 "Photo: Megan Green")
It's the time of year to get to know the people in your neighborhood - especially the dead ones.
Halloween is here again. There is no better time to explore the spooky world of ghosts in downtown Chicago, and it is a busy world. Around every dark corner and down every dim alley, a spirit could be lurking.
To better navigate these downtown spirits, a ghost tour is helpful. Chicago is home to many types of these tours. Tour organization Weird Chicago plays host to several of them.
Weird Chicago's guides can take you through the ghostly inhabitants of Chicago either by a bus or walking tour. They will tell you gory stories about Chicago's past and the scary spirits that followed.
On a recent walking tour, tour guide Ken Melvoin-Berg explained some of the ghostly tales from around the Loop, such as the Eastland Disaster.
The Eastland Disaster took place between the Clark and LaSalle Street bridges on Wacker Drive.
On July 24, 1915, the employees of Western Electric and their families set sail for a cruise on the Eastland. The day ended in tragedy when the ship capsized in between the Clark and LaSalle Street bridges due to overcrowding. 835 people died.
Melvoin-Berg said that pictures of the spot where the ship capsized often show orbs or occasionally shapes that resemble screaming faces in the water. One can sometimes even hear the cries of those that perished that day.
According to Weird Chicago, the terrifying stories of spirits in downtown Chicago do not stop there.
Any Roosevelt student looking to take in some of the last performances of Wicked at the Oriental Theatre should also know about the tragic story of the Iroquois Theater, which stood where the Oriental Theater does now. During a matinee performance on Dec. 30, 1903, a deadly fire broke out in the theater.
Due to many fatal structural problems, 602 people died within a few short minutes. Some people died from the fire or were crushed in the mad rush to exit the theater. Others died jumping out of a sixth story doorway and into the alleyway below. Regardless of how they died, the hundreds of adults and children did not die peacefully.
According to Weird Chicago, that is why many of the dead are still around.
The Weird Chicago tour tells of actors from Wicked hearing the sounds of small children inside the theater when no one is around. A visitor to the Oriental Theatre can even occasionally run into one of the performers from that last matinee at the Iroquois Theater. A woman wearing a ballerina costume from that last performance is often seen around the theater and the alley in back.
Death Alley, as that alley is called, is also home to numerous sightings. The alley is where many people landed after jumping from the sixth floor. Pictures show many orbs and strange spirits. There are also suicides each year in the alley leading to more reports of restless ghosts.
The stories of ghosts in downtown Chicago are numerous, tragic and terrifying and tours are a great way to find out about them. Just do not be surprised if a scary spirit or two show up to enjoy the tour with you.
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