I love "ghost" tracking and one of the things I liked best about going to Bisbee, Arizona, was the ghostly legends and original architecture. Well, I am happy to report that I have found that here in my new digs as well, in Coos County, Oregon. The following article was submitted on another website by a local reporter...I can't wait to check these places out:
Spooky Legends and Haunted Locations
By Mike Chavez
As I have come to find out, Coos County has a few legends that provide some chilling scenarios for the curious. Here are a few more presumed haunted locations in Coos County. Explore if you dare.
McAuley Hospital, Coos Bay
Built in 1925, this was originally the Wesley Methodist Hospital. Years later, it was acquired by the Sisters of Mercy and renamed The McAuley Hospital. In 1982, it was remodeled to begin a new life as the Ken Keyes College. Since then, it has changed hands several times and has been vacant at times. People who have visited this building claim to hear footsteps, disembodied voices and some have even been pinched by ghosts.
Reportedly, the scariest location in the building is the Surgery Room. Rumors of deranged doctors experimenting on their wards and patients retaliating or taking their own lives in desperation, make this location a petrifying visit….If you dare of course.
Hell House, Sand Dunes North Bend
There is a site in the sand dunes outside of North Bend that was formerly used as an old Coast Guard Barracks. The building has since been completely demolished and consumed by the grounds around it. At one time though, the derelict structure was reportedly used by witches in training to conduct rituals and cast spells on unwary victims. According to local storytellers, before the building completely disappeared, there were pentagrams and symbols painted on the walls throughout with an alter in the biggest room covered in black candle wax. Visitors and ghost hunters to this site hear strange noises and feel uneasy and sick. Others say that they feel like they are being watched by several eyes from the heavy dune brush.
Ghost Horse, Sand Dunes North Bend
Another ghostly character that roams the sand dunes near North Bend is the fabled “Ghost Horse” which aimlessly roams the sand dunes looking for who knows what. Several witnesses over the years have reported seeing the horse in the distance, but when they try to get a closer look, the animal disappears. Others have said they witnessed the horse at close range and it appears to be transparent or skinless. Unfortunately, most sightings of the Ghost Horse have been around the Hell House location. So, good luck with that adventure, its not for the faint of heart at any level.
Sea Cave, Bandon
Beautiful Bandon by the Sea with its gorgeous drift wood beaches and decadent candy stores has a scarier side. On the beach front, near Bandon there is a sea cave. People who enter this cave safely at low tide have claimed to hear a female voice singing a Gaelic lullaby. One rumor suggests this ghostly woman is singing to her child who was lost in the cave while playing. The child was trapped by high tide as the incoming waters rushed in cave and drowned the child. Local ghost hunters say the best time to hear the woman is shortly after high tide has peaked and the water is receding from the cave.
Powers Cemetery, Powers County Park
Witnesses have reported for years seeing floating spectral lights and hearing voices while braving a walk on the loop through the cemetery. During the day, this location is an interesting find with headstones dating back 100 years. However, at night people report an air pressure drop just in the location of the cemetery and then the voices begin. On one occasion, a visitor reported hearing what sounded like a horse drawn carriage and several people weeping. We can only imagine this was a spectral funeral procession with one of the locals being laid to rest…or unrest in this case.
Tioga Building, Coos Bay
Contributed by Laura Schier
Laura Schier was with a ghost hunting club (PSI Oregon) that was fortunate enough to investigate the Tioga building on two occasions. Once in the basement area and once on the second floor where there is an old ballroom.
The ballroom itself is magnificent with it’s vaulted ceiling that is classically painted. As I looked out the second floor windows, I could vividly imagine the town as it looked back in the day, when it was still Marshfield. Personally, I did not experience much activity on the second floor, though other team members were able to record unfamiliar voices on their recorders.
Strange noises were heard, but we could not rule out natural explanations for most of them. The basement, on the other hand, was pretty interesting. An almost constant sense of being not just followed, but studied, by something or someone as curious about us as we were about them. Never a bad or creepy feeling…just the understanding that we were probably not alone. Many unexplained noises, shadows and even a few voices were heard with our own ears, as well as on our recorders.
Author Note: If you do want to explore these sites please get permission from landowners and make sure that you are entering a safe area. We hope you enjoy your visit to Coos County and Happy Ghost Hunting!
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