On May 10, 2025, Ghostly Activities Club members took a walking tour around Downtown Tacoma … and learned about some creepy and spooky shenanigans. It makes us want to carry holy water whenever we set foot on those streets. Get the scoop after the jump.

Before The Spooky Adventure Began

We arrived early to get some eats before the tour. Funny enough, we met at the Elks Temple on the first floor, The Old Hangout. It’s a Caribbean pirate themed bar and restaurant. Of course we needed a cocktail. Some tots. And some spicy food.

Amy got Mermaid Spit and I had the Painkiller, a pineapple cream concoction. I liked Amy’s drink more than mine, but chugged it was anway.

For food, I got the banh mi (a Vietnamese sub), and Amy got the poke bowl. That wasn’t my thing: I like my fish cooked. Anyway, the only bummer was no horseradish for my sweet potato fries.

Inside The Old Hangout At Elks Temple

What can I say? We like our spooky with a side of cozy.

We still had an hour to kill before the tour, so another destination awaited …

A Side Trip To Devil’s Reef In Opera Alley

We had hour before the tour, so I took Amy over to Devil’s Reef. As the name implies, it’s a Caribbean pirate themed bar. You’d better like rum if you journey here. The place is dark, warm and totally kitsch. I totally loved it. It’s in Opera Alley, just up the hill from Elks Temple. Look for the ship’s helm to find the entrance.

The Ghost Tour Begins!

Chris, our guide from Pretty Gritty Tours, started at the Elks Temple (surprise, surprise). The tour began right at 7:30 PM.

And talk about weaving around the hotel and very haunted hallways. Each floor of the building has something to remind you of its past. For example, the second floor has reminders of its life as a gay bar. You can find drag queen news, pictures and paintings all along the second floor.

On the third floor, you can see a hallway filled with graffiti. That’s to remind you about its days as a derelict building. There’s even a speakeasy, The Vault, tucked away in a corner.

As for the hauntings, it’s the second floor with the most haunted parts. Not much spooky happening on the 4th floor or higher.

Headed To The Haunted Streets … And Learning About A Curse

The tour group mosied from the Elks Lodge to Firefighters Park across from Old City Hall. It’s really just an empty lot, but every building on this lot has burned to the ground.

The local tribes say it’s cursed due to desecration. That happened back in the 1890s when Tacoma community and business leaders decided clear the land for urban development (i.e, being greedy f—s).

We also learned that Thai restaurant building was a brothel! Oh my … talk about spicy indeed.

Around the corner, we learned more about the Great Chinese Expulsion, Tacoma’s tunnels, and the beginning of a dreadful curse. It’s one that repeats every 10 years. Sounds like the Fear Street movies on Netflix, eh?

Let’s just say, don’t bring your 14 year-old daughter to Tacoma when that cycle comes ’round. And avoid British ships. Just sayin’.

On to the next stop …

Hotel Olympus

This alleyway has seen 2 instances of the curse, the Hotel Olympus and at the end of block.

But it’s also creepy to note that a set of haunted dolls keeps returning to the basement of the hotel … even though the tunnels have been sealed. Somehow, someway … the dolls always return.

The Hotel Olympus is no longer a hotel but housing. So there’s no going inside to see what else may be in the basement. Oh, it had been a bath house waaaaay back in the 1910s. Hubba hubba.

Next stop …

Johnson Cox Printing

Now this was a fun stop. We learned that a 1900s brothel became a printing business (Johnson Cox) until a year ago. Then, pet groomers moved into the spot. There are tales of phantom voices and the sound of printing equipment going off. Also, a little girl’s voice can be heard on the top floor.

Chris also let us know about a major tunnel used to store amusement park figurines (very creepy figurines at that), and those pesky crawlers run around down there. I’m not even going to try to enter that space.

Just a block down, you can find some green-colored glass next to Thai Pepper Restaurant (in the former Bradley’s Bodega). The tunnels are just below that jade-looking glass.

Next stop …

Old City Hall

Now this was a creepy moment on the tour: Old City Hall held the notorious serial killer, Jake Bird. He murdered over 40 women with an axe back in the 1930s-1940s. In his cell, he mentioned the dreadful curse carved into the cell wall. Shortly after, he went to Walla Walla for execution.

Also, the basement is known for its crawler entities like I mentioned earlier. Creeeeepppyyyy.

Our next to last stop …

Lucifer’s Militia

Lucifer’s Militia, a biker gang from the 1950s, used this building for all sorts of grim rituals. Rumors swirled about their Satanic activity. Our guide told us about a spectral emergency that happened inside this building, and it led to a kid need some ambulatory rescue! Spoiler: The kid was fine.

Our final stop was at the back of the Elks Temple where we saw an old jail cell from Old City Hall. Really, you can just look down a grate in the sidewalk next to the trolley stop.

After seeing that and getting creeped out, we learned about the old Union Club, just next to Elks Temple. The top floor penthouse has 7 murals depicting the curse playing out. Each painting gets more and more graphic as the tale progresses. You can’t visit the renovated building, but the murals are still there.

Wrapping Things Up At The Vault

At that point, the tour was over and our guide had to go give a different tour. Amy and I meandered over The Vault, the speakeasy in the Elks Temple, for a night cap. She got an Earl Grey martini and I got the Donkey Mule martini.

The speakeasy isn’t a big space, and we took the first available seat right under this crazy airshaft thingy. You could see to the very top of the building.

Anyway, we dished about the tour, the curse, how it stacked up against the other tours we’ve taken, and thought about our next ghost hunt.

And, if you’re curious, we both agreed it was a great tour by Pretty Gritty Tours.

BONUS: The Full Comic Book Cover Feature Image

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Have you taken the Downtown Tacoma ghost tour from Pretty Gritty Tours? Did something spooky happen? Let me know in the comments below.

Thanks for reading Ghostly Activities. Much appreciated and take care!

Note: Amy and Jake bought the tour tickets with their own money, so there’s no expectation of a positive review for the tour company.