Is the world ready for the Oregon Vortex?

A feature article by Andrew Regan, Nov 18, 2006         

The Oregon Vortex, one of America's most celebrated mystery spots, first rose to international prominence when it was featured in an episode of The X Files in 1999. However, the focus of the vortex's paranormal energies - the House of Mystery - dates back to the early twentieth century.

Situated in Gold Hill, Oregon, near the town of Medford, the House of Mystery was first built in 1904 by the Old Grey Eagle Mining Company. First used as a gold assay office, and later as a tool storage facility, the House is now a roadside attraction in which visitors are treated to a display of the supernatural powers of the Oregon Vortex. Famous for its unnatural properties, it is said that the laws of physics are temporarily suspended in the Oregon Vortex. First opened to visitors in 1939, objects in the House of Mystery appear to defy laws of gravity: brooms stand vertically unsupported, balls seem to roll in an uphill direction and laws of perspective are radically altered. It's claimed that its powers are strongest during the fool moon, and some visitors are even said to be relieved from back pains when they enter its vicinity.

The earliest investigations into the activities of the Oregon Vortex were conducted in 1959 by John Litser, a former owner of the property. Allegedly, he burned the detailed tests and conclusions of his findings in a fit of panic, exclaiming in fear: "the world is not ready for this!" While some of Litser's notes survive, and are sold in the House of Mystery gift shop, recent sceptics have shed more light on the natural reasons for the area's so-called paranormal activity. Many critics claim that when the House of Mystery was a gold assay office, it slid from its foundations and came to settle at an odd angle; hence, when visitors to the House of Mystery assume its foundations are normal, events that occur appear to have somehow undercut the laws of gravity.

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