Mysterious Pacific Northwest

THIS HALLOWEEN, WE’RE GOING SOMEWHERE DARK. 

For our most infamous episode yet, we’re stepping inside one of England’s most notorious haunted locations: The Ancient Ram Inn.

With centuries of history, chilling paranormal accounts, disturbing Satanic legends, and the story of the man who spent decades living within its walls, this is not your typical ghost story.

Why did John Humphries stay in a place he believed was filled with darkness? And what might still linger inside those ancient walls?

This Halloween, we’re exploring one of the darkest places we’ve ever covered.

 Dare to spend Halloween with Infamous Files?

Listen to Infamous Files: The Ancient Ram Inn this Halloween.

#InfamousFiles #Halloween #AncientRamInn #ParanormalPodcast #DarkHistory #HauntedPlaces #HalloweenListening

Sources:

https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1088885

https://historicengland.org.uk/education/schools-resources/educational-images/the-ancient-ram-inn-wotton-under-edge-gloucestershire-ioe01-07213-02

https://www.wottonheritage.com/Lectures

https://www.ghostclub.org.uk/ram.htm

https://davidfarrant.org/investigations/the-ram-inn-investigations/

https://www.itv.com/news/westcountry/2016-02-04/carers-refuse-to-look-after-her-elderly-man-because-he-lives-in-uks-most-haunted-inn

https://paramaps.co.uk/ancient-ram-inn/

https://triskeleheritage.triskelepublishing.com/2023/11/13/mediaeval-myth-busting-blog-26-the-ancient-ram-inn/

https://thehorrorcollection.com/ancient-ram-inn-haunting/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Ram_Inn

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wotton-under-Edge

https://thetvdb.com/series/most-haunted/episodes/110494

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0651392/

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0651392/fullcredits/

https://www.higgypop.com/news/most-haunted-locations-inns/

https://www.thetvdb.com/series/ghost-adventures/episodes/907041

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1494956/

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1494956/fullcredits/

https://www.thetvdb.com/series/ghost-adventures/allseasons/official

https://ghostadventures.fandom.com/wiki/Ancient_Ram_Inn_%28episode%29

https://weird-wiltshire.co.uk/2022/05/24/the-ancient-ram-inn/

https://www.higgypop.com/news/stuart-torevell-moments/

https://www.paramaps.co.uk/ancient-ram-inn/

https://thetvdb.com/series/most-haunted

 NEW BONUS EPISODE: The Haunting of Skagway’s Red Onion — The Legend of Lydia

For this Mini Haunt, we’re heading to Skagway, Alaska, and stepping inside a historic Gold Rush saloon with a story that refuses to stay in the past.

Behind the bar, upstairs in the old brothel rooms, and within the stories passed down by former employees, there’s a name that continues to linger: Lydia.

Former staff have shared unsettling encounters, unexplained activity, and one particularly chilling experience that helped make Lydia a legendary presence at the Red Onion Saloon.

Was she a woman whose story never truly ended? Or is there something about this old building that keeps people looking over their shoulders?

Turn down the lights and settle in. This little Halloween bonus takes us into the shadows of Alaska’s Gold Rush history, where some stories are far from forgotten.

Listen now to our Mini Haunt bonus episode!

#MiniHaunt #TheHauntingOfSkagway #RedOnionSaloon #LydiasGhost #AlaskaHauntings

Sources:

https://www.spookedpodcast.org/episodes/skagway/

https://spookedpodcast.org/episodes/skagway-classic/

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/skagway-classic/id1279361017?i=1000720204496

https://redonion1898.com/museum.html

https://www.jahernandez.com/posts/lydias-ghost-at-red-onion-saloon

https://npshistory.com/publications/klgo/habs-ak-275.pdf

https://www.nps.gov/klgo/learn/historyculture/skagwaydistrict.htm

https://www.nps.gov/articles/klgo-building-tourism.htm

https://www.nps.gov/articles/alaska-goldrush-national-historic-landmarks.htm

https://npshistory.com/publications/klgo/hpd-36/app1.htm

https://www.nps.gov/klgo/learn/historyculture/pantheonredfront.htm

https://www.nps.gov/places/mascot-saloon.htm

https://home.nps.gov/klgo/learn/historyculture/mascot.htm

https://home.nps.gov/articles/klgo-khns-verbauwhedes.htm

https://www.nps.gov/tripideas/klgo-historic-district.htm

In 1991, a New York appellate court issued one of the strangest real estate decisions in legal history: Stambovsky v. Ackley, better known as the “Ghostbusters ruling.” The case centered on a Victorian home in Nyack, New York, whose owner had publicly described it as haunted. When buyer Jeffrey Stambovsky learned about the house’s reputation after agreeing to purchase it, he sought to undo the deal. The court’s memorable opinion declared that, as a matter of law, the house was haunted—but the legal issue was the property’s public reputation, not proof that ghosts existed. We explore the Ackley family’s stories, the disputed details of the sale, the court’s reasoning, and the mystery that continues to surround the house.

