Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 28, 1997)
_3_Beyond the grave For a good, scary ghost story, one must look beyond Eugene Spooky tales are bard to bunt out in this unhaunted city By Doug Irving Student Activities Editor Bumps in the night? Probably your neighbor. Strange, howling noises? Tell the dog to shut up. Bizarre, floating apparitions? Time to leave the bar. Plenty of weird things happen in Eugene, but they probably all have a good explanation. Because Eugene just isn’t haunted. “This is, I guess, not a real good haunting town,” said Ed Stelfox, director of the Lane County Historical Museum. “I don’t hear a lot of ghost stories here.” It might just be that Eugene doesn’t have the ingredients nec essary for ghosts. A ghostly area must have houses that are “old, ancient and know how to creak,” according to Eugene storyteller Louisa Lindsay-Sprouse. The houses should have dark crannies, and the town should be full of old trees that scratch win dows and cast shadows, she said. You may have to go as far as McKenzie Bridge just to find a good old ghost story. And you'd have to go to the coast to find a widely known tale. The Belknap Lodge Ghost Nancy Stelfox, Ed Stelfox’s wife, worked at Belknap Lodge in McKenzie Bridge while the lodge was being renovated several years ago. Workers were in stalling a fire escape, and they had been working in the third floor attic. Stelfox came to work one day f DO YOUR PART. THIS PAPER to find a worker huddled and shivering in a blanket. He had seen ghosts — three of them — as he was getting ready for bed in the lodge. He saw two men and one woman, dressed in turn-of-the-c:entury clothes. He said he had smelled perfume, and his bed had sunk as if some one were sitting on it. “I never personally saw it,” Stelfox said. “But the old-timers — they all believe it.” The current lodge manager, Jeanne Blilie, said she’s aware of the stories. A few guests have asked about it. But she doesn’t believe in the ghosts. "To me, there isn’t one here,” she said. “I've never had to deal with it.” John Bigelow, 86, spent most of his life at Belknap Lodge. His family owned it, and he grew up there. He never saw the ghosts, but he used to hear rumblings in the night. But there’s nothing mysterious about that, he said. Three geolog ical faults converge below the lodge — the rumblings could be earth movements. Or they could be from the stream that runs be low the lodge. The Belknap Ghost is the re sult of a lively imagination, as far as he’s concerned. “There are no ghosts up there that I know of,” he said. “That’s a bunch of bologna. That’s a lotta hogwash.” The Heceta Head Haunting The closest bona fide ghost might be just north of Florence at the Heceta Head Lighthouse. The lighthouse rises up from a cliff overlooking the crashing Pa cific Ocean. A white building with a sprawling front porch once lioused the lighthouse keep (( There are no ghosts up there that I know of. That’s a bunch of bologna. That ’s a lot of hogwash. >> John Bigelow The Belknap Lodge er. Now it houses Rue the Ghost. Dozens of people have report ed a shadowy woman in a long, black dress floating down the halls of the lighthouse. Her dress looks like it’s from the early 1900s, they say. Somebody broke a window in the lighthouse once, and Rue cleaned up the shattered glass. "She takes care of the house,” said Jane Cottrell, acting district manager for the Waldport Ranger Station. “So maybe you better not go in there and mess it up.” A few visitors took a Ouija board to the house a few years ago and asked the ghost its name — that’s how they learned to call it Rue. That’s about all anyone knows about her. Nobody named Rue is recorded in the light house’s histories, and nobody matching her description ever died near the house. The keeper’s house — like Belknap Lodge — now functions as a hotel. No visitors have re ported seeing Rue in about five years, Cottrell said. The light house is in the Siuslaw National Forest, part of the ranger district. “It’s a beautiful house,” she said. “It’s not like it’s creepy. Be sides, every lighthouse has a ghost story.” Ramen Noodles Begin internship with The Quiet Company Surf & Turf The Northwestern Mutual Life internship program enables you to make some real money, help some real people, so you can eat some real food, for a change. No wonder it was named one of “America’s Top Ten Internships."* So while you re Dusy neiping people plan their financial futures, we’ll be busy building up your resume. Odds are you’ll be eating well in weeks. The Quiet Company® CONTACT: VLASTA DUFFY (S03) 223-7335 , niiwBiw, *»i nmrru* j iop m inmutpi l»9B ndinon. Random llnuar, Pimoctoti Hcview Booka jjgSS* TIME WARP inside Old Friends at 1022 Willamette • 343-6842 Mon.-Sat. 11-6 • Sun. 124 Look for our grain tower just off Beltline & Gateway Next to the Rodeway Inn and Marriott Courtyard. 980 Kruse Way, Springfield 726-1726 Open Daily 11:30 KEGS TO GO Every day low prices Keg $89°° - 9900 + deposit Pony $55°° - 60“ + deposit Please call ahead to reserve your keg. Also avilable in litres, 1/2 gallons and gallons Featuring on Tap: HEFEWEIZEN • McKENZIE PALE ALE BLACK CADDIS PORTER HOFBRAU PILSNER • TODD'S WHEAT GATEWAY GOLDEN NEW ARRIVALS! Trek 800 Sport ’98 Model uuv Fortunately, it can be a Jungle Out There When you're ready to leave the world behind, grab a Trek off road bicycle and ^ hit the trail. We back you all the way with bikes sized right to fit you and great service. Stop in and see for yourself! New frame style, comfortable, around towi recreational mountain bike, 21 speed Gripshift. From...s23995 Trek 820 ’98 Model V-brakes, 21 speed Gripshift, Cro-Moly main frame & fork. From„.s32995 All *97 Mountain Bikes On Sale! Plus a full selection of accessories, 1 including locks, lights, fenders t rain gear. ) KRYPTOMITE CYCLE SHOP Eugene, Oregon 60 E. 11TH • DOWNTOWN EUGENE • 342-4878 YOU CAN READ THE EMERALD FROM ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. o.d.e. on the world wide webs http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~ode IT’S JUST LIKE REALLY BEING HERE, BUT WITHOUT ALL THE RAIN. * ^ , Vi ...