Brick Hotel On The Circle

The Brick Hotel on the Circle in Georgetown, Delaware, represents nineteenth-century Federal commercial architecture of considerable historical significance. The 14-bedroom establishment was constructed in 1836 by Joshua S. Layton and Caleb B. Sipple as a hotel designed to accommodate travelers, merchants, and business visitors to the Delaware community. The building was strategically constructed on Georgetown's town circle, the central gathering point and most prominent location in the community, reflecting the owners' ambitions to establish a premier hospitality establishment serving as the social and commercial heart of the town. The hotel functioned as the primary lodging facility for Georgetown throughout the nineteenth century, accommodating guests traveling through the region during the pre-railroad era when inns and hotels constituted essential infrastructure for regional commerce and travel.

During the American Civil War, the Brick Hotel on the Circle was repurposed as a Union Hotel, serving as temporary barracks, officers' quarters, and administrative facility for Union military forces occupying or passing through the region. The transformation from civilian commercial establishment to military installation reflected the broader disruption of the Civil War era, as civilian buildings throughout occupied territories were conscripted for military purposes. This occupation apparently left paranormal impressions on the structure, as if the hotel retained memories of the turbulent period. Following the Civil War, the building underwent multiple transformations, converting to a bank before returning to hotel operations. Throughout these transitions, the original structure remained intact, preserving Federal architectural style and period details that characterized its 1836 construction.

The Brick Hotel became recognized as a haunted location, with paranormal activity apparently triggered or intensified by renovations in 2008. Paranormal phenomena include orbs appearing in photographs with frequency suggesting intelligent manifestation rather than random artifacts, doors unlocking themselves without visible manipulation, and paintings moving on their own during nighttime hours. The spirits most prominently associated with the hotel are identified as George and Ophelia, entities whose names suggest they may have been long-term residents or employees who died within the hotel during its operational history.

Manifestations attributed to these spirits include inexplicable phenomena concentrated throughout the hotel's bedrooms and common areas. Most notably, showers in various rooms turn on independently, producing water and steam without anyone manipulating fixtures. Ghostly hands move paintings and artwork, repositioning them with apparent purpose or intelligence. These phenomena suggest George and Ophelia maintain awareness of the hotel's spaces and express their presence through small but consistent disturbances of the physical environment. The 2008 renovations apparently stirred spirits that may have been dormant, suggesting physical disturbance can activate paranormal activity. The post-2008 period has been characterized by more frequent paranormal phenomena than earlier periods.

In August 2021, the Brick Hotel ceased hotel operations permanently and was converted to office space. The transformation marks a significant change in function and occupancy patterns. The spirits of George and Ophelia now occupy a building no longer filled with transient guests but with office workers during daytime hours. The permanent closure may represent a threshold moment in the building's paranormal history, altering the spiritual activity that characterized its 185-year occupancy.