1926 Tudor Gothic movie palace designed by Ellis Lawrence for owner George Guthrie, whose apparition and a persistent on-stage cold spot are reported by staff and performers.
170 High Street SE, Salem, OR 97301
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Ticket prices vary by event; the theater operates as a nonprofit performing-arts venue with concerts, classic film series, and touring productions.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Restored 1926 theater with accessible main level; balcony reached by stairs.
Equipment
No Photos
Est. 1926 · National Register of Historic Places (1994) · Ellis F. Lawrence Tudor Gothic Design · Salem Performing Arts Anchor · 1920s Movie Palace
The Elsinore Theatre was conceived by Salem businessman George Guthrie as a flagship motion-picture palace for the Willamette Valley. Guthrie commissioned the prominent Portland architectural firm Lawrence & Holford — with Ellis F. Lawrence, founding dean of the University of Oregon School of Architecture, as principal — to design a 1,290-seat house in Tudor Gothic style. The building was patterned on the castle from Shakespeare's Hamlet (Elsinore), with crenelated forms, pointed arches, and a richly painted plaster interior.
The theater opened on May 28, 1926. Original interior detailing included stained glass executed by the Povey Brothers Studio of Portland and a Wurlitzer theater organ installed for silent-film accompaniment. Press at the opening described the Elsinore as the largest and most lavish theater between Portland and San Francisco.
Through the 20th century the Elsinore transitioned through several operators, eventually passing to Act III Theatres in approximately 1989. Community concern over the building's future led to the formation of the Save the Elsinore Committee, a grassroots nonprofit that purchased the theater in 1990. A multi-phase restoration — including a roughly $3.2 million architectural program developed with CB2 architecture in 2002 — returned the auditorium and lobby to their 1926 condition.
The Elsinore was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 17, 1994. It operates today as a nonprofit performing-arts venue presenting concerts, classic-film series, dance, and touring productions, and remains a defining landmark of downtown Salem.
Sources
The Elsinore's signature ghost is George Guthrie himself. According to the Salem Reporter's 2022 column 'The Ghosts of the Elsinore' and the Oregon listing on HauntedUS, performers have repeatedly reported seeing Guthrie's apparition watching rehearsals from the auditorium seats, and night-shift workers have described his shadow drifting across the stage. A long-reported permanent cold spot on the stage is attributed to him.
A second commonly cited entity is said to be Guthrie's young daughter, who, per local legend, fell from the upper balcony. HauntedUS notes that researchers were unable to confirm this death in available records, so the claim is treated as legend rather than documented incident.
A third account describes a young boy linked to the unexplained appearance and disappearance of blood on a bathroom mirror. The origin of this story — including whether a child ever died at or near the theater — is not corroborated outside the regional ghost-listing literature, and the claim is best understood as folkloric.
Additional reports include moved props between performances and shadow figures seen beneath the stage's ghost light. None of the lore has been associated with confirmed historical deaths in the building; the Elsinore's documented operating history is one of restoration and continuous community ownership rather than tragedy. The venue does not market ghost-hunt programming, and the lore travels primarily through regional newspaper features and ghost-tour listings.
Notable Entities
Attend a concert, classic-film screening, or touring production in the restored 1,290-seat auditorium. The Tudor Gothic interior — modeled on the castle from Shakespeare's Hamlet — features original Povey Brothers stained glass and the restored Wurlitzer theater organ.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
Joliet, IL
The Rialto Square Theatre opened May 24, 1926, designed by Chicago firm Rapp & Rapp for the six Rubens brothers. Its Neo-Baroque interior — modeled in part on the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles — earned it a place on the American Institute of Architects's '150 Great Places in Illinois' and a listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
Salem, OR
Salem's Historic Grand Theatre — officially the Chemeketa Lodge No. 1, Odd Fellows Buildings — was built in 1900 as a lodge hall and opera house by the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, designed by Pugh & Gray in Romanesque Revival style. It opened November 29, 1900 with the Julius Grau Opera Company and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. The 402-seat venue (288 main floor, 114 balcony) is now operated by To The Ceiling Entertainment as a multi-use performing-arts venue and hosts the seasonal 'Ghosts of the Grand' haunted attraction.
El Paso, TX
The Plaza Theatre opened September 12, 1930 on Pioneer Plaza in downtown El Paso. Developer Louis L. Dent commissioned the Spanish Colonial Revival movie palace in 1927, and the inaugural night drew a crowd of 2,410. Its lavish interior was designed to evoke 'the fabled beauty of Old Spain and the charm of Old Mexico.' After decades of decline, the theatre was extensively restored and reopened as a performing-arts venue, now home to the Plaza Classic Film Festival and a wide range of touring performances.