Overnight Stay Booking Required
Stay in the White Eagle Hotel
Book one of the small upstairs hotel rooms above the saloon; rooms share period-furnished common bathrooms, and live music plays downstairs most nights.
- Duration:
- 12 hr
Photo coming soon
Haunted Dining / Bar
White Eagle Saloon & Hotel
A 1905 Polish-immigrant saloon and rooming house in Eliot, nicknamed the 'Bucket of Blood,' now a McMenamins bar and hotel reputed to be haunted by former residents and patrons.
836 N Russell St, Portland, OR 97227
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Bar and pub menu pricing; small upstairs hotel with modest room rates.
Access
Limited Access
Historic two-story building; main floor accessible; upstairs hotel rooms reached by stairs only.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1899 · Founded as a saloon in 1905 by Polish immigrants Soboleski and Hryszko · Listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Hryszko Brothers Building · Nicknamed 'Bucket of Blood' for its early-twentieth-century reputation · Rehabilitated by McMenamins in 1997
The two-story brick building at 836 N Russell Street, in the Eliot neighborhood of inner North Portland, was constructed in 1899 as part of the working-class commercial district serving nearby docks, rail yards, and industrial sites. In 1905, Polish immigrants Bronislaw 'Barney' Soboleski and William Hryszko opened a saloon at the address, naming it the White Eagle after the central image of the Polish coat of arms. The building also housed the related Hryszko Brothers business interests, and family members lived in upstairs rooms.
During the early twentieth century, the saloon drew dockworkers, railroad crews, sailors, and laborers from the surrounding industrial district. Local oral history and McMenamins' own historical materials describe a reputation for frequent brawls that earned the bar the nickname 'Bucket of Blood,' along with persistent rumors of an upstairs rooming-house brothel and basement gambling. Soboleski sold his interest in 1914; William Hryszko's brother Joseph took over bartending duties and moved into one of the upstairs rooms.
During Prohibition, oral history attributes a clandestine connection between the basement and Portland's broader network of subterranean passages, with claims that bootleg alcohol moved through the building. McMenamins' own 'White Eagle Lore, Reexamined' essay notes that several of the building's most colorful brothel and tunnel claims rest more on tradition than on documented record.
The Hryszko family operated the saloon until the mid-twentieth century. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 as the Hryszko Brothers Building. McMenamins purchased the property in 1997 and rehabilitated it as a bar and small hotel, opening renovated upstairs rooms to overnight guests.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hryszko_Brothers_Building
- https://blog.mcmenamins.com/white-eagle-lore-reexamined/
- https://offbeatoregon.com/H0908a_WhiteEagle.htm
- https://eliotneighborhood.org/2010/01/08/the-white-eagle-saloon/
Basement freezer doors opening on their ownDoors and windows on the upper floor opening or closing without causeToilets reportedly flushing on their own in the ladies' roomCoins falling from the basement ceiling near the stairsFaint music heard when none is playing
Ghost stories surrounding the White Eagle have been a regular subject of Oregon folklore writing since at least the 1980s, including a feature in Offbeat Oregon History by Finn J.D. John (offbeatoregon.com). The two most-named figures in the lore are Rose, described as a former upstairs prostitute reportedly murdered while a sailor she loved was at sea, and Sam, a maintenance worker said to have been taken in by the owner as a child and to have lived and died at the saloon (Portland Ghosts; Puzzle Box Horror).
Reported phenomena, drawn from McMenamins staff accounts gathered over decades, include basement freezer doors opening on their own, upstairs doors and windows opening or closing without apparent cause, toilets flushing autonomously in the ladies' restroom, the sound of faint music when none is playing, and coins reportedly falling from the basement ceiling near the stairs. Guests staying in the small upstairs hotel sometimes report being touched or hearing footsteps in empty hallways.
McMenamins' own corporate blog post 'White Eagle Lore, Reexamined' explicitly treats much of this material as oral tradition layered over real history; the company keeps the lore visible while inviting visitors to weigh it skeptically. Independent paranormal investigators and ghost-tour operators continue to feature the venue, and overnight guests are regularly invited to record their experiences in journals kept upstairs.
Notable Entities
Rose (legendary upstairs 'working girl')Sam (legendary longtime maintenance worker said to have lived and died at the saloon)
Plan Your Visit
2 ways to experience Dinner
Pub Dinner at the Saloon
Order pub food and McMenamins beer in the original 1905 barroom; live music programming most evenings.
- Duration:
- 1.5 hr
Sources & Further Reading
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is White Eagle Saloon & Hotel family-friendly?
Working bar with live music; family-friendly during daytime dining, more bar-focused at night. Backstory references prostitution and is best for older audiences. Overall family fit: Moderate.
How much does it cost to visit White Eagle Saloon & Hotel?
Bar and pub menu pricing; small upstairs hotel with modest room rates.
Do I need to book in advance?
No advance booking is required, but checking availability is recommended.
Is White Eagle Saloon & Hotel wheelchair accessible?
White Eagle Saloon & Hotel has limited wheelchair accessibility. Terrain: Historic two-story building; main floor accessible; upstairs hotel rooms reached by stairs only..