Oregon Vortex and House of Mystery
People view the world in a very set way. Reality is what we can see and touch, and nothing could bend it one way or another. It’s a set of natural rules and laws with no give, designed to dictate how tangible objects react to one another. All of that is challenged in a quirky spot southwest of Portland, nestled between Rogue River and Interstate 5. It may not look like much, but it’s garnered enough attention to become a popular tourist destination and a plot point for an episode of The X-Files. The Oregon Vortex and House of Mystery aren’t your typical supernatural anomalies.
Don’t expect to be visited by ghastly spirits or demonic entities. Instead, you’ll have your perceptions of what’s possible in our reality turned on end as you explore grounds once deemed “forbidden” by local Native American tribes. Lore states that even horses turned away from the Oregon Vortex, suggesting something sinister disrupting the fabric of our reality. Is a paranormal threat causing the trickery found at the Oregon Vortex, or is it merely all an illusion?
What is the Secret of the Oregon Vortex?
The origins of the Oregon Vortex are virtually unknown. Its existence dates back to before the House of Mystery was first constructed in 1904, possibly even beyond the lifetime of the Native American tribe that once condemned the land. Theories suggest it’s a force field encompassing a diameter of 165 feet. Still, it’s all conjecture and speculation about something that, considering what we know to be possible and not, shouldn’t exist.
Though visiting the Oregon Vortex may not unlock all of its secrets, it’s an impossibility worth seeing during a visit to Portland. Is it simply an optical illusion blown out of proportion? Then how does one explain the horses that refuse to enter the Forbidden Grounds? Book your spot today for a ghost tour with Portland Ghosts, and don’t miss out on the strange and unusual that plagues The City of Roses.
Before the Tourist Attraction
It may be a tourist attraction today, but where the Oregon Vortex and House of Mystery sit was once simply a stretch of land inhabited by local Native American tribes. Natives were wary of the mysterious, invisible orb and only spoke of it in a negative light as if they knew something about its potential to cause harm. Dubbed the “Forbidden Grounds,” their hesitation to even interact with the unusual vortex stemmed partially from their horses’ reaction. As demonstrated many years later, Natives observed horses avoiding the patch entirely.
Eventually, the land changed hands and became the property of the Old Grey Eagle Mining Company. The mining company built a wooden assay near the vortex, where metals were separated from the rock and given a value. Built in 1904, the assay slid off the foundation a little over six years later during a landslide, giving it the appearance of a structure affected by the nearby vortex. Some may still say it resulted from the vortex, especially when they step inside and find themselves standing at what looks like an impossible angle.
Come One, Come All
Scottish native John Litster wasn’t a man known for dabbling in roadside attractions, but in 1920, he took on the old mining assay and, with it, accomplished two things. First, he ran experiments in the vortex to satisfy the curiosity of his physicist and geologist roots. Many of his experiments produced confusing results that, to the physicist, could only be explained by a supernatural or unknown force. Among them was rolling objects up a hill and finding that, rather than losing momentum, they continued to travel until they leveled off.
Furthermore, in 1930, he opened the vortex and assay to tourists, hoping to show them the marvels that he found to be unexplainable. Dubbed the House of Mystery, the slanted wooden structure became a focal point of the area, drawing in travelers from all over to test if they could uncover the secret to its unusual and oft-impossible properties.
Though Litster passed away 29 years later, his legacy continued as the property was sold off. Before his death, Litster had completed Notes and Data, a collection of everything he had hypothesized and tested in the vortex.
The Repelling Force of the Oregon Vortex
A rational individual could look at the visual oddities of the Oregon Vortex and piece together an explanation rooted in what they deem to be “the real world.” However, that ignores one of the more fascinating facts about the mysterious force field. From Native Americans to the investigators of The Oregonian, witnesses have watched as horses do all they can to avoid walking through the disruptive force.
In a 2012 investigation determined to uncover the reality behind the vortex, a team from The Oregonian tried to ride horses through the center. Before they could even reach the border of where the vortex is said to be, the horses stopped and turned around. It’s peculiar behavior for an animal, which, coupled with incorrect compass readings and unexplainable changes in height, suggests something disruptive about the vortex.
Leave Logic at the Door at the Oregon Vortex
There’s something unusual about the slanted mystery house, and it goes well beyond just its physical appearance. When you enter it, it’s like the air changes, almost as if you’ve stepped inside a supernatural or unnatural force that has a unique hold on this isolated piece of Oregon. Many may write off the Oregon Vortex and House of Mystery as a corny roadside attraction, but it can be hard to dismiss the potential magic at work when you see it firsthand.
Maybe it’s ghosts, maybe it’s not. Its unusual and potentially paranormal nature makes it a fitting conversation piece when discussing Oregon lore. Book your ghost tour today with Portland Ghosts and try to uncover the secrets of Portland’s ghostly tales. Keep up with our blog for even more Portland haunts and oddities, and check out our Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok pages.
Sources:
https://thatoregonlife.com/2016/06/oregon-vortex-one-strangest-places-earth/
https://www.shareoregon.com/things-to-do/en/listings/126529-oregon-vortex-house-of-mystery
https://oregonvortex.com/photographs.htm
https://www.oregonlive.com/travel/2017/06/is_the_oregon_vortex_real_road.html
https://oregonvortex.com/science.htm
https://www.oregonlive.com/movies/2012/06/fact_or_faked_paranormal_files.html