the default for much of a Savannah stay.

The haunted reputation adds interest, but the most famous legend deserves skepticism.

Reports of children playing, unexplained bedside sensations, and apparitions associated with William and Anne Kehoe are part of the property's paranormal tradition. The often-repeated claim that two Kehoe children died inside the house is not established historical fact.

For Hauntly readers, that distinction actually makes Kehoe House more interesting.

You can stay in a documented 1892 family mansion, hear the stories attached to it, and understand where the historical record ends and Savannah's ghost folklore begins.