Portland's Forgotten Tunnels & Trapdoors (Shanghai Tunnels Explained)

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The Portland Underground, commonly called the “Shanghai Tunnels,” was a series of bar and hotel basements linked to each other and the Willamette River docks by an intricate system of tunnels under the city streets. “Shanghaiing” refers to the capture and sale of able-bodied men to ship captains needing extra crew. Victims were drugged with opiates, kidnapped while intoxicated, or knocked unconscious. Oral tradition has kept the history of the Portland Underground alive. Today, 150 years after Shanghaiing began you can still view the secrets of the past by visiting the tunnels.

Chapters:
00:00 Intro to The Portland Underground
01:27 A word from Skillshare, the online learning community
03:19 Portland’s original population
04:33 How The gold rush stimulated population growth in Portland
05:38 The discovery of gold in Jackson Creek
06:08 Chinese and Japanese immigrants of the west
07:46 Portland’s secret Shanghai Tunnels
10:55 Portland’s Mobsters, Gangsters and Prohibition
13:17 The haunted Shanghai tunnels
14:28 The end of human trafficking in Portlands tunnels
14:44 Tunnel Renovation and walking tours

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IT’S HISTORY - Weekly tales of American Urban Decay as presented by your host Ryan Socash.

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[email protected]
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» CREDIT
Sponsor - Skillshare
Scriptwriter - Camrin Dekis,
Editor - Sebastian Ripoll,
Host - Ryan Socash

» SOURCES
“History.” The Official Guide to Portland, https://www.travelportland.com/culture/history/.
“Portland.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https://www.britannica.com/place/Portland-Oregon.
“Portland.” The Oregon Encyclopedia, https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/portland/#.Yp_j727MKEs.
History of Portland, Oregon, https://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h3903.html.
Seaman, Maya. “Portland's Shanghai Tunnels.” The Official Guide to Portland, Travel Portland, 31 Aug. 2021, https://www.travelportland.com/culture/portland-shanghai-tunnels/#:~:text=The%20Shanghai%20Tunnels%20were%20used,of%20streetcars%2C%20traffic%20and%20mud.
UGC. “Portland's Shanghai Tunnels.” Atlas Obscura, Atlas Obscura, 21 June 2013, https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/portland-s-shanghai-tunnels.
“Historical Background of Portland's Shady Past.” Shanghai Tunnels/Portland Underground, http://portlandtunnels.com/historical-background-of-portlands-shady-past.html.
Legends of America, https://www.legendsofamerica.com/or-shanghai/.
Kramer, Anna. “A Brief History of Portland's Shanghai Tunnels.” Culture Trip, The Culture Trip, 16 May 2017, https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/oregon/portland/articles/a-brief-history-of-portlands-shanghai-tunnels/.

“Shanghaiing in Portland and the Shanghai Tunnels Myth.” The Oregon Encyclopedia, https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/shanghai_tunnels_myth/#.Yp_kdW7MKEs.
“Portland Underground.” Portland Underground - Portland Underground Tours, http://www.destination360.com/north-america/us/oregon/portland/underground.
Green, Katherine. “The Underground in Portland Has a Dark and Evil History That Will Never Be Forgotten.” OnlyInYourState, 25 Oct. 2016, https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/oregon/portland/underground-in-portland/.
Posted by dev_admin in Portland Ghosts. “The Shanghai Tunnels.” The Shanghai Tunnels - Portland Ghosts, 8 Nov. 2021, https://portlandghosts.com/the-shanghai-tunnels/.
“Portland's Shanghai Tunnels.” Haunted Houses, 1 June 2022, http://hauntedhouses.com/oregon/portlands-shanghai-tunnels/.
Highway 199, http://www.highway199.org/history/oregon-gold-rush/#:~:text=The%20date%20often%20cited%20in,Jackson%20Creek%20in%20December%201851.

» NOTICE
Some images may be used for illustrative purposes only - always reflecting the accurate time frame and content. Events of factual error / mispronounced word/spelling mistakes - retractions will be published in this section.