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_ The Creamer Hotel ____ _
There are old buildings that seem to belong to the town around them. They become part of its landscape, its memories, and the stories people tell about the place. In Felton, one of those buildings stood for nearly a century and a half.
Known historically as the Creamer Hotel or Cremer House, the building served the Felton community for 145 years, until 2021, when it became home to Humble Sea Brewing. Historical records spell the name Kramer, Cramer, Cremer, and Creamer. Thomas used the German spelling “Cremer,” while his wife, Margaret, preferred the phonetic spelling “Creamer,” which became associated with the hotel. This accounts for the variations found in historical records and newspapers.
The hotel opened in 1876, operated by Thomas Cremer and his wife, Margaret. It served as a restaurant, saloon, and boarding house—a place where travelers could eat, drink, conduct business, and find a bed for the night. In those early years, Felton was a rough and rapidly developing community, and the hotel became a gathering place for people passing through. Eventually, nearly every part of Felton's colorful history seemed to find its way through its doors.
The Hotel and Hollywood
Between approximately 1915 and the early 1920s, the Creamer Hotel became a gathering place for Hollywood western film companies working in the Santa Cruz Mountains. One of the most notable connections came in 1915, when William S. Hart and his film company came to Felton to film The Primal Lure, released in 1916. The silent western was set in the Canadian Northwest, but Felton's redwood forests and mountain landscape provided the scenery the production needed. A frontier trading-post set called Fort Lu Cerne was constructed for the film.
Hart reportedly liked Felton immediately. According to local historian Randall C. Brown, the town's dirt streets reminded Hart of Dodge City as he remembered it from childhood. During the production, Hart stayed at the hotel in the old Cremer building.
For a brief period, the old hotel became part of early Hollywood history, providing lodging for one of the era's most prominent western stars while his company filmed among the redwoods of Felton.
During Prohibition, the building was leased to the Western Bee Company after the owners purchased the Grand Central Hotel across the street. Several beehives were kept outside the property. According to local accounts, the building was also associated with bootlegging, and the bees provided an effective deterrent to anyone approaching the property. Stories of gambling and prostitution also became part of the building's history.
Two deaths, however, are documented in the historical record.
Win Donnelly
On October 5, 1884, the Santa Cruz Sentinel reported the death of Win Donnelly, who was found dead in his bed at Mrs. Creamer's hotel.
Donnelly had been employed by Cummings & Jansey, contractors working on the Felton & Pescadero Railroad. He was discharged from his job on Friday morning and demanded payment for half a day's work, approximately seventy-five cents. When his demand was refused, the newspaper reported that he became boisterous and followed contractor George Jansey around Felton, insulting him.
Later that afternoon, Jansey was sitting in J. Ball's saloon when Donnelly entered. Jansey left to avoid a confrontation and returned after Donnelly had gone.
Donnelly came back. According to the newspaper, he approached Jansey, used a vulgar expression, and threatened him:
“I’ll murder you on sight.”
Jansey picked up a poker and struck Donnelly on the side of the head. Donnelly left the saloon. The newspaper reported that he then took several drinks, wandered around Felton, and eventually returned to the Creamer Hotel. Jansey was arrested pending an inquest and later released on a $2,000 bond, with W. P. Young and J. J. Cummings as sureties.
The following morning, Donnelly was found dead in his bed at the hotel.
The newspaper did not provide an explanation for what happened to him after he returned to the hotel.
George Duncan
Six years later, another violent incident occurred at the Creamer Hotel. On August 26, 1890, the Santa Cruz Sentinel reported that George Duncan had been stabbed at Creamer's Hotel by Henry Jackson, a cook.
Duncan was taken to the county hospital but died several days later.
A post-mortem examination was performed by Dr. C. L. Anderson and Dr. F. E. Morgan. Their examination determined that the knife wound had penetrated approximately seven inches into Duncan's abdomen, severing the intestines above the sigmoid flexure and penetrating the pelvis of the kidney. Jackson was given a preliminary examination in Felton and was held to answer before the Superior Court on a charge of murder. The deaths of Donnelly and Duncan became two of the darker incidents associated with the old hotel.
The Reports of Activity
More than a century later, the building had become known as the Cremer House. By then, employees and patrons had begun reporting unexplained activity, particularly in the upper portions of the building, where the former lodging rooms and areas associated with alleged prostitution had once been located.
