The days are getting shorter and the nights are getting longer, the leaves are falling, and there’s a spooky chill in the air. You can almost feel Halloween coming. This means it’s time to find the most haunted places in North Portland!
North Portland has plenty of 20th-century buildings that have been the locations of North Portland’s dark and twisted past. This October, be sure to check out some of the most haunted places in North Portland–that is, if you’re not too scared!
The White Eagle is Haunted
The White Eagle opened its doors in 1905 and served the immigrant Polish workers that lived in the surrounding neighborhoods. Currently in the industrial part of the Eliot neighborhood, the White Eagle and upstairs Rock and Roll Hotel is a popular bar and 11-guestroom hotel that holds a tradition of having live music every night.
The White Eagle is considered by many as one one of the most haunted places in North Portland. This might be due to the apparition of Rose, who many believe was a courtesan that was held against her will along with others in the basement of the building. The White Eagle also happens to be connected to the Shanghai Tunnels. Could it be the tormented spirits of shanghaied mariners that continue to check in to the Rock and Roll Hotel?
Ghost Girl in Cathedral Park
One of North Portland’s beloved public parks has many dark secrets. The murder of Thelma Taylor is one of those secrets and why Cathedral Park is one of the most haunted places in North Portland. The story tells of the young 15-year-old waiting under the St. Johns bridge at Cathedral Park for a berry truck to give her a lift to work. Four days later, Thelma Taylor’s body was found brutally beaten and bound under the St. Johns bridge. Locals say that on warm summer nights you can hear her tortured screams in the breeze. Police are allegedly called every now and then to investigate such sounds.
By Ian Poellet (User:Werewombat) (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons
North Portland Library and the Ghost on Camera
A dark figure resembling a man was seen through a video surveillance system sitting on a chair on the second floor of the North Portland Library. The figure was seen by the staff in a conference room that was known to be vacant at the time. When the library staff went up to the conference room to investigate, the apparition was nowhere to be seen. But when they revisited the surveillance monitor, the ghostly dark figure continued to appear seated in the chair. The library staff returned for a second time to inspect the conference room, but the shadowy figure had vanished. Library members have reported hearing footsteps following them around between book aisles. Could it be the dark figure from the surveillance footage? Or could it be a wandering soul visiting from the crematorium across the street?
By Visitor7 (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
The Falcon Apartments Up in Flames
The ghost of a former resident who continues to haunt the hallways has been seen and heard by many. Mailboxes have been heard rattling and slamming shut. There have been knocks from unseen hands on doors. There have been a series of fires that remain unexplained. In one instance, the assistant manager of the building extinguished a fire that had ignited in the hallway at the exact location where Mr.Cooke had been known for years to always set up his chair and sit quietly. The very next night a larger and more serious fire ignites at the very same spot and the whole building has to be evacuated. Security doors were locked and no suspects were ever found.
Perhaps the most haunted location at the Falcon Apartments is within apartment 101. There have been reports of phones ringing with no one on the line, whispers being heard, household objects shifting and moving throughout the house, and even toilet seats springing up by themselves. Could it be the ghost of Mr. Cooke that makes the Falcon Apartments one of the most haunted places in North Portland?
By Visitor7 (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
Jantzen Beach Carousel
Jantzen Beach Carousel used to be a fixture at an amusement park on Hayden Island called “The Coney Island of the West” that was open for around 50 years. After some floods, a huge fire, and an accidental death on a roller coaster, the attendance at the park declined while the property values on surrounding counties began to skyrocket and forcing the amusement park close in 1960. Most of the amusement park was dismantled except for the carousel. The carousel was left as part of the Jantzen Beach Shopping Center. It is at this carousel that many children have witnessed ghost children playing in the center of the ride. A handful of adults have also witnessed these alleged ghost children and have even described them to have been wearing 1920s-style clothing.
By SamBartlett1963 (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
University of Portland
They say that Waldschmidt Hall is haunted by the spirit of a young boy who drowned in the Willamette River back in the 1800s when the University of Portland was a boarding school. Some say the University is haunted by the Native American spirits that used to live on the land. Apparitions have been reported by various student in different locations at the University of Portland. Pots, pans, and other kitchen utensils have been thrown across rooms and some have even claimed to have been chased by pushcarts in dining areas. A married couple and two of their children have reported several instances of a “shadow man” apparition. A college freshman claims to have seen an apparition of a young boy with wet hair and clothes looking up from the bottom of the stairs. Is the University of Portland one of the most haunted places in North Portland?
Featured Image: By SamBartlett1963 (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons