The Night Owl Podcast: "Haunted Freddo ATX – Part I" (Episode 59)

Podcast: The Night Owl: True Ghost Stories
Host: Night Owl Paranormal Research Society (Stephen Belyeu)
Date: April 28, 2025
Topic: The Haunted History and Paranormal Experiences at Freddo ATX, a Historic Victorian Coffeehouse in Austin, Texas

Overview / Main Theme

In this episode, Stephen Belyeu and the Night Owl team investigate the ghostly reputation of Freddo ATX, a beloved coffeehouse, bar, and eatery housed in an 1876 Victorian mansion on South Congress Avenue. Once the home of local businessman and Texas State Senator Walter Tips, the building has seen many lives—from family home to bank to boot shop—before becoming Freddo ATX. Throughout its history, especially since its relocation in 1975, it has developed a reputation for haunted happenings: eerie noises, unexplained voices, mysterious children at the windows, and flickering lights. The team speaks with the owners, staff, and local ghost tour guides to unravel the layers of the haunting, exploring personal stories and local lore.

Key Discussion Points, Experiences & Insights

1. The History and Architectural Legacy of Freddo ATX

• [00:00-08:15] Host narration: Stephen provides a vivid tour of the house's layout, detailing how the Victorian structure was relocated and restored, including original features like wood flooring, ornate cornices, and the iconic wraparound porch.
• The building's history stretches from its construction in 1876 for Walter Tips, through various incarnations, nearly being demolished, and finally saved and moved in 1975.
• Unique fact: A prominent photograph in the upstairs lounge shows the house being relocated (the first of its kind to be moved intact in Austin).

2. Owners’ Stories: Tony, Lefty & Harry

Tony and Lefty Interview (Upstairs Office)

• [08:15-33:17]
• Tony and Lefty, both of Greek heritage and passionate about combining Greek coffee culture with Austin's eclectic vibes, recount their decision to preserve the home’s old-world charm while modernizing its function.
• Both attest to an "eerie feeling" in the building, particularly during early morning or late evening when alone.
• Lefty describes routine occurrences: persistent knocking noises in the office, with no logical explanation—no pipes or mechanical explanations found ([18:42], [19:04]).
  • Quote (Lefty, 18:42): "What's really strange for me, to be honest, every time I'm coming to this office... I'm gonna hear like a knocking noise that comes from up there. There's no plumbing or anything. There's nothing, Nothing."
• Recollection of a key pre-opening event with Lauren, a coffee rep, who clearly heard voices upstairs when no one was present ([15:19]).
  • Quote (Lefty, 15:19): "I'm not kidding, guys. There are people upstairs, they're talking."
• Tales of other business tenants and construction crews reporting similar unexplained sounds and feelings of being watched.
• Tony’s girlfriend once experienced a violently closing door and an automatic paper towel dispenser activating by itself in an empty upstairs office area ([21:10]).
• The owners often joke that unexplained occurrences are due to "Walter," referencing the home's original owner ([32:40]).
• Tony explains how visiting relatives of Walter Tips confirmed the upstairs room as Walter’s, linking current hotspots of activity to historic personal spaces ([26:56]).

Harry’s Interview (Owner/GM)

• [37:23-51:32]
• Harry, the Californian co-owner, shares a series of compelling early experiences:
  • Hearing inexplicable rustling from empty drawers during the renovation.
  • Hearing groaning/moaning sounds while alone in the attic and chasing the sound room to room, finding nothing ([37:23-39:30]).
  • Electrical oddities: all lights upstairs shutting off by themselves, and light bulbs continuing to light up even after being physically removed ([40:00-41:30]).
  • Reports from two staff members of seeing an "older gentleman" in period clothing, appearing and then vanishing. His entrance and exit never triggered the loud front door fan ([41:45-44:41]).
    • Quote (Harry, 44:41): "They're both saw something a few times and I almost kind of felt like I was missing out because I didn't get to see this."
  • On Halloween, heard his name called from outside but no one around—“It opened my eyes and my ears” ([45:17]).
  • Multiple guests mention seeing children peering from upstairs windows; one woman even threatened to call CPS ([46:00]).
  • Harry’s most disturbing event: a bathroom door next to the upstairs office shook violently while he was alone. “My heart rate just jumped big time. My face turned pale. Right now, talking about now, the back of my hairs are standing up because that was the closest I've heard and seen here, something moving, which is totally unexplained.” ([47:58])
  • Harry describes a shift in atmosphere: the downstairs always feels positive and warm, but “as soon as I start ascending these stairs, that’s when things start to change a little bit.” ([48:37])

