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This is a partial list of ghost towns in Arizona in the United States. Most ghost towns in Arizona are former mining boomtowns that were abandoned when the mines closed. Those not set up as mining camps often became mills or supply points supporting nearby mining operations.[1]
Ghost towns can include sites in various states of disrepair and abandonment. Some sites no longer have any trace of buildings or civilization and have reverted to empty land. Other sites are unpopulated but still have standing buildings. Still others may support full-time residents, though usually far less than at their historical peak, while others may now be museums or historical sites.[1]
For ease of reference, the sites listed here are placed into one of the following general categories.
Town name | Other name(s) | Location | County | Settled | Abandoned | Current status | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Adamana | Apache | 1896 | Semi-abandoned site | Originally the place was known as Adam Hanna's, as time passed and more people came to visit, the elision of a few letters gave us the name Adamana. | |||
Adamsville | Sanford | Pinal | 1866 | 1920s | Neglected site | Original farming town mostly destroyed in a flood, now farmland. The remnant abandoned by the 1920s. Only its cemetery and some ruins remain. | |
Agua Caliente | Maricopa | 1858 | Neglected site | Hotel, ruins of a stone house and a swimming pool. | |||
Alamo Crossing[2] | Alimo | Mohave | 1899 | 1918 | Submerged | Submerged in Alamo Lake. | |
Alexandra[2] | Yavapai | 1875 | c. 1903 | Barren site | The town is located in Peck Canyon and was named Alexandra after Mrs. T.M. Alexander, a founder and the first lady to be at the town. | ||
Algert | Coconino | 1883 | 1921 | Neglected site | Walls of some of the school buildings, and some of the walls of the trading post are still standing. | ||
Allen[2] | Gunsight, Allen City[3] | Pima | c. 1880 | c. 1886 | Barren site | Allen was founded by John Brackett Allen, he named his town after himself. | |
Alma | Stringtown | Maricopa | 1880 | Historic site | Mormon settlement now part of Mesa, Arizona.[4] | ||
Alma | Pinal | 1891 | 1898 | Abandoned site | Wooden water tanks, concrete ore chute, and metal ore buckets, etc. as well as a small slag heap remain on the site within private property. A settlement with a post office, 6 miles above Old Camp Grant on the west side of the San Pedro River.[4]: 16 | ||
Alto | Santa Cruz | 1907 | 1933 | Neglected site | Adobe Walls of old Post office and Sign for "Alto Camp". Historic Mining district back to the 18th Century. | ||
American Flag[2] | Pinal | c. 1879 | c. 1884 | The post office was moved to the American Flag Ranch in 1880. The building still stands, and is the oldest surviving territorial post office building in Arizona. | |||
American Ranch | Lee's Ranch | Yavapai | 1863 | c. 1883 | Barren site | A stage stop on Mint Wash in Little Chino Valley on the Hardyville–Prescott Road with a large hotel for travelers.[5][6] | |
Angel Camp | Maricopa | ||||||
Apron Crossing | Yavapai | ||||||
Aravaipa | Dunlap | Graham | Originally named Dunlap after Burt Dunlap, the local rancher who established it in 1882. | ||||
Aubrey Landing[2] | Aubrey | Mohave | c. 1860 | c. 1886 | Barren site | A steamboat landing, later inundated when Lake Havasu was formed | |
Aura | Graham | 1899 | |||||
Aztec | Yuma | 1880s | Semi-abandoned site | Former railroad station | |||
Barcelona | Pinal | 1880s | Site completely devoured by mine | Segregated town near Kelvin | |||
Bellevue | Gila | 1906 | 1927 | Abandoned site | Town was built to harbor the Gibson Cooper Mine | ||
Big Bug[2] | Bigbug, Red Rock | Yavapai | 1862 | c. 1910 | Barren site | Town was founded by Theodore Boggs during the American Civil War. Boggs' father was the former governor of Missouri, Lilburn Boggs, who helped drive the Mormons out during the Missouri Mormon War. | |
Black Diamond | Cochise | ||||