 |
 |
Pacific Paranormal Research SocietyTHEBrownsville Saloon | |
|
Click the Saloon for Photos & EVP!
Brownsville
Saloon Directions
to Brownsville: For more information
on historic Brownsville, please visit the following website:
Welcome to Brownsville! Brownsville is one of the oldest towns in Oregon State, settled in 1846. (Betchya didn't know that.) Their economy revolved around logging and the town's woolen mills. Portions of the film "Stand By Me" were filmed in the town of Brownsville. Actor Sam Elliott and his wife, actress Katharine Ross (you remember her- from the original Stepford Wives?) also live in Brownsville. Apparently the ladies at the Bank are quite excited when Mr. Elliott comes into town to do business. (Betchya didn't know that one either). In Brownsville, owning a llama is no big deal, no one commits a serious crime if they want to remain living there, everyone knows their neighbors, visitors will get a friendly wave and a smile when they drive down the street, once in a while a bear comes into the town looking for treats, your neighbors chicken may roost in your garage but just say the word and they'll come and get her (you can keep the eggs),and the phrase "Gonna visit up North" means someone is driving into Portland.* An entire block of businesses including the current site of the Brownsville Saloon was burned to the ground in 1935. The legend is that a woman had poisoned her husband with rat poison and then was seeking to destroy the purchase records from the business she had purchased it from. The Saloon itself was renovated from an old Confectionary Store into a Saloon in 1945-46. There are local regulars who frequent the Saloon today who were patrons back when it originally opened. There have been many stories of the Saloon being haunted over the years, although many of the previous owners and long-time patrons don't believe it. There have been no deaths or murders recorded at the Saloon - being such a close-knit and small town, if there had been anything to happen here, they'd still be talking about it. The current
owner requested a ghost investigation due to unsettled and uneasy feelings she
has encountered while alone in the building. Other than "sensing" presences,
there have only been a few experiences that could be considered paranormal such
as the following: Following
our investigation, there were two more experiences- a lit candle was caught just
in time as it was teetering on the edge of a counter as if someone was getting
ready to let it drop. Also, that same night after the Saloon had closed and everything
had been turned down for the night, the owner felt a heat emanating from the kitchen
area, and upon inspection was shocked to find that one of the grill burners had
been turned back up on HIGH all on its own. There were 3 ghostly presences that I picked up on at this Saloon upon our arrival. There was what appeared to be an unstable, bordering on emotionally abusive man whose facial expressions appeared drawn and hardworking (dirty faced from mining? Lumber? Woolen Mill?). This man considered himself in control of the place and has felt like this for quite some time. Up until recently, he hasn't had any problems with the owners- they have all been men. Keep in mind that now he has to deal with a woman in charge of the establishment- something that someone of his brain caliper cannot fathom. Following him around like a little lost puppy was an unattractive, brown haired, mousy little stock of a woman, whom I found out later, was at one time a regular patron of the Saloon named "Rose". (Note: A previous owner had made a comment about "Rose" about her apparent ugliness but I cannot remember the exact phrase.) Also in "existence" here is another woman, older than the other 2, who considers herself a REBEL- a WILD woman, a person who would do some "crazy" things during her heyday, was never anybody's fool and did what she wanted (and with WHOM), and who still loves being in the Saloon. This entity also came up in conversations later with the current owner, who was not surprised to hear this- a woman matching this description, named Cora, was also another past patron of this favorite neighborhood watering hole and was just as wild 'n crazy as they come. So you've got 3 entities here- two of them palling around together, while "Wild Woman" Cora keeps to herself, ignoring the other 2, and just doing her own thing. "Wild Woman" Cora ( Or "Crazy Cora" as she used to be called), is still very much enjoying herself and has absolutely no intention of leaving. Our presence here did not bother nor concern her- the only reaction I ever saw from her was when she was watching the exchanges between our group and the other 2 entities, which I could tell she felt were a couple of "problems," and would be very happy if they'd just leave. To make a long story short "Rose" expressed interest in leaving her ghostly inhabitance. She had been the one previously knocking the mirrors off of the walls- still hating the way she looks. I informed her she could be beautiful forever, and that she didn't need to be like this any more. I felt that he was forcibly keeping her with him- all the while telling her things that certain men do when they want to keep their women down. Things like, "Nobody would ever love you like I do," and reiterating the fact that she was un-pretty and that he would "take care of her even though she wasn't really his type," etc. You understand the type of wording and the emotionally abusive control that I'm trying to describe here. The
thought of being beautiful intrigued Rose to no end. She was still extremely upset
about her looks. She knew she was ugly, but this awareness could also make her
appear to be very vain. To be beautiful was something that seemed unattainable
and impossible for her to imagine, although she wanted beauty more than anything.
She would have died for the opportunity to be beautiful. So, pretty much immediately
after I told her this, she drifted away from the man and began to shyly creep
around the tavern, following us around and listening. My whole goal was to get
her away from him so I could convince her that things could be better for her.
I also smudged/blessed the establishment- this helped calm Rose down and her interest
was peaked even higher- however, this also helped set the man off into a tizzy.
Eventually I talked
Rose into leaving, and as she was doing so, the man, whose name I have never gotten,
went into a rage. She was his meal ticket- pretty much his mousy little minion
who helped build up his ego, and allowed him to feel controlling and powerful.
Now that she was leaving, he didn't know what to do. He blamed another man in
our group of "turning against him," as well as acting out in tantrum
like ways- - shifting physical objects in 2 different rooms (which our group audibly
heard), and cussing at us while he was being picked up by the EMF meter, turning
around and taunting us yelling,"Come and chase me,
motherf**kers!" After this performance he went outside to the
back area of the Saloon and began pacing and screaming at no one in particular-
feeling betrayed, angry, and alone. When we left the Saloon, he was standing at the corner in front of the Hardware Store, glaring at all of us, but mostly me. Now that Rose had decided to leave, my assumption was that he would eventually become too frustrated to have lost control (and his number one fan), and that he would move on and go somewhere else- hopefully even pass over. By the middle
of the week, I began to feel that this assumption had probably come true. "Crazy Cora" will be the only entity still partying for eternity in the Brownsville Saloon,and she is more than welcome to stay by the owner and her employees. Cora pretty much keeps to herself anyway as she doesn't like anybody to tell her what to do or when to go. The
Brownsville Saloon is a friendly, low key, neighborhood tavern, with very
good food. They have lottery games inside,
as well as a few pool tables. Ask the bartender for her special "Tuaca"
drink - it's yummy good! :) Please don't bother the owner or employees of this
busy tavern to ask for a tour of the place, although I'm sure she'd be more than
happy to talk about her ghostly experiences with you. Other interesting and historic places to visit in Brownsville are a most wonderful historical museum on the corner of Main street and Park avenue, and don't forget to take the weekend tour of the Moyer House, a beautiful 1881 villa-style home, located across the street (no, it's not haunted, but it's really neat inside)! Awesome Oregon history - awesome stuff! For more
information on historic Brownsville, please visit the following website: *Excerpts from "How I Know I Live in Brownsville" by Paul Smith, the Librarian of Brownsville's Public Library and printed in The Times No. 19-2003. **This sounds more like a sighting of the "Gatekeeper" making his rounds than it does a ghost. The "Gatekeeper" may have been inside the Saloon trying to persuade the ghostly residents to uproot, and go with him. What's interesting is that the apparition traveled through the Antique Store. Is this place haunted too, or was the Gatekeeper just walking that way anyway?
| |||||||||
 |
