Enter Michael P. Jones

Founder and Curator of the Shanghai Tunnels

At a young age of 7, Michael would often be brought down to the Shanghai Tunnels with his Grandfather Dewy. The Shanghai Tunnels was still a very dangerous place as he was much informed at a young age.

Children were occasionally taken unfortunately, but since Michael was with his Grandfather at the time, he was safe for the meantime. Although blending in was an important task on its own.

“It was a heavily populated area as more people came through for transport...” - Michael

“You just gotta slip into the woodwork…” - Michael

If you were to walk through the Shanghai Tunnels, it was best to blend in with the environment. To dress in dark clothes so you would not draw attention.

It’s like researching bears if you were to go on a hike at Mt. Hood, you have to prepare before you go into the Shanghai Tunnels.

If you were to be intoxicated or already happen to be passed out from drinking too much alcohol, then you would be Shanghaied without a doubt.

The Tunnels

Beware...

There is little disagreement that the practice of Shanghaiing happened in Portland, however, the validity of the use of the underground catacombs to facilitate these abuses of human rights are not unanimously accepted.

Many contend that the tunnels are nothing more than a convenient way to move goods that arrived from ships on the waterfront to the cargo’s final destination, the store cellars of local businesses.

However, others believe these tunnels were used for a far more malevolent purpose, whisking away unconscious victims to awaiting ships and indentured servitude.

Were these tunnels just a convenient way to transport goods from ships to businesses in the area, or were they used as a thoroughfare for kidnapping and human trafficking?

Stories of the Tunnels

The Victims

As told from Michael, the Victims of the Shanghai Tunnel kidnappings ranged from all sorts of ages. The workers aboard ship were mainly men, but women were also caught working as well. Most of the workers were actually not residents of Portland, they came of African, Native, Chinese, or Spanish descent. If you were to be caught, you would stay aboard ship for years upon years without break and have to continue with the thought of never seeing your families again. It was a never-ending punishment to those who were captured.

White Slavery

White slavers were a part of the trade deal in the Shanghai Tunnels, but this had to do with sex trafficking. Captured women were put into slavery and prostitution. Most of these women unfortunately seemed to vanish and were never heard of again.

"Bunko"

Many people want their names to live on after they are dead. People plan their lives in such a way that their deeds are talked about with reverence and wistful nostalgia. Other people’s names go down in history in a way that is maybe not how they had planned. People whose actions in life are so vile, it must surely be hoped that their dastardly actions never surface and shine light on the evil that lived in the dark recesses of their souls. In Portland, Oregon, one of those notorious men was Joseph Kelly, also known as “Bunko”.

Bunko would later become infamous as the “Kidnapping King of Portland” and distinguish himself as a prolific figure in the illicit trade of human trafficking. It is reported that Kelly was so crafty and underhanded that he once stole a statue of a wooden Indian outside a cigar store and stowed it onboard a vessel in a bunk with the covers pulled over its head, making it appear as if an inebriated victim was just sleeping it off. Kelly then collected the money from the captain who believed he was just delivered a new member of his crew. This is of little surprise coming from a man who was becoming the kingpin in the Shanghai trade.

Kelly’s story is a small footnote in the history of the practice of Shanghaiing but was a substantial figure in the local human trade here in the Pacific Northwest. The practice continued after Kelly was removed from Portland’s developing landscape, but Kelly was no longer a perpetrator of the atrocities. Today, the Shanghai tunnels serve as a reminder of this chapter of Portland’s dark past regardless of whether you believe they were actually used for human smuggling or not.

Credits

Special thanks

We want to give a special thanks for the Portland Shanghai Tunnels for letting us take photos, videos, and giving us permission to use there own photos in this particular project.

A big thanks to Michael for giving us a few hours of his time.

Rattini, Kristin Baird. A Short History of Shanghai. The New York Times. Web. 2006. https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/fodors/top/features/travel/destinations/asia/china/shanghai/fdrs_feat_145_5.html

Lopatto, Elizabeth. The Legend of the Legend of Bunko Kelly, the Kidnapping King of Portland, The Awl. Web. Jul. 2014. https://www.theawl.com/2014/07/the-legend-of-the-legend-of-bunko-kelly-the-kidnapping-king-of-portland/

Interview with Michael P. Jones by Sandra Bush and Arthur Luangphasy