3. Local Ghost Tour Guides: Haunted ATX’s Kaelyn & Marisol

Kaelyn (Tour Guide, Haunted ATX)

• [53:23-67:12]
• Offers a concise historical summary, then focuses on her and coworkers’ immediate and repeated experience of an “unwelcome” oppressive sensation on entering the building—particularly on the first floor and outside the main lounge.
  • Quote (Kaelyn, 54:14): “This wave just hit me of, I'm not welcome here. Get out. I don't want you here.”
• Another tour guide with mediumship abilities validated Kaelyn’s experience, claiming spirit presence behind her, which left as suddenly as it came ([55:30]).
• Reports of children appearing at specific upstairs windows: “Since Fredo opened up about two years ago, there have been 30 to 40 separate reports of children standing in the window. They're not doing anything insane. They're not even trying to get anybody's attention. They're just standing there.” ([62:40])
• Recalls EMF meter spikes, pin-point headaches while communicating with a “little boy” spirit during a paranormal investigation.
• Notes that the reported child ghosts don’t match any recorded fatalities at the home—suggesting a mystery as to why children are seen.
• Proposes theories: spirits attached to the land after the home’s relocation, or something stirred up during the move.

Marisol (Tour Guide/Trance Medium, Haunted ATX)

• [67:31-84:04]
• Multiple guests (including skeptics) report being touched, chairs kicked, or sensed they’re “not alone in the room.”
• Marisol herself saw (in bathroom mirror) a woman in 1900s dress who vanished instantly, then experienced the lights switching on and off ([68:51]).
• During orientations with tour guides, technological malfunctions plagued video calls while both she and Kaelyn sensed a “little boy” spirit present.
• During a trance session, she communicated with a “hesitant but welcoming” little boy spirit, intrigued by a dog in a nearby room—a headache vanished as soon as the spirit left ([72:45-73:45]).
  • Quote (Marisol, 73:00): “As soon as I said, he wants to go see the dog, he just left… my head just stopped hurting."
• Downstairs, contact was made with a sad little girl spirit who refused to go upstairs, saying, “my brother is upstairs… I am not allowed up there” and expressed fear of a threatening man visible through the window ([74:00-75:00]).
• Consistent reports, especially in summer, of a dramatic cold spot at the top of the stairs—even in Texas heat ([77:30]).
• Marisol’s overall impression: Walter Tips is welcoming, but the children’s spirits are less so, especially the girl. The house’s (and spirits’) unease may be due to the trauma of relocation.

4. Staff Experiences: Brandon & Kane

Brandon (Barista)

• [84:34-86:49]
• Within four months: heard a clear, youthful voice call “I’m up here” from an empty upstairs.
• Noted general feelings of unease, especially when alone, and unique “air” upstairs late at night. Recounts needing to make a late-night return, feeling goosebumps and a strong urge to leave quickly.

Kane (Kitchen)

• [86:50-88:46]
• Alone in the building in the afternoon, he closed the storage room door behind him, which then violently flung open so hard it “almost cracked” the glass—no one nearby, no wind or mechanical reason.
• Felt the experience wasn't angry, but a definite warning “like I shouldn’t be in there.”
  • Quote (Kane, 87:36): “It definitely felt like a warning... almost like I shouldn't be in there.”

