The Dakota Apartments, with its steep gables, dark stone facade, and towering spires, exudes an ominous, Gothic presence on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Overlooking Central Park, the building stands as a relic of another era, its shadowy courtyards and dimly lit hallways evoking 140 years of history—and the darker secrets that linger within its walls.
Built between 1880 and 1884 by architect Henry Janeway Hardenbergh for Edward Clark, the Dakota was one of the first luxury apartment buildings in New York City. Its remote location at the time earned it the name “Dakota,” a nod to the distant Dakota Territory. Over the decades, the building housed many prominent figures, from Lauren Bacall to Leonard Bernstein and Judy Garland. Most famously, it was home to John Lennon, whose tragic murder just outside the Dakota only deepened the building’s eerie mystique.
On the night of December 8, 1980, Mark David Chapman waited for Lennon at the Dakota’s south entrance, shooting him in the back. Lennon died on the scene. Since then, several witnesses have reported seeing his ghost near the archway, bathed in ethereal light. Even Yoko Ono is said to have seen John’s spirit at their piano, softly assuring her, “Don’t be afraid, I’m still with you.”
Lennon had his own strange encounters at the Dakota. He and other tenants experienced sightings of the “crying lady,” believed to be the spirit of Elise Vesely, the building manager from the 1930s to the 1950s. Vesely, devastated by the death of her son in a tragic accident outside the Dakota, was known for her protective attitude towards residents, especially children. Some say her ghost remains, watching over the building and its tenants to this day. Others believe she lingers to care for another of the Dakota’s spectral inhabitants—a young girl in a yellow taffeta dress who bounces a ball in the halls, telling anyone she meets that it’s her birthday.
Renovations to the building seem to stir its restless spirits. Workmen have reported eerie encounters, from tools vanishing to heavy objects being hurled across rooms. In the 1930s, electrician John Paynter had a series of unnerving run-ins with a short figure wearing wire-framed glasses and a poorly fitting wig. The figure would appear out of the shadows, shake the wig in frustration, and vanish. Paynter later recognized the apparition as none other than the original owner, Edward Clark.
Paranormal activity surged again in 1976, shortly after the death of Broadway set designer and Dakota resident Jo Meilzneir, who was struck by a cab outside the building. During renovations—including the installation of elevator panels Meilzneir had designed—workers were assailed by flying objects, and a can of paint fell from the rooftop, nearly killing someone. Meilzneir’s panels were repeatedly slashed, even after being replaced, and piles of shredded paper, as if from a thwarted arson attempt, appeared throughout the building. Neighbors banded together in a covert surveillance effort to catch the culprit, but only uncovered which of their neighbors were having affairs. Ultimately, the disturbances were blamed on the spirit of Edward Clark, disgruntled over the changes to his beloved Dakota
While Clark didn’t build the Dakota over the gateway of Gozer the Gozarian, it has certainly reached legendary status for its hauntings and other worldly atmosphere. Director Roman Polansky immortalized the iconic building in his cult classic, Rosemary’s Baby, using it as the exterior of his Satanist infested Bramford Apartments. Even today, residents report strange happenings and unexplained phenomenon, qualifying it as one of the most haunted sites in New York – if not the entire United States.
Jason Roberts is a Seattle-based author noted for his acclaimed Western Horror series The Dead Wind Trilogy and other works of cosmic horror infused with historical fiction. His web-based series, Dark Distractions, examines paranormal mysteries, unexplained phenomena, and all things strange.
