Address: 850 South Ash Avenue, Tempe, AZ 85281
Phone: 480-968-9935
Website: Casey Moore’s
Casey Moore’s Oyster House in Arizona is one of those rare places where a neighborhood bar vibe and a legitimately historic building overlap. The restaurant operates inside the W. A. Moeur House, a two-story brick home built in 1910 that later became a restaurant space and eventually one of Tempe’s most talked-about “haunted” hangouts.
The real history behind the building
Before it was known for oysters and late-night pints, the building was a private residence. According to the City of Tempe’s historic property documentation, the house was built in 1910 and served as the residence of William A. Moeuruntil his death in 1929.
William A. Moeur is remembered locally for civic involvement, including helping organize the Tempe school system and serving on the first Tempe school board. The same city documentation notes he was also chairman of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors (1912–1915) and later Arizona’s first land commissioner (appointed in 1915, serving until 1921).
A few timeline points that matter if you’re trying to understand why ghost stories cling to this place:
- 1973: The house was rehabilitated and converted to restaurant use.
- 1973–1986: A restaurant called “9th and Ash” operated here.
- 1986–present: The property has been Casey Moore’s Oyster House.
- May 7, 1984: The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Even the architecture is part of the appeal. The City of Tempe describes the design as a variant of Western Colonial style with roof elements reminiscent of Victorian architecture, including notable exterior details like a bellcast copper roofand distinctive brickwork.
Why Casey Moore’s has a haunted reputation
Plenty of old buildings have “ghost stories,” but Casey Moore’s has two things that keep the legends alive:
- A documented residential past (it was a family home for years, not just a commercial space).
- A long-running pattern of staff and visitor reports that are specific enough to repeat: upstairs rooms, after-hours activity, and objects moving.
A modern example comes from an Arizona’s Family feature (Nov. 2024), which ties the hauntings directly to the home’s early residents and the upstairs area. The report says the building was constructed in 1910 and served as a home for William and Mary Moeur, and notes that stories of hauntings at Casey Moore’s go back decades.
Reported paranormal encounters and where they happen
Most of the stories cluster around the upstairs rooms.
The upstairs “dancing” sightings
Arizona’s Family reports that an upstairs bedroom was remodeled into a dining room (used sparingly), and this is where the ghosts of William and Mary have been described as appearing, including sightings of them “dancing.”
Whether you believe in apparitions or not, it’s a consistent motif: the upstairs is the focal point, and the activity tends to be described as human and familiar, not monster-movie stuff.
Lights, doors, and things that will not stay put
In the same Arizona’s Family piece, a server described a mix of reports that include place settings being rearranged and utensils found in unusual locations, plus after-hours issues like lights switching off and cabinet doors opening.
One line from that interview that stuck with a lot of viewers was the claim that “forks and knives have been found in the ceiling.”
A published “ghost hunt” inside the bar
Phoenix New Times ran a well-known piece (Oct. 2008) where a small group did an amateur overnight investigation in the upstairs rooms. The article describes EVP-like whispers captured on a tape recorder, including a moment where a whisper sounded like “yeah” in response to a comment, and it also recounts a fork abruptly falling on the other side of the room from where they were sitting.
That kind of detail is part of why Casey Moore’s gets repeated in local “most haunted” conversations. It’s not just “a creepy feeling,” it’s tied to specific events people can point to and argue about.
How to experience it without being weird about it
If you’re visiting because you’re curious about the haunting stories, it helps to treat it like a restaurant first and a legend second.
A few practical tips that match how the stories are commonly described:
- Ask politely about upstairs seating if that’s your goal. It is not always in use.
- If you want the “after-hours” vibe people talk about, remember the famous reports often involve late-night or closing-time moments, including the Phoenix New Times overnight stakeout that ran from midnight to 4 a.m.
- Keep your expectations realistic. Most reports are small, everyday disruptions: lights, doors, objects, odd sounds.
Never trespass on property that isn’t yours without permission, and remember ghost hunting can be dangerous, so always use caution.
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