Spooked in Seattle. Ross Allison
found writing in ketchup on the ceiling of the bar that appeared to be a giant letter “V.”
STAR BAR
It seems that this location has had problems with business owners constantly running out—whether it is due to financial troubles or spirits running amuck. No one seems to be able to handle what this location has to offer. As of now it is home to a new club called Aura, and maybe by the time you read this book it could be a whole new venue. Whatever haunts this site, most don’t like the feeling they get when they are alone here. Could this be the work of a very unhappy entity not willing to share its environment with the living?
THE SMITH TOWER
506 Second Avenue
This forty-two-story building is the oldest skyscraper in Seattle. Started in 1912 and completed in 1914, it is named after its builder, Lyman Cornelius Smith of Smith & Corona typewriters. When completed, it held the record as being the tallest building west of the Mississippi River until 1931. But the building still held the record on the West Coast until the Space Needle surpassed it in 1962. It is also one of the last buildings on the West Coast to have hand-operated elevators.
THE SMITH TOWER
The thirty-fifth floor of the tower is home to The Chinese Room, which is also the observatory deck. The room is finely decorated with gifts of furniture and a hand-carved ceiling from the Empress of China. This also includes the famous Wishing Chair. Legend has it that if an unmarried woman who wants to be married sits in this chair, she will be married within a year. The legend came true for Smith’s daughter, who married in the Chinese Room herself a year after visiting the tower.
Security guards have experienced odd things happening throughout the night while standing watch over the building. The old elevators would be called to floors when no one is in the building. Noises of doors closing and things moving have been heard on empty floors. While watching the security monitors, they have seen shadowy figures appear on the screens. They have also reported having sudden cold breezes fly by them when doing their rounds. Other employees have seen a woman roaming the Chinese Room. She will walk into rooms and never be seen again, sometimes vanishing in front of their eyes. The ghost is believed to be the daughter of L.C. Smith himself. At one time there was an exhibit honoring Bertha Landes, Seattle’s first female mayor. While the event was going on, many claimed to see her spirit overlooking the exhibit.
See also: Harvard Exit Theatre in Capitol Hill
PIONEER SQUARE HOTEL
77 Yesler Way
This historic landmark started out as the Hotel Yesler of Henry Yesler fame. Completed in 1914, it was not until the mid-1990s that the Best Western chain bought the hotel. They restored the building and opened it as The Pioneer Square Hotel, currently the only hotel in the Pioneer Square Historic District. Stories have it that after the hotel fell on hard times and became inhabited by prostitutes and other lower-class citizens during the 1970s, the building was transformed into a “flophouse.” At this time, one of the owners made agreements with some of the homeless to collect their social security checks in exchange for permanent residency in the hotel. Little did people know that if transients died while in his care, he neglected to report the deaths and continued to collect their checks. How he got away with this crime for some time was that he hid these deaths by burying the bodies in the basement of the hotel.
Employees say they don’t like to be alone in the basement. Many have heard odd noises, seen a dark figure lurking about, and have watched objects move without assistance. One employee stated that while alone in the basement a box slid across the floor all on its own. In addition to the weird happenings in the basement, maids have reported that TVs will turn on and off on their own. In fact, guests have had to unplug TVs because they will continue to act up throughout the night by turning on and switching channels.
PIONEER SQUARE HOTEL
One guest returns every year and checks into the same room every time, claiming it’s haunted by a little girl. They say the guest enjoys the ghost who combs the guest’s long hair throughout the night. Other guests have felt what feels like a medium-sized dog crawl on to the beds. One couple reported feeling what they described to be energy passing through their room, followed by whispering voices throughout the night.
If you enjoy sharing your room with unseen guests, this might be the place for you. Many ghost hunters have stayed here and have picked up voices on their recorders. So if you do try a night or two here, make sure you come prepared.
THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHOCOLATE FACTORY
99 Yesler Avenue
The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory now resides in what was once the Scandinavian-American Bank in the old Yesler Building built in 1891. It stands over the very spot of the underground vault that is one of the most documented sites of haunted Seattle, and has a storage area right next to the old vault.
CHOCOLATE FACTORY
Employees of The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and past workers from former businesses on the location have reported strange activity happening in the lower basement area, including sightings of an old-time miner walking around and vanishing once someone makes eye contact with him. One manager, while working alone in the basement, had the feeling of someone standing behind him when no one is around. One time he actually felt a hand on his shoulder, which caused him to immediately pick up his papers and leave for the night.
They also say things will be moved around after clearly being placed somewhere else. Very loud noises can also be heard coming from the basement. When investigated, there is no sign of any disturbances. Could the man seen haunting the vault area be the same man in the basement of The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory?
See also: Underground Tour (The Vault) in this Section
MUTUAL LIFE BUILDING
605 First Avenue
First called the Yesler Building, the name was changed when Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York bought the building in 1897. On September 10, 1985, an Asian art performance company came to Seattle to perform a very rare piece known as Sankai Juku. Here the artists dressed completely in white and covered their entire bodies with white rice paint, appearing as ghostly apparitions. These four dancers were then suspended by their ankles from the top of the building and slowly lowered as they twisted and moved in sync with one another. Once the artists started to descend, a rope snapped and the second-from-the-left performer plummeted six floors to his death. This tragedy was witnessed by the hundreds of onlookers, who saw his body in a fetal position on the corner of First and Yesler. Eerily and coincidentally, the performance piece was called “The Dance of Birth and Death.” It was also discovered that the performers had purchased used rope from a local shipyard as it allowed them to move more freely because new rope is too tight. The sad thing is that they only tested three of the ropes before the performance. It was the fourth one that took the young man’s life. Analyzing the offending rope, it was discovered with laboratory analysis that the rope was degraded by a chemical that had come into contact with it before it was purchased.
MUTUAL LIFE BUILDING
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