The Haunted Heathman Hotel
Located on beautiful SW Broadway Street in the heart of downtown Portland, the Heathman Hotel opened its doors in 1927. It’s renowned for its comfortable and luxurious rooms, which supported over three hundred guests and stood eleven stories tall. The Heathman Hotel also happens to be known for its otherworldly activity.
Why is the Heathman Hotel haunted?
The Heathman Hotel’s haunted reputation stems from a combination of its historic nature, the legend of the guest in Room 703, and the many unexplained events experienced by guests and staff. Read on to learn more about the eerie events that plague the Heathman Hotel, and to uncover more of Portland’s most haunted locations, book a ghost tour with Portland Ghosts!
The New Heathman
The Heathman, originally called the New Heathman, is one of the oldest remaining buildings of its time. George Heathman, a general contractor known for creating other well-known local buildings, including the Roosevelt Hotel, built the Heathman for a cool $1 million, over $13 million today. With wealthy investors in mind, he knew that the Heathman Hotel needed to be different than any other hotel in the area. Heathman wanted to build a hotel that would support the high station and the importance of his investors—specifically, lumber barons, railroad executives, politicians, and Portland’s upper class.
The building’s architecture, with its dark-hued paneling and arched windows, awed his guests and colleagues. George Heathman kept his promise to his wealthy investors, and this boosted his career to new heights. At the time, the Hotel was the largest construction project on record. It provided work for over 1,200 handymen, builders, and welders for seven months before its completion.
Once the work ended, a formal pre-opening party occurred on December 17, 1927. Many of the workers attended and were celebrated for their hard work. The Governor, Mayor, and local radio stations dedicated speeches in honor of the building. The Oregon Journal wrote that the Heathman is “Portland’s newest and most modern hotel.” They gushed over its construction and the amount of “human ingenuity” it took to create something so grand. The Heathman was a wondrous spectacle for all of Portland, and George Heathman could not have been more proud of his creation.
Hard Times at The Heathman
Such a grand building received a lot of attention, opening up different business avenues. The KOIN radio station moved into the Heathman in 1927 and featured live performances, bands, and even orchestra events. The flashy entertainment and good times made Heathman a fun place, and eventually, most people in Portland’s nightlife community flocked toward the hotel. Unfortunately for Heathman, the Great Depression loomed on the horizon.
KOIN eventually moved on with her sister station. A large coffee shop inside of the Hotel closed, and, like dominoes, everything else went with it. Many businesses in the area closed down, and it seemed as though the city of Portland would also have to say goodbye to the Heathman.
Sadly, George Heathman died on July 1, 1930, at 49. His wife and children decided to continue their father’s legacy by continuing to work in the hotel business. They continued to work on the Heathman Hotel up until the early 1960s. After the family moved on, Portland leaders realized that changes were needed. Portland’s lively nightlife was quickly fading, and if they didn’t step in, Portland would lose the business of the major retail stores.
Taking action, city leaders built a performing arts center called the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall next to the hotel. This move secured a spot for the investors and artists who were leaving the downtown area. The Heathman began to feel alive again. In 1984, city leaders began a renovation of the building. The Heathman presented beautiful interior spaces with a modern touch.
It seemed that this upper-class hotel regained its former prestige and then some. The Heathman prospered and changed hands a couple of times after its renovation. Rim Corporation bought the hotel in 2000 and then sold it to LaSalle Hotel Properties in 2014 for $64.3 million.
Today, the Heathman is known as one of the top 500 best hotels in the world and is listed as one of the most haunted hotels in America.
Room 703
According to the manager of the hotel, rumors say that a person jumped to their death from room 703 and fell through the glass window of the library below. Room 703 is reportedly the most haunted in the hotel for that reason. In 2008, a guest in room 703 went down to the front desk in a huff. She told the hotel staff that someone had thrown the clean towels in her room on the floor. The staff promptly replaced her towels.
Later in the evening, the woman noticed that the new towels were on the floor in the bathroom. This time, she said, she knew that no one had been in the room. Room 503 is also alive with otherworldly activity. Guests report a crying ghost waking them from a dead sleep only to vanish when they get out of their beds.
Others report things moving all about the room. This was the case for a woman who stayed in 503. She complained to the manager that someone must have entered her room without her permission. When the manager asked for further details, the woman explained that her suitcase and clothing had been moved about the room. To reassure the guest, the manager did a key audit on her room key to show which staff members, if any, entered the room that day. The report showed that no one but the guest had entered the room. The manager replaced the woman’s key just in case, but the next morning, the woman reported that her clothing had been moved again.
One of the strangest happenings reported in room 703 involved a TV. A guest taking a shower heard the TV in their room turn on. The guest turned the TV off, only for it to roar back to life a second later. The guest reported the incident to the hotel staff, who tested the TV and found no issues. The guest swore up and down that something was wrong with it. Then, just as the staff member got up to leave, the TV roared to life with the audio full blast. The guest immediately asked to be moved to another room.
Housekeeping has also reported strange activity coming from the rooms ending in 3. One worker, upon entering 503, saw a giant ball of energy zipping about the room. Soon, it became such a common occurrence that one of the cleaning staff snapped a picture of it. The photo hangs in housekeeping’s breakroom to this day.
Haunted Portland
For the brave staying in room 703 is an adventure, for others a nightmare waiting to happen. The next time you’re in Portland, be sure to stop in and experience the art, the expansive library, and everything the Heathman has to offer!
Check out our blog for more haunted tales of Portland, and to see some of the area’s most haunted locations in person, book a Portland ghost tour with Portland Ghosts!
Works Cited
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heathman_Hotel
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/hotels/galleries/The-worlds-most-haunted-hotels/heathman-hotel/
https://www.fivestaralliance.com/portland-or/countdown-the-most-haunted-hotel-the-heathman-hotel
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/a-visit-to-the-haunted-hotel/
https://www.hauntedplaces.org/item/the-heathman-hotel/
https://frightfind.com/the-heathman-hotel/
https://www.hauntedrooms.com/most-haunted-hotels-in-portland-or
https://1859oregonmagazine.com/explore-oregon/recreation/oregons-haunted-places/