Notable & Memorable Quotes (with Timestamps)

• Tony (Owner):

  • “When we originally got the building… we wanted to maintain that element, but bridge the gap with the modern.” ([10:02])
  • “When we hear something or, you know, we talk with Harry and let's say there was a mistake… a lot of times… he goes, ‘oh, it was Walter that did it.’” ([32:40])

• Lefty (Owner):

  • “Every time I'm coming to this office... I'm gonna hear like a knocking noise that comes from up there. There's no plumbing or anything.” ([18:42])
  • “Again, the people who worked here before and ex employees, they told us about that, you know, stuff, you know, things moving, door not open, lights will be on and off.” ([19:31])

• Harry (Owner):

  • “I heard rustling like there was an animal inside one of the shelves… There was nothing.” ([37:43])
  • “For the first three months, a person would appear staring at the menu… We’d ask, can we help you? … Would just stare. And then we look away after a few minutes and then look back and this person would be gone.” ([41:20])
  • “My heart rate just jumped big time. My face turned pale. Right now, talking about now the back of my hairs are standing up because that was the closest I've heard and seen here, something moving, which is totally unexplained.” ([47:58])

• Kaelyn (Tour Guide):

  • “This wave just hit me of, I'm not welcome here. Get out. I don't want you here.” ([54:14])
  • “There have been 30 to 40 separate reports of children standing in the window. They're not doing anything insane… just standing there.” ([62:40])

• Marisol (Medium):

  • “As soon as I opened the door, there was a woman standing right behind me... I went to look back again behind me, and nothing was there anymore.” ([68:51-69:55])
  • “She says, the little girl says that she is a very simple, sad little girl… There's a man looking at us out the window. I don't like that man. He's a bad man. And then she disappears after that.” ([74:28])

• Brandon (Staff):

  • “From upstairs, I just hear, 'I'm up here.' And it was weird. It freaked me out, out in the moment because I definitely heard it.” ([85:20])

• Kane (Staff):

  • “The door like flung open behind me… It definitely felt like a warning... almost like I shouldn't be in there.” ([87:36])

Theories & Interpretations

• Repeated claims that paranormal activity only began after the 1975 relocation, lending credence to speculation that the move itself (or the new land) “stirred things up."
• Spirits reported include: Walter Tips (male, possibly the host), his children—a little boy (upstairs) and girl (downstairs)—as well as a woman in dated black dress and a menacing older man seen by the window.
• Reports are often sensory (“feeling watched” or “unwelcome”), auditory (knocking, voices), visual (children in windows, shadow figures), and physical (slamming doors, flickering lights).
• Outwardly, the spirits seem nonviolent; generally the owners and staff express a wish to peacefully coexist—and, if anything, to learn what might make the spirits happier.

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:00–08:15 – Host’s introduction, building history, audio house tour
• 08:15–33:17 – Interview: Owners Tony & Lefty (haunted experiences, house preservation)
• 37:23–51:32 – Interview: Owner Harry (first-hand hauntings, phantom figures, Halloween experience)
• 53:23–67:12 – Interview: Kaelyn (Haunted ATX) (history, tour experiences, children in windows)
• 67:31–84:04 – Interview: Marisol (Haunted ATX, trance medium) (spirit contacts, emotional impacts)
• 84:34–86:49 – Interview: Brandon (staff) (phantom voice, closing anecdote)
• 86:50–88:46 – Interview: Kane (staff) (storage room door, warning sensation)
• 88:46–End – Host’s wrap-up and preview of Part II

Summary Tone and Takeaway

The episode is atmospheric, respectful, and open-minded, echoing the curiosity and wonder of those who work at and visit Freddo ATX. While playful “blame it on Walter” jokes are common, every witness—owners, staff, tour guides—shares an abiding respect for the building and its past residents. Paranormal experiences are described in clear, sincere language, with the hosts and interviewees committed to exploring the mysteries further (including an upcoming psychic investigation).

Final note from Tony:
“Whether you are alive or not, we're all humans. And in spirit, we all need to coexist in a harmonious way.” ([31:55])

Next Episode Preview:
The Night Owl team will return with psychic mediums for a blind investigation, seeking deeper answers about Walter Tips, the children, and whatever presence lingers at Freddo ATX.

For fans of haunted history and authentic ghost stories, this episode delivers a rich blend of local lore, personal experiences, and uncanny mysteries—leaving listeners both unsettled and eager for more.