Sip Wine And Mingle With Ghosts In One Of Oregon's Oldest, Most Haunted Bars
×
Catherine Armstrong
Author
The thing about ghost stories is that they always seem to get more interesting over time. That might be because the folks who tell them like to add another spine-tingling detail every so often, or it could be that the people who claim to see the spirits have new horrors to tell. No matter what your take on ghosts and the supernatural, one thing’s for sure: ghost stories are fascinating bits of lore.
There’s one bar in Oregon that has a long history, and its ghost stories are almost as old as the property. Keep scrolling for all the creepy details, then visit to sip wine and mingle with the ghosts there.
Address: 836 North Russell Street, Portland, OR, 97227
Rumors of a brothel upstairs and an opium den in the basement are common stories surrounding the White Eagle Saloon, and both could conceivably have a bit of truth to them. The rooms upstairs may have been an organized brothel, or it may have been a place where working men took call girls on payday.
The opium den rumor involves the "Shanghaiing" of unsuspecting immigrants, who were first drugged, and then put on a ship, where they'd later wake up to find that they were now an unwilling member of the crew. Whether there was drug activity going on in the basement is unknown, but Shanghaiing was definitely happening in the blue-collar neighborhoods of Portland during the early 1900s.
The opium den rumor involves the "Shanghaiing" of unsuspecting immigrants, who were first drugged, and then put on a ship, where they'd later wake up to find that they were now an unwilling member of the crew. Whether there was drug activity going on in the basement is unknown, but Shanghaiing was definitely happening in the blue-collar neighborhoods of Portland during the early 1900s.
Advertisement
The men who frequented the White Eagle Saloon were the kind of guys who worked hard, played hard, and drank hard, and violent brawls were common. Streetcar conductors would pull up to the stop right outside the saloon and call out, "Bucket of Blood!" and the nickname stuck.
Advertisement
Some speculate that the bouncer, who worked in the bar in the early 1900s, was either murdered or Shanghaied.
Related Stories
You've Never Had Soft Serve Ice Cream Like The Treats At This Oregon Ice Cream Bar
You Might Be Joined By A Ghostly Diner At This Haunted Oregon Pizzeria
Sip Wine While You Read At Rose City Book Pub, A One-Of-A-Kind Bookstore Bar In Oregon
A man named Sam is the most commonly-seen ghost here. He was an orphan who was adopted by the owner, and grew up in the hotel. He worked and lived there his entire life, and died in room two. Guests report seeing him in the hallway and room, and feeling him touch them with cold hands. He's also been accused of flushing the toilet in the main floor restroom, and making the toilet paper fly around the women's room.
The story is that Rose fell in love with one of her customers, and he wanted to marry her and whisk her away from the brothel. The brothel owner didn't like that idea, so he murdered her. Guests in room two report hearing cries and screams coming from the closet, and say that they experience profound feelings of sadness there.
Advertisement
McMenamins once posed the question on its Facebook page of whether anyone had experienced paranormal activity, and a recent guest stated that she had stayed in room three and experienced a lot of activity. She commented that during the night, the bed started moving up and down, and she felt like someone was tickling her toes.
Employees say that the freezers open and close by themselves, and that they've felt hands shoving or pinching them. Sometimes music can be heard late at night after the place is closed. Pyschics who have visited the basement report that that the spirits there are unfriendly.
Everyone seems to agree that the place is definitely haunted. What do you think?
Learn more about McMenamins White Eagle Saloon and Hotel on its website, where you can see its full menu and history. Follow its Facebook page to see what’s new there. Have you ever seen or felt anything weird at this saloon? Tell us your creepy ghost stories in the comments!
Oregon’s oldest hotel is also supposedly haunted. Read all about the ghosts who are said to live there.
OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.