1903 Iroquois Theater Fire · 1915 SS Eastland Disaster · Congress Plaza Hotel
Inside Chicago Walking Tours was founded in 2014 by Hillary Marzec and specializes primarily in tours of Chicago's architectural interiors rather than its exterior skyline. Alongside its architecture-focused programming, the company runs "Haunted by Our Dark Side: Chicago Ghosts, Gangsters, and True Crime Tour," a roughly 2-hour walking tour through River North and the Loop that covers documented Chicago disasters and organized-crime history, including the 1903 Iroquois Theater Fire and the 1915 Eastland Disaster, alongside reported hauntings tied to the route's historic interiors.
The tour is listed on Choose Chicago, the city's official tourism marketing organization, with a recurring seasonal schedule (weighted toward fall dates), and ends near the Congress Plaza Hotel, a Michigan Avenue hotel with a long-standing reputation as one of Chicago's most reportedly haunted buildings.
Sources
- https://www.insidechicagowalkingtours.com/
- https://www.choosechicago.com/event/haunted-by-our-dark-side-chicago-ghosts-gangsters-and-true-crime-tour/2026-10-09/
ApparitionsUnexplained SoundsFeelings of Being Watched
The operator's tour description frames the route as exploring "whether people are really seeing spirits, or if odd architectural designs simply create an eerie feeling," pairing gangster-era and true-crime stories — including rival mob killings and the Iroquois Theater Fire and Eastland Disaster — with reported ghost encounters at historic interiors along the way, including the Palmer House Hotel and the tour's ending point at the Congress Plaza Hotel.
All of this is the tour operator's own marketing material, not documented history independently verified for this listing; it is included here as a description of what the tour covers, not as an endorsement of any specific claim.
Media Appearances
- Choose Chicago (official city tourism listing)
