Still Waters: Stories from The Elms Hotel & Spa Archive

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The Third Floor

July 10, 2026 The Elms Hotel & Spa
Bed in hotel guestroom

Overview 

A housekeeper's diary page from the third floor, written by a woman whose name is reduced in the file to one initial: A.
 
She is writing about work. In the middle of an ordinary shift record, she describes a particular way of folding the lower left corner of a bed — a method she arrived at herself, because it holds better.
 
 

an open book with writing on it

 
 
Tuesday, the 6th
 
Third floor. 301 through 319, excepting 312 (Mrs. Corbin, extended stay, no service). Began at seven.
 
301: Checkout. Linens stripped and sent below. Floor swept, surfaces wiped. Guest had left a calling card on the dresser. I left it. It is not my place to dispose of correspondence.
 
306: Couples rate, staying through Thursday. Fresh linens, as they were not in the room. They have arranged their personal effects very precisely on the right-hand nightstand and not at all on the left. I made the bed accordingly.
 
309: The mirror in 309 has been loose in its mounting for three weeks. I have left a note for Mr. Halverson. He will attend to it when he attends to it.
 
314: Single occupant, businessmen's rate. Departed before I arrived, which I prefer. The condition of the room was considerable. I have aired the mattress.
 
316: The ladies from the Kansas City party. Particular about towel placement. Two of the bath linens were on the floor in a manner I do not think was accidental. I replaced them without comment. Comment is not my function.
 
Beds. My method: top sheet mitered at the foot, fitted sheet taut to the headboard, pillowcases facing the door. At the lower left corner, I make a tuck inward — folded back against the mattress edge, tucked under — before laying the drape. It holds better this way. The corner does not come loose if the guest turns in the night, and it requires no pin, which can shift. I was not trained to make beds this way. I arrived at it myself in the second year and I have made them this way since. The beds stay made.
 
No incidents to report. The third floor is quiet.
 
I returned to 309 before supper to check whether Mr. Halverson had attended to the mirror. He had not.
 
The bed had been made again.
 
The lower left corner was tucked in my manner. I had not serviced the room twice.

 

Still Waters is a narrative series inspired by the history of The Elms Hotel & Spa in Excelsior Springs, Missouri. Each story blends documented history, local lore, and original storytelling. While many places, people, and events are rooted in the historical record, the letters, journals, conversations, and personal accounts are works of historical fiction created to bring the past to life.

Our goal is not to recreate history exactly as it happened, but to honor the people, places, and moments that shaped The Elms and the community surrounding it through stories that could have been told by those who lived them.


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