The Shanghai Tunnels | Portland, Oregon

Beneath the streets of Portland, a network of brick passageways has inspired one of Oregon's most enduring legends. For decades, the Shanghai Tunnels have been connected to stories of kidnappings, hidden routes, and the dangerous world of nineteenth-century waterfront life. Historians continue to debate how much of the popular legend reflects documented history, but the story itself has never stopped evolving.

In this episode of The Midnight Drive, we explore the history behind the Shanghai Tunnels and ask a different kind of question. Instead of focusing only on what happened beneath Portland's streets, we consider how stories grow over time, why communities preserve certain legends, and what folklore can reveal about the people who continue telling it.

Sometimes history is written in documents.

Sometimes it's carried from one conversation to the next.

Tonight's drive explores:

• Portland's Shanghai Tunnels
• The history of shanghaiing
• Nineteenth-century waterfront Portland
• Oral tradition and folklore
• How legends evolve over time
• The stories cities choose to remember

Keywords: Shanghai Tunnels, Portland, Oregon, shanghaiing, Portland history, Pacific Northwest, folklore, urban legends, oral tradition, storytelling, Old Town Portland, haunted Portland, The Midnight Drive

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