Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Studios Haunted by the Eastland Disaster

The Eastland Disaster

July 24th, 1915 was a day promised to be filled with fun and excitement. The Western Electric Company of Hawthorne had chartered 5 boats to transport employees, their family and friends to Michigan City, Indiana for a company picnic.

The S.S. Eastland, one of the chartered boats, was docked at the Clark Street Bridge on the Chicago River. It did not take long for the Eastland to be filled to capacity, with over 2,500 passengers.

Little did the enthusiastic passengers know that the Eastland would never reach its destination. The Eastland rolled over onto its side at the wharfs edge, creating one of Chicago's greatest disasters. Although rescue efforts were fast and furious, the disaster claimed 844 lives, including 22 complete families.

The 2nd Regiment Armory was used as a makeshift morgue for over 200 victims of the Eastland Disaster. Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Studios now occupies the old armory.

Employees at Harpo Studios have reported mysterious sounds of children's laughter, whispering voices, footsteps, crying, and even an apparition of a woman, who has been dubbed the "Gray Lady".

Could it be that the spirits of those who were brought to the old armory haunt Harpo Studios? Is the crying heard residual energy from the emotional loss families endured, while having to identify the bodies of their loved ones? Maybe the laughter is from the children excited about their journey, who have not yet realized they have moved beyond this world. One may never know for sure. We can only hope that the victims of the Eastland Disaster have found peace.

A historical marker stands at the corner of LaSalle Street and Wacker Drive, commemorating the Eastland Disaster. "At the Rivers Edge" is an outdoor exhibit, currently in the works, that runs along the Chicago River edge between Clark and LaSalle Street. It is the exact location where the Eastland capsized into Chicago history. Donations are being accepted by the Eastland Disaster Historical Society to help further the construction, and maintain the "At the Rivers Edge" exhibit.