Historic Jacksonville, Inc.’s Haunted History walking tours are back, and what more appropriate day to begin our 2025 season than on Friday, June 13!
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 August with special tours in September and October. Two completely different tours will be offered each evening—a “Courthouse” route and a Britt Hill route. Tour times vary by month. June tours begin at 7pm and 7:15pm.
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 online at https://historicjacksonville.org/haunted-history-tours/ no later than 4 pm on the day of the tour. “Walk ups” may be accommodated if space is available. 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 murder, arson, saloons, and Oregon’s first Chinatown. The ‘Courthouse’ route is flat. The Britt Hill route requires walking up to the Britt Festival grounds—but guests do get to periodically stop and pant along with our tour guides! 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.”
Historic Jacksonville, Inc. plans to offer both Friday and Saturday tours in September and two weekends of Friday and Saturday tours in October, so stay tuned for tours and times!
For reservations, visit https://www.historicjacksonville.org/haunted-history-tours/. For additional information, contact info@historicjacksonville.org or phone 541-245-3650.