Reports included disembodied footsteps, objects moving on their own, and salt, pepper, and ketchup shakers reportedly flying from tables without explanation. Employees also reported that lights in an upstairs room would repeatedly go out whenever someone was inside. The bulb was replaced and the electrical sockets were checked, but the problem reportedly continued.
There were also reports of unusual cold spots, including an upstairs office that was noticeably colder than the surrounding rooms. Another small upstairs room reportedly made former owner Emily Thomas uncomfortable enough that she avoided entering it. The room was too large to be a closet but too small to resemble a normal bedroom, leaving Thomas to wonder what its original purpose may have been. Shadows were also reportedly seen inside the building.
In 2015, researcher Molly Ressler documented the history of the Cremer House, interviewing local historian Randall C. Brown, who had spent years researching the building and its stories. Brown was also the author of Ghosts of the Creamer Hotel, Felton: A Local History.
By the following year, owner Emily Thomas allowed Santa Cruz Ghost Hunters to conduct a late-night investigation of the building.
The 2016 Investigation
Santa Cruz Ghost Hunters conducted a nighttime investigation after the Cremer House closed. Earlier reports of unexplained activity had largely centered on the upstairs, including the former lodging areas and rooms associated with the building's alleged prostitution history. Employees had reported footsteps, electrical problems, cold spots, moving objects, and other unexplained occurrences in that part of the building.
The Santa Cruz Ghost Hunters investigation was different. Although the team began upstairs in the offices, the most consistent activity developed downstairs, around the bar and kitchen area. As the investigation progressed, K-2 meters, a REM POD, and Tri Field meters began registering activity. The equipment was positioned in different areas of the same room rather than together, allowing each device to be observed independently. When certain questions or trigger words were used, the equipment responded at the exact same time, producing simultaneous positive responses.
The investigation also revealed unexplained cold spots, and members of the team reported being occasionally touched while investigating. The bar and kitchen area remained the most active part of the investigation. This was particularly significant because the area was associated with the 1890 stabbing of George Duncan. The investigators began asking questions.
“Do you want us to leave?”
Several pieces of equipment responded simultaneously.
The question was asked again, and the equipment once again responded.
The team then asked: “Are you stuck?”
Again, the equipment activated; EMF equipment hitting the redzones, while TF2 equipment hit in the 100.0 milligauss (mg) range of maximum settings. What made the investigation notable was the contrast with the earlier reports: the reported activity had largely centered upstairs, while the strongest and most consistent activity experienced by Santa Cruz Ghost Hunters on their equipment centrally occurred downstairs, concentrated around the bar and kitchen.
2026
Today, the building has entered another chapter of its long history. After 145 years as the Cremer Hotel and Cremer House, the business was forced to close during the COVID-19 pandemic, ultimately going under after the devastating impact the pandemic had on businesses throughout the community. In 2021, the property changed hands and became home to Humble Sea Brewing.
The building has witnessed generations of people pass through its doors, from railroad workers and travelers to Hollywood actors and local patrons. Its history is well documented, while the stories of what may still linger within its walls remain a matter of personal experience and interpretation.
Whether the unexplained activity reported over the years continued under its new ownership remains to be seen. For those who experienced something unusual there, however, one question remains: Has the activity finally come to an end, or is the Cremer House simply beginning another chapter?
Humble Sea Tavern & Emerald MallardHumble Sea Tavern offers a rotating selection of light beers, hoppy ales and other craft beers, along with a full cocktail bar, wine and cider.
The Emerald Mallard kitchen has evolved into a chef-driven, California- and French-influenced food program, offering much more than burgers. Dishes have included hamachi, duck terrine, beef tartare roti and scallops, along with a popular OG Smash Burger, Pastrami Smash Burger and Spicy Chicken Sandwich. The smash burger has received strong reviews, with some saying it’s worth the wait.
A special touch is the house-baked artisan sourdough from chef Lance Ebert, known as “SC Bread Boy,” whose breads and baked goods have developed quite a following.
The Emerald Mallard kitchen has evolved into a chef-driven, California- and French-influenced food program, offering much more than burgers. Dishes have included hamachi, duck terrine, beef tartare roti and scallops, along with a popular OG Smash Burger, Pastrami Smash Burger and Spicy Chicken Sandwich. The smash burger has received strong reviews, with some saying it’s worth the wait.
A special touch is the house-baked artisan sourdough from chef Lance Ebert, known as “SC Bread Boy,” whose breads and baked goods have developed quite a following.