Est. 1904 · Grays Harbor History · Washington Maritime History · Labor History
The Crowther-Wooding Building went up on East Heron Street in 1904, during Aberdeen's peak as one of the Pacific Northwest's busiest timber and shipping ports. The ground floor housed the Red Cross Pharmacy from its opening through 1933, followed by Evans Drugs through the 1940s. The building then transitioned through a series of taverns — Vann's Tavern and the Derby Tavern operated from 1944 to 1979. The upstairs 'Elenora rooms' operated as a brothel under Madame Elenora during the mid-20th century period, and the building's most clearly documented violent incident is a shooting death in the upstairs bathroom during that era.
Sonny Bridges acquired the building in 1981 and converted it into the family restaurant that operates today. The name Billy's was chosen in reference to Billy Gohl, Aberdeen's most infamous historical figure — a man whose legend has been significantly distorted in the retelling.
Gohl was a workers' union secretary in early 1900s Aberdeen who advocated aggressively for the safety and rights of sailors and maritime workers in the harbor. Sensationalized newspaper accounts of the era credited him with murders numbering in the dozens or hundreds. Modern historian Aaron Goings' research revealed a different picture: Gohl was convicted of two murders and died in prison in 1927 of pneumonia. The 'Ghoul of Grays Harbor' legend was, in significant part, a narrative manufactured by the employers whose interests he opposed — a way to discredit and demonize an effective labor organizer.
Billy's Bar and Grill has operated continuously at this address since 1981 with no significant closures noted in recent years.
Sources
- https://www.graysharbortalk.com/2024/06/05/intrigue-at-billys-bar-grill-separating-truth-from-tall-tales-of-grays-harbors-billy-gohl/
- https://www.wahauntedhouses.com/real-haunt/billys-bar-grill-restaurant.html
- https://billysaberdeen.com/
ApparitionsObject movementPhantom soundsPhantom smellsDisembodied laughter
The paranormal accounts at Billy's are distinguished from pure legend by their specificity and their independence from the Billy Gohl mythology. Gohl's connection to the building is indirect — he was a notable figure in the Aberdeen harbor district, not a resident or frequent visitor of the specific property. Whatever activity has been reported here may not be attributable to him at all.
The documented reports focus on physical activity rather than visual apparitions. Coffee cups have flown from the wall and shattered — not fallen, but moved with apparent force in directions inconsistent with gravity. Music has blared at full volume from sound systems that were off. The sound of a child laughing and running in the upstairs hallway, now a storage area, has been heard during business hours when no children are present. Shot glasses have moved across the bar surface without contact.
The bartender apparition is more precisely described than most: a figure standing behind the bar with a cold expression, appearing solid enough that witnesses approach expecting to interact, who vanishes before contact. Whether this represents a former employee of the tavern era, someone associated with the brothel upstairs, or an entirely undocumented occupant is unknown.
A sailor apparition — described as bedraggled and in period clothing — has been reported in the lower level by multiple unconnected witnesses, which is more consistent with the building's actual history as a harbor district commercial space than any specific Billy Gohl connection.
The cigarette smoke phenomenon appears to be sensory rather than visual: present at tables and in sections where no one present is smoking, detectable by multiple people simultaneously, and then gone without explanation.
Notable Entities
The bartender apparitionSailor apparition