Episode Sources:

https://people.com/home/a-celebrity-owned-new-york-mansion-once-declared-legally-haunted-is-on-the-market-for-1-9m/

https://thehauntedlibrarian.com/2021/08/18/infamous-stambovsky-v-ackley-haunted-house-just-soldagain/

https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/9t1qp8/til_of_the_1991_new_york_supreme_court_case/

https://castleofspiritspodcast.buzzsprout.com/2044826/episodes/12535095-legally-haunted-the-ackley-house-castle-of-spirits-true-ghost-stories#transcript

https://www.realtor.com/news/trends/is-americas-only-legally-haunted-house-actually-haunted/

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-ghost-of-nyack-nyack-new-york

https://vocal.media/horror/the-real-story-of-ackley-house-ackley-house

https://www.reddit.com/r/CreepyWikipedia/comments/af2dke/stambovsky_v_ackley_is_a_case_in_the_new_york/?solution=0a748e23493c0afa0a748e23493c0afa&js_challenge=1&jsc_token=2824be10929bdc604753c70a67a1c331fb7c80ce7559be5e361ebd585c7047fd&jsc_orig_r=

https://visitnyack.org/nsl-haunted-house/

https://allthatsinteresting.com/nyack-new-york-legally-haunted-house

https://medium.com/@johnnyjohnson2043/the-house-declared-legally-haunted-by-a-new-york-court-the-ghostbusters-ruling-when-3878b49fe428

https://nyghosts.com/the-real-story-behind-the-ghostbuster-ruling/

https://web.archive.org/web/20201001155005/https://casetext.com/case/stambovsky-v-ackley

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stambovsky_v._Ackley

https://www.housebeautiful.com/lifestyle/a40706898/haunted-ackley-house-true-story/

 NEW EPISODE: Stay Off the Highway After Dark — The Rathdrum Human Chain

What would you do if you were driving down a lonely Idaho highway after dark and found a line of hooded figures holding hands across the road?

In this October episode, we’re heading to northern Idaho to explore the chilling legend of the Rathdrum Human Chain—a story of mysterious figures, strange local rumors, and encounters that have haunted the region since the 1970s.

Who were these figures? Why were they standing across the highway? And what happens when you try to drive through them?

Turn the lights down, lock the doors, and maybe avoid those lonely backroads tonight.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts!

#PNWPodcast #InfamousFiles #RathdrumIdaho #UrbanLegends #IdahoLegends 

Sources

https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2007/aug/02/dotc-about-those-rathdrum-devil-worshippers/

https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2007/apr/26/small-town-legends/

https://cdapress.com/news/2022/nov/06/huckleberries/

https://cdapress.com/news/2023/dec/10/huckleberries-local-crime-of-the-70s/

https://cdapress.com/news/2022/oct/30/huckleberries/

https://www.spokesman.com/stories/1997/oct/31/rathdrum-witches-make-prairie-scary/

https://www.reddit.com/r/Idaho/comments/1pwdjtb/did_you_grow_up_hearing_any_local_idaho_legends/

https://www.newspapers.com/

The Lodge at St. Edward Park has lived several lives. Opened in 1931 as a Catholic seminary, the building served that purpose until 1976, when the seminary closed and the property entered decades of decline. During its years of limited use, stories emerged of apparitions, shadow figures, objects moving on their own, a strange encounter involving three figures, a wine goblet that reportedly flew from a shelf, and perhaps the strangest tale of all: twelve forks discovered in ceiling tiles. Restored and reopened as a hotel in 2021, St. Edward still carries those stories. But are they evidence of ghosts—or simply mysteries without answers?

Episode Sources:

https://www.thelodgeatstedward.com/the-lodge/past-and-present

https://parks.wa.gov/about/news-center/field-guide-blog/saint-edward-state-park-history

https://www.thelodgeatstedward.com/stories-of-st-edward

https://www.cascadepbs.org/culture/2023/10/lore-behind-washingtons-spookiest-historic-haunts/

https://www.seattlemet.com/home-and-real-estate/2024/09/know-your-place-saint-edward-seminary

https://www.vtindustries.com/get-ideas/project-profile/the-lodge-at-saint-edward-park/

https://laurendanner.com/st-edward-state-park/

Long before Jimothy became Seattle’s internet-famous raccoon, the Pacific Northwest had a long history of making animals into celebrities.

Tusko. Bobo. Ivan. Namu. And plenty of other animals who captured the public’s attention and became part of our local history.

But why do we single out certain animals and become so fascinated with them? And what does that fascination tell us about the way our relationship with animals has changed?

From zoos and department-store windows to roadside attractions and TikTok, we’re taking a look at the animals we made famous and how far we’ve come.

Sources:

https://www.historylink.org/File/5270

https://www.historylink.org/File/1369

https://www.historylink.org/File/1481

https://www.historylink.org/File/3277

https://www.historylink.org/File/3186

https://www.historylink.org/File/21294

https://www.historylink.org/File/22772

https://www.historylink.org/File/20534

https://zooatlanta.org/animal-legend/ivan/

https://zoo.org/tkcp/history/

https://archives.seattle.gov/finding-aids/repositories/2/resources/1362

https://www.historylink.org/File/20533

https://www.capitaldaily.ca/news/common-wall-lizard-victoria-rudys-pet-park-saanich

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/meet-jimothy-seattles-internet-famous-raccoon/

https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/psv39n2_the-celebrity-effect-how-famous-wildlife-can-lead-to-risky-behavior.htm

https://www.historylink.org/File/5507

https://www.historylink.org/File/10147

https://www.historylink.org/File/21072

https://www.historylink.org/File/21455

https://www.historylink.org/File/22591

https://www.historylink.org/File/22814

https://www.historylink.org/File/23106

https://www.historylink.org/File/23272

From a young man arriving in Seattle with just ten cents in his pocket to building Washington’s only battleship and one of the most extraordinary estates in the Pacific Northwest, Robert Moran’s story is incredible all on its own. But what happened after he built Rosario may be even more mysterious.

In this episode, we will take you on a ferry ride through the San Juan Islands to uncover the fascinating history—and chilling legends—of Orcas Island. Explore the grand halls of Rosario Mansion, investigate the truth behind the infamous “Lady in Red,” spend a night in the haunted Orcas Hotel with the ghost of beloved innkeeper Octavia Van Moorhem, wander the historic Outlook Inn, visit the haunted Hotel de Haro, and hear the eerie tale of Cabin 10 at West Beach Resort.

Using firsthand accounts, historical records, newspaper archives, and local folklore, this episode separates documented history from island legend while asking one lingering question: if Alice Rheem isn’t the ghost haunting Rosario… then who is?

History, mystery, humor, and hauntings await on one of the most beautiful—and possibly most haunted—islands in the Pacific Northwest.

Episode Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Moran_(shipbuilder)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle_Construction_and_Drydock_Company

https://www.whatcommuseum.org/virtual_exhibit/universal_exhibit/vex9/index.htm

https://seattleterrors.com/the-haunted-rosario-resort/

https://islandhistories.com/items/show/55

https://marlenepardopellicer.substack.com/p/alices-ghost

https://saltwaterpeoplehistoricalsociety.blogspot.com/p/190.html?m=1

https://www.visitsanjuans.com/haunted-hotels-in-the-san-juan-islands

https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/20021031/hauntedhotels31/when-guest-meets-ghost-orcas-hotel-and-other-supernatural-sleeps

https://ediblemontereybay.com/online-magazine/spring-2021/north-star/

https://orcashotel.com/history/

https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2007/oct/28/hauntingly-familiar/

https://northwestprimetime.com/news/2022/may/25/hotel-de-haro/

https://explorewashingtonstate.com/historical-haunts-worth-a-road-trip/

https://islandhistories.com/items/show/75

https://1889mag.com/explore/outlook-inn/

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g58448-d292155-r34689940-West_Beach_Resort-Eastsound_Orcas_Island_San_Juan_Islands_Washington.html

A disease that once killed millions across the world quietly arrived in Seattle in 1907… hidden aboard ships traveling north from San Francisco.

