HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena — as catalogued
1890 Fairhaven commercial block, once home to the all-male Cascade Club; staff report a period-dressed 'Green Lady' near the restaurant kitchen.
1200 Harris Ave, Bellingham, WA 98225
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Free to walk the historic building and Fairhaven district; meals at the in-building restaurants at standard prices.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Restored multi-story commercial block in a walkable historic district; ground-floor businesses are accessible.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1890 · 1890 Richardsonian Romanesque Mason Block, a Fairhaven historic-district landmark · Top-floor Cascade Club hosted Mark Twain and William Howard Taft · 1973 rehabilitation credited with launching Fairhaven's historic-district revival
The Mason Block at the corner of Harris Avenue and Twelfth Street is one of the largest buildings in Fairhaven's historic district. Completed in 1890 during the speculative boom that built the neighborhood, the three-story Richardsonian Romanesque block was named for Allen C. Mason, the Tacoma investor who financed it, and was designed by Tacoma architects James Pickles and Albert Sutton.
The ground floor held a mix of commercial tenants — clothing, hardware, groceries, dry goods — while the top floor housed the Cascade Club, an all-male social club. According to SAH Archipedia and Fairhaven History, the club hosted notable visitors of the era: after a Bellingham appearance, Mark Twain was escorted to the third-floor club where men could smoke and drink, and William Howard Taft is also recorded among its guests.
The building declined along with much of Fairhaven in the twentieth century. Developer Kenneth Imus rehabilitated it in 1973, renaming it The Market Place, and the project is credited with sparking Fairhaven's revival as a historic shopping district. A later owner renamed it Sycamore Square, the name it carries today, with restaurants and shops occupying its restored floors.
Sources
The haunting attached to the Mason Block centers on a figure the staff call 'The Green Lady.' According to WhatcomTalk's account of haunted Bellingham, workers in the building's restaurant have reported seeing a woman in period dress walk past the kitchen, and one dishwasher described watching the figure disappear in front of him.
The lore fits the building's late-Victorian history and its long stretch as a social and commercial hub, though the reports are anecdotal and tied largely to a single local feature and the stories carried on Fairhaven's walking tours. No named historical person has been firmly connected to the apparition, and the 'Green Lady' nickname appears to come from the way the figure is described rather than from a documented identity.
Visitors can experience the setting simply by dining in the building or walking the Fairhaven historic district, or join the Good Time Girls' Fairhaven Gore and Lore tour, which covers the neighborhood's ghost stories and local lore in their historical context.
Notable Entities
The Good Time Girls run a Fairhaven Gore and Lore walking tour covering the district's ghost stories, true crime, and local lore, including its historic commercial blocks. Roughly 1-1.5 hours; 21+ attendees get drink specials at a partner venue.
Walk the 1890 Mason Block and the surrounding Fairhaven historic district, and stop in at the ground-floor restaurants where staff have reported the 'Green Lady.' Free to explore on your own.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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