The following is a story written by Lorraine Little, a bartender at Captain's Anchorage in Big Bear Lake.
Do you believe in Ghost's? Spend some time at the Captain's Anchorage, formerly Andy Devine's Sportsman's Tavern, and you just might. In the 'forties and 'fifties, illegal gambling was a popular pasttime, and it could be found here. Legend has it the the bookkeeper for this activity was a man named George. (A photograph of George and friends is in the bar.) It is said that George was embezzling money. Here there are two theories: a despondent George either committed suicide in the upstairs office, now Captain's Quarters, fearing the consequences of being caught, or he was murdered - by whom, no one knows. As to the Anchorage being haunted, one opinion is that employees are making this up. However, a lot of these hauntings occur when customers are watching, such as the December night the Crown Royal bottle imploded, the night the Andy Devine Room sign in the bar began swinging, the times a beer bottle would fling out of the display, the heavy footfalls in an empty upstairs, and the things that happened when Loren and Kathleen from the Big Bear Magazine would come in, arriving after hours to gather material for an article. The last time they were in, they brought a psychic with them. This psychic said she felt four spirits , one of the a woman. Curiously, about twenty-five years ago, an employee, the first one in that day, experienced this. She unlocked the door, turned off the alarm, went out to the bar to get a soda pop, and was startled to see a woman seated at a table by the stairs. The expressionless woman gave no response to the employees query, "May I help you?" The employee then ran out of the building, not to return until later when otheremployees arrived. (The apparition had departed)> A few years ago, one of the girls who works here saw another apparition, this one a man, walking over by the porthole door. Most people would accept the story if they were here for an incident, Not all, though. When the Crown Royal bottle blew up, two of the witnesses thought it was rigged, to "prove" the place is haunted. People frequently take pictures here. Ribbon-like objects, orbs, even a raging fire have been manifested in these photos. Draw your own conclusions. Though there are sometimes long spells without any hauntings, you just might be here when "he's back!"
Stop by and say hello to Lorraine, she has some interesting photos to share.
