Ira Wesley Kitmacher is a published author of books on American Pacific Northwest (“Haunted Graveyard of the Pacific,” “Spirits Along the Columbia River”, “Haunted Puget Sound,” and “Pacific Northwest Legends and Lore”), and European (“Monsters and Miracles: Horror, Heroes and the Holocaust”) history and folklore. Also, two of his history and folklore books have been adapted for grade school readers (“The Ghostly Tales of the Pacific Northwest,” and “The Ghostly Tales of Puget Sound”).  He has also written a book on ancient lessons in resolving conflict (“Solomon’s Steps).

Ira served as a professor for over a decade, teaching graduate-level courses at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., Portland State University in Oregon, and undergraduate courses at other colleges.

Ira is a retired senior U.S. government executive, attorney, cruise ship onboard historian (Puget Sound, Snake/Columbia Rivers, New England), tour guide (“History and Haunted Olympia”), commissioner on the Thurston County Historic Commission, and a member of The History Writers Association. He has been featured on television programs, documentaries, radio shows, podcasts, in newspapers and magazines, at national and regional conferences, and at museum and book events. Ira holds Juris Doctor, Master of Science, and Bachelor of Arts degrees.

Ira has a passion for history and folklore.