JACKSONVILLE, OR – Beginning Friday, May 13, Historic Jacksonville’s Haunted History walking tours are back! Guests will be introduced to some of the town’s historic buildings along with the restless ghosts and spirits who still occupy them. Costumed guides will share notable tales of woe, sorrow, and regret on the second Friday of each month from May through September with special tours in October. Two completely different tours will be offered each evening—a Courthouse route at 7:00 and 7:30 p.m. and a Britt Hill route at 7:15 and 7:45 p.m.
These approximately one-hour walks, which leave from the Jacksonville Visitors Center at the corner of North Oregon and C streets, have limited space and reservations are required. Reservations must be made on-line at www.historicjacksonville.org/haunted-history-tours/ no later than 4pm on the day of the tour. “Walk ups” cannot be accommodated at this time. The cost is $10 per person, with profits going to historic preservation efforts.
“Here in Jacksonville we take our history seriously,” notes Carolyn Kingsnorth, President of Historic Jacksonville, Inc. “We respect the legacy the pioneers left us. But we’ve also learned that some of these pioneers were reluctant to leave and are still with us in the form of spirits and ghosts.
These tours are not your typical ‘ghost tours’ with special effects. They are history tours about real hauntings resulting from past events. The stories—some scary, some benign—come from multiple sources, from people who have experienced these lingering spirits. These tours are our attempt to recognize and honor these restless souls.”
Two different tour routes are offered each night. “Both tours include several haunted houses,” Kingsnorth reassures, “but each tour has a different theme and content. Our Courthouse route features brothels, epidemics, and hangings. The Britt Hill tour shares tales of arson, saloons, and Oregon’s first Chinatown. The two routes give participants the opportunity to come back for more and give us the opportunity to share more of Jacksonville’s storied history.”
In October, Historic Jacksonville will offer tours on both Friday, October 14, and Saturday, October 15, beginning at 6:00, 6:15, 6:30, 6:45 and 7:00 p.m. each night. October tour routes will alternate with the Courthouse route being the first tour on Friday night and Britt Hill being the first tour on Saturday night.
[Note: Our goal is to keep everyone healthy so we will be observing whatever mandated and recommended health protocols are in effect at the time of the tours.]
For reservations, visit https://www.historicjacksonville.org/haunted-history-tours/.
For additional information, contact info@historicjacksonville.org or phone 541-245-3650.