There's a mysterious man who walks Port Townsend's streets at night, telling ghost stories.
"I talk about the death, debauchery, crime, mayhem and prostitution that took place in Port Townsend’s past."
Grymm Depp leads 'Twisted Tours' of PT's most haunted places, like the one at the top of the stairs that lead from Uptown to Downtown, where in 1902 a girl got caught in the crossfire between her suitor -- and her angry father:
"It was right about here that Abigail was standing. She was shot through the throat, dropped to the ground, rolled down the hill about 15 feet, and died,” explained Grymm, "And what people see is her standing here -- a silhouette of her standing here, and falling to the ground, and rolling down the hill."
Just a block away, Port Townsend has an 'Underground' like Seattle's. Grymm says it's home to some dark tales.
Charles Eisenbeis Junior's story ended here in 1897 - in an office that's now a candle store. Eisenbeis, the son of a prominent city father, shot himself in the head three times, but his body wasn’t found till days after the act.
"Now when the city police came in and they saw the body with the three bullet wounds they said well it obviously was a murder and his wife said, ‘No, I was in the office next door when he did it.’ Now that's twisted," said Grymm.
The Palace Hotel, another stop on this twisted tour, was once a brothel. According to Grymm, a former Madame still makes the rounds.
“If you go through the guest logbook at the top of the stairs you can actually see where people have written their experience of seeing her walk the halls.”
The Palace Hotel is also where Grymm went from a skeptic to a believer -- while refurbishing a room in the late 80's:
"I was on a twelve foot ladder actually reaching up to remove the old lighting fixture and ceiling fan that was in this room and when I reached to the top to grab the old light, my ladder got kicked out from underneath me and I fell to the floor, screaming the whole way.”
When it happened a second time, he was convinced.
"There must be something here that did not want us remodeling it."
Since then, Grymm sees life through a different lens...steampunk looking ones with yellow glass, to be exact…connecting the present to the past.
And helping others see his town with new eyes.
“Even if you don't walk away believing the ghost stories, believe the history, because that's truly what made Port Townsend what it is today."
Twisted History Tours of Port Townsend take place year-round. Call (360) 390-8318 to book, or visit http://www.tourporttownsend.com/Haunts.html
