Where to go on a haunted bar crawl in Portland
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You don't need to perform a seance to get in touch with spirits this Halloween — just open a bar tab.
The big picture: With its gritty history, storied architecture and larger-than-life characters who once roamed its streets, Portland can sometimes feel a bit haunted.
- Yes, but: We're not ones to shy away from the eerie or witchy, so why not share a beer with the ghosts that never left?
Old Town Pizza and Brewing
226 NW Davis St.
Built on top of downtown Portland's secret network of underground tunnels — where illicit activity was rampant and men were kidnapped to forcibly crew ships in the 19th century — this brewpub is said to be haunted by a resident perfume-wearing ghost named Nina, who died in the basement below.
McMenamins White Eagle Saloon & Hotel
836 N Russell St.
This two-story building on the eastern edge of the Willamette River dating back to 1905 is perhaps Portland's most haunted — boasting a whole host of unruly spirits who aren't afraid to make themselves known.
- Whether its reports of a woman sobbing over her murdered lover in the bar's corner booth, beds shaking patrons awake in the upstairs rooms or a ghost named Sam backing up the toilets, you run the gauntlet when you walk through the doors.
Benson Hotel and The Palm Court
309 SW Broadway
The prolific lumber baron and philanthropist himself, owner Simon Benson, is said to roam the halls of his namesake hotel looking quite dapper.
- Guests have reported seeing his apparition looking well-groomed and in formal wear, knocking drinks out of patrons' hands at the bar or descending the stairwells between the seventh, ninth and 12th floors.
Rimsky-Korsakoffee House
707 SE 12th Ave.
Not afraid of leaning into its "casually threatening" aura, this late-night kitschy coffeehouse has animatronic tables that randomly shake or move up and down, playing into the rumor that the Victorian house is possessed by its former writer tenants.
Between the lines: What's truth, what's myth and what's local legend all blur together here, so take this list with a grain of salt (and it won't hurt to bring some with you, too).