You want to know the real story of Portland
There’s so much more to Portland than its recent hipster revival; it has its own unique atmosphere and its own quirky history. Like the dedicated fire chief from the early 1900s who still hangs around Kell’s Irish Bar. He led practically the entire Portland Volunteer Fire Department into a blaze at an oil distribution plant, nearly losing his life. The firehouse he was stationed at is just a block and a half away from Kells Bar, maybe he haunts his regular bar waiting for the next callout?
Portland’s early development got a boost when it was discovered the Willamette River was deep enough to allow ocean-going ships to dock. The rapid development in the previously densely forested land meant a great deal of the tree stumps were left standing, some in the middle of new roads and besides new houses. Some were painted white, so people didn’t trip over them. One visitor reported more stumps than trees in Portland, giving it the Stumptown nickname.
Your haunted tour will take you to a curated selection of locations with fascinating stories, and authentic ghosts that reveal this city’s history and the darker side of its past.
You only have a short time in Portland.
Portland’s downtown is easily walkable, and the carefully chosen route takes you to the best 8 or 12 locations to give you an entertaining look at the city’s ghostly past. We walk past the rebuilt Erickson’s Saloon, which once had one of the longest bars in the country, nearly 700 feet long, 30 bartenders could serve 300 men 10c pints of German beer, or 5c pints of domestic!
Upstairs at Erickson’s Saloon was a disease-infested sex factory, ‘street girls’ operated a rapid turnaround brothel in deplorable conditions. The ghosts of the original building that burned down continue to haunt the masonry building there today, confused ghosts of loggers have been seen hurrying around the upstairs, now a set of apartments.
This is just one of the 8 locations on the standard tour that all have fantastic stories attached, if you want more, opt for the extended tour to see an additional 4 locations that put you in touch with the true character of this town, and the stories of its longest residents!
You are skeptical of the Supernatural.
We won’t try to change your mind if you don’t currently have the imagination to see the connection with the energy we put into the world and our continued presence after we die. Even if these compelling ghost tales don’t change your mind, we’ll leave you with a vivid and atmospheric tour through the history of Portland and its past residents.
Like Frank Woon, restauranteur, Chinese immigrant, and gangland boss! He used imported thugs from San Francisco (where nothing good comes from!) Frank hatched a plan to establish his gang as the pack of top dogs. His brainwave devolved into an eighteen-minute street fight, with blood and corpses left in the street afterward, and Frank still not the top dog. He tortured a succession of rivals in his restaurant storage room over the years, many of whom had his stacks of onions as the last things on this earth that they saw.
Later on, Frank started being tormented by the ghosts of his rivals; he was seen running from his restaurant late at night, chased by nobody. He was later found dead on the second-floor balcony one day, clutching a stick, his eyes wide open. Portland Ghosts tour will show you where Frank haunts today and what has become of the Restaurant.
You want something the whole family will enjoy.
Ghost tours can sometimes focus only on the gory details, ruining any chance of a good night’s sleep. They tend to exaggerate the bloodiness and diminish the subtle art of a good scare. The approach at Portland Ghosts is to paint a vivid picture of the lives of the people in the stories, the better we recreate a truly absorbing picture of life in Old Portland, the more scared you will be when we reveal the bloodcurdling nature of their deaths and how they continue to haunt us!
However, we don’t want anyone to lose sleep, even younger members on the tours. We proudly encourage the whole family to come on the Portland Ghosts tour and see what it was like to be convicted of the most serious crimes and sentenced to death at the Multnomah County Courthouse, now the site of the impressive and beautiful City Hall.
We’ll tell you the stories of the people who haunt the City Hall today, and what strange supernatural acts they use to make their presence felt.
You've done the hipster stuff and want to know more.
Portland has a great vibe, good community, and some really off the beaten track things to see and do. The Ace Hotel downtown is about the hippest place to stay, and it’s just down the road from the ‘best book store on earth’ Powell’s Books. If you have been to the Smoked Vegan restaurant up in Cathedral Park and rented a 90s mountain bike from the guy who is also an urban goat farmer (true story), then you might be looking around for what else Portland has to offer.
The rain here is pretty regular or threatening, at least, so there are a bunch of great cinemas and film festivals here. The Northwest Film Center has a great theatre and a constant rotation of events. But if you are looking for something a bit more personal, then try Portland Ghosts. You’ll hear engaging and thrilling stories told by knowledgable and entertaining local guides from the very spots the spooky stories happened; you will hear tales from throughout the fascinating history of Portland.
You will hear 8 stories of horrible hauntings, but no one will jump out on you, and nothing is going to explode or appear out of nowhere. Instead, the carefully researched and skillfully told stories will paint an engrossing picture of the real lives our ghosts led and the tragic circumstances of their death. We let your own mind do most of the work, imagining the pain, and turmoil, the injustice, and fear, so when you hear the verified accounts of the hauntings these ghosts create today, the fear will be all of your own making.