When the first victims fell ill, doctors realized the unthinkable had happened — bubonic plague had reached the city. Panic spread through the waterfront as health officials raced to understand how it arrived and how far it had spread.

The answer lurked in the shadows of the docks.

Rats.

In this mini episode of Mysterious Pacific Northwest, we’re telling the story of Seattle’s plague scare of 1907 — the deaths that first alerted the city, the massive war on rats that followed, and the surprising way the outbreak reshaped public health in the Pacific Northwest.

Sometimes the most dangerous threats arrive quietly…

hidden in cargo holds, ship ropes, and dark corners of the waterfront.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts.

Sources:

https://www.historylink.org/File/418

https://www.cdc.gov/plague/index.html

https://www.nps.gov/articles/bubonic-plague.htm

https://www.history.com/topics/middle-ages/black-death

https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1715640115

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1900%E2%80%931904_San_Francisco_plague

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_plague_pandemic

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yersinia_pestis

https://streetsmartnaturalist.substack.com/p/bubonic-plague-in-seattle

https://streetsmartnaturalist.substack.com/p/bubonic-plague-in-seattle

Nearly fifty years after sixteen-year-old Pauline Elizabeth Brazeau was brutally murdered outside Calgary, modern DNA technology finally gave investigators the answer they had been searching for. In this episode, we trace Pauline’s life from Yorkton, Saskatchewan, to her final night in Calgary, examine the decades-long investigation, and explore how forensic genetic genealogy transformed a cold case into a solved homicide. Along the way, we hear from Pauline’s family, investigators who refused to give up, and the courtroom where her killer finally admitted responsibility—forty-nine years after taking away a young mother’s future.

Episode Sources:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/ronald-james-edwards-pauline-brazeau-murder-guilty-plea-manslaughter-1.7473598

https://dnasolves.com/articles/pauline-brazeau-calgary/

https://www.cbc.ca/missingandmurdered/mmiw/profiles/pauline-elizabeth-brazeau

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/102126441/pauline_c-brazeau

https://www.ctvnews.ca/calgary/article/alta-man-pleads-guilty-to-manslaughter-in-death-of-calgary-teen-mom-in-1976/

In 1875, the steamship Pacific disappeared off Cape Flattery with hundreds of passengers aboard. Only two survived. For nearly 150 years, the wreck remained hidden beneath the Pacific Ocean until one diver spent thirty years searching for it. This is the story of one of the greatest maritime mysteries in Pacific Northwest history—and why the greatest treasure wasn’t the gold, but the people history almost forgot.

Episode Sources:

https://ptleader.com/articles/community-news/long-lost-gold-rush-shipwreck-discovered/

https://goia.wa.gov/resources/treaties/treaty-neah-bay-1855

https://discoverourcoast.com/2021/10/13/is-there-treasure-on-neah-kah-nie-exploring-the-truth-and-legends/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neah_Bay,_Washington

https://lynnwoodtimes.com/2023/05/21/ss-pacific-230521/

https://historical-bainbridge-charles194.replit.app/location/neah-bay-and-cape-flattery

https://ravenandchickadee.com/2017/07/return-to-the-edge-of-the-world-neah-bay-wa/

https://1715fleetsociety.com/ss-pacific-located/

https://www.shipwreck.net/republic-treasures

https://7500393c-b879-4ffa-ae28-f1a2c21e2538.filesusr.com/ugd/be6d77_3e3292e2d0fe4cc5bc59e59c77649db9.pdf

https://7500393c-b879-4ffa-ae28-f1a2c21e2538.filesusr.com/ugd/be6d77_be439ace853d45cf87d6e2117881e108.pdf

https://7500393c-b879-4ffa-ae28-f1a2c21e2538.filesusr.com/ugd/be6d77_753e837705954a899ea23f56c5164b5a.pdf

https://7500393c-b879-4ffa-ae28-f1a2c21e2538.filesusr.com/ugd/be6d77_10aa15be44ac47ee9349e1c2b543ee7e.pdf

https://7500393c-b879-4ffa-ae28-f1a2c21e2538.filesusr.com/ugd/be6d77_9904bd6b5bd3473eadeb3fdc886a6ca5.pdf

https://7500393c-b879-4ffa-ae28-f1a2c21e2538.filesusr.com/ugd/be6d77_3bd970bafcc24aa389c5f79368aa6fc5.pdf

https://www.myolympicpark.com/road-trips/gateway-towns/neah-bay-wa/