Gold Hill Hotel Miner's Cabin "I'll Be Going Soon"

 By Anthony P. Anderson

 We have all speculated what would happen the moment that we die. Would we see our own body and watch ourselves pass away? Would we remain in this world briefly, before moving to somewhere else or would we be able to visit loved ones? Whether its to deliver an urgent last message or merely the last chance to give a fond, silent goodbye, we still can't fully understand how things transpire when our time is up.
 
 
 While spending a relaxing and interesting weekend in Virginia City, Nevada, located on the old Comstock we booked ourselves (may friend Jackie and I) into a room called "The Miner's Cabin", located behind the original, older hotel in the parking lot. The Goldhill Hotel, built in 1861 and has been a boarding house, residence and even a brothel!
 
 
 The Miner's Cabin, in its heyday was an active working shelter for miners who spent brutal hours underground in a the Yellow-Jacket mine, located just outside the door. A terrible mining fire accident in 1869 trapped and killer 37 miners. Needless to say, the cabin has its own stories to tell and ghostly sightings to back it up.
 
 
 We had checked into the hotel and drove around back in front of the Miner's Cabin so we could bring our luggage inside. It was bright, warm and sunny, against a deep blue sky. Jackie took the key to the cabin and walked around the back (where the actual entrance is beside the mine where a bee colony had taken up homestead). I stayed behind to start removing the luggage out of the back of the car.
 
 Jackie had unlocked and entered the cabin, spilling in bright sunlight.
 
 The cabin itself is a long, making up 2 rooms connected by a long hallway. Off the hallway is a small kitchenette and a shower stall and further down, a restroom. Jackie made her way through the cabin to the restroom.
 
 It wasn't long until she began to hear some stirring sound coming from the lower bedroom (right outside the door). She finished and stepped into the back bedroom.
 

 "Hello?" she called out as she entered.
 
 She noticed an elderly man with grey hair slicked back and a short-sleeved plaid shirt. She assumed right away that he must be someone from the hotel, a maintenance man perhaps.
 
 "Can I help you?" she asked.
 
 The man stood about six feet and seemd perplexed and confused. He looked around the room and then back to her.
 
 "Do you need help with anything?" Jackie asked, hoping he would enlighten her as to why he was inside their locked cabin after check-in.
 
 "I.. I will be going soon." the man replied under his breath, but Jackie could hear him just fine as she was very close.
 
 She did not see any tools or equipment with him that would also have explained his visit, such as changing a lightbulb or restocking supplies.
 
 Jackie came back outside to help me with the luggage.
 
 She mentioned that there was an old man in the cabin in the lower bedroom and he seemed lost. Being outside the cabin you can see all around the small building in the gravel parking lot. I did not see anyone walk or approach the cabin since we arrived.
 
 I took my bag in first and down to the lower bedroom, fully expecting to find this bewildered man; he was nowhere to be found. The lower bedroom also had its own entrance but was locked as I checked the door. Jackie made her way into the cabin and I told her there is nobody inside and the door was locked.
 
 "Maybe he just left, did you see him outside?"
 
 "No, there was nobody outside or anyone leaving the cabin."
 
 We both looked at one another and knew, this was not simply missing a maintenance man in passing, this man was inside the cabin and then he was gone.
 
 Jackie repeated what he had said. "I'll be going soon".
 
 We asked the hotel if they had an elderly maintenance man who worked the property, and they replied they have no elderly men on staff.
 
 Who was this man? Could he have lived in town and possibly passed away and was in transit, confused as to what had happened? We will never know for sure, but it certainly caught us off guard in the old silver mining town in Nevada.