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Posted: 02.05.2020 |Updated: 03.18.2025
The Owl N’ Thistle has all the makings of a memorable night out. Refreshing drinks flow, flavorful food fills tables, and an empty piano plays somewhere in the pub.So, raise a glass to the shadows of Seattle in this very haunted downtown establishment!
Ghostly activity is common at this Seattle favorite, where rich furnishings, brick walls, and rows of old books ooze a haunted aesthetic.
The Owl N’ Thistle is often said to be the most haunted building in Seattle. Due in part because it is filled with over a century’s worth of history in a constantly evolving city. Creepy whispers, blurry visions, and unexplainable bumps in the night keep staff on their toes. An otherworldly presence roams The Owl N’ Thistle, catching guests off guard and encompassing them in a chilled air.
One may blame the libations for these spectral encounters. However, some believe they’ve been here well before the Irish Pub moved in.
The gloom of the Pacific Northwest breeds the perfect atmosphere for a haunted walking tour. So, Join Seattle Terrors on a Seattle ghost tour to explore the city’s dark and twisted shadows and see where phantoms terrorize the living.
Why is the Owl N’ Thistle One of the Most Haunted Places in Seattle?
What’s spookier than a piano coming to life on its own? Maybe its knowing that chilling fingers of an unseen specter are dancing across the keys. The Owl N’ Thistle isn’t a trove of ghosts, but what it lacks in quantity, it makes up for in eerie quality. The “why” behind that haunt is a little more ambiguous, with many believing it’s tied to tragic events that may have unfolded in a network of tunnels below.
Quick Facts:
- A thistle is a type of flower with sharp spikes.
- The Owl N’ Thistle sits above the burned-out shell of old Seattle.
- A piano in the pub will sometimes play all by itself.
- The pub sits atop Seattle’s underground tunnel system.
The Great Seattle Fire
The building The Owl N’ Thistle occupies isn’t a Seattle original. In fact, many of the Emerald City’s storefronts aren’t. During the summer of 1889, an inferno ravaged 100 acres of the city.
Estimated losses totaled around $20 million, a sizable sum for something that started with a simple pot of hot glue. All in all, this fire forever changed Seattle, creating a new armada of stores and industrial buildings. Among them was the Colman Building.
The building was conceptualized by James Murray Colman, an engineer who moved to the Pacific Northwest with his wife, Agnes. But, the Wisconsin native was no stranger to success, starting with managing the Yesler’s mill downtown and building his own dock, the Colman Dock.
But, at some point, he acquired a block of First Avenue that ran between Marion and Columbia Streets. It was here that he would have a new set of office buildings constructed.
The building today has been revamped and reconstructed over the years. It still has some remnants of Stephen Meany’s original Romanesque Revival design. The Colman Building was built with a brick exterior to help with fire-proofing after the blaze that destroyed parts of the city (and to meet new city codes).
Red brick — which is porous and, therefore, can retain spectral energy — is also a tool in some spiritual rituals. It’s fitting that something has stuck with the pub all these years.
The Seattle Undgeround Tunnels Beneath the Tavern
With the Colman Building completed, The Owl N’ Thistle’s haunt had a venue. But, the remaining puzzle piece behind the specter’s existence seems to be the underground tunnels running under parts of Seattle.
The Seattle underground tunnels are comprised of pre-1889 Seattle, and one is even said to cut beneath the Irish pub. Therefore, this ancient relic of old Seattle is layered over by contemporary life, because new buildings were simply erected atop the charred remains of the old city.
Despite what these tunnels represented, they were still used for the next few years. Merchants lucky enough to have surviving storefronts returned to work. Pedestrians used the tunnels to move throughout the city. Then, in 1907, fear of the plague spread throughout Seattle. The tunnels were condemned, and, for a while, all signs of life were gone.
Unfortunately, the quiet and empty underground became the perfect breeding ground for the worst parts of Seattle. Illicit gambling halls and opium dens started popping up, creating a network of sin and villainy.
Since everything was very under the radar, there’s no telling how many deaths may have racked up over the years. One can speculate that it’s definitely more than one — especially with so many businesses sitting above the Seattle tunnels dealing with their haunts.
Transforming the Colman Building
The Colman Building, built in 1889, is not quite the same structure that The Owl N’ Thistle exists in today. In 1904, two years before James Colman passed away, the Colman underwent its first transformation.
Along with a few ornate changes, the building received four more floors. A lot of stone and brickwork was done to the exterior, with new red brick and other stone mediums used to resurface parts of the building. Like brick, some stone is porous, giving it properties potentially capable of absorbing the building’s energy over the years.
In 1972, Seattle’s focus shifted to the historical preservation of its antiquated downtown. Among the efforts included adding the Colman Building to the National Register of Historic Places and renovating the standing structure.
Within 18 years, the city recognized the Colman as a City of Seattle Landmark, one with a spectral presence that would linger to tell the city’s stories.
The Ghost of The Owl N’ Thistle
Who haunts the Irish Pub remains one of the establishment’s biggest mysteries. Whomever it is, they do have an affinity for music. On quieter nights, patrons and staff have noted hearing the piano singing from the corner of the bar.
It’s a haunting melody, particularly because no one is ever seated at it as the keys are played. It’s not just an echo of the piano, either, as one worker claimed to have seen the keys move on their own.
When the resident, unseen spirit isn’t at the ivories, it’s known to move around the pub.
However, the spectral activity is mostly limited to the piano, suggesting that it and not the building itself is haunted. A heaviness in the air flows throughout, reminding everyone sensitive enough to feel it that someone—or something—is just out of reach, tucked behind the fabric of our reality.
Explore Haunted Seattle
The Owl N’ Thistle is a well-known local establishment, most notable for the spirit that sits at its piano. On the surface, Seattle is a gold mine for history, microbreweries, and coffee houses. However, when you peel back its layers, you uncover a darkness festering within. The Owl N’ Thistle is just one place that this manifestation touches.
Explore the tales and historical recounts responsible for the bounty of spirits circulating throughout Seattle. Book your Seattle Terrors ghost tour to see more of Emerald City’s haunts. Be sure to brush up on your haunted Seattle lore by reading our blog and following us on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram.
Sources:
- https://www.thestranger.com/food-and-drink/2011/10/26/10479666/the-haunted-bars-of-seattle
- https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-great-seattle-fire
- https://www.thetravel.com/is-there-an-underground-city-in-seattle
- https://www.historylink.org/File/8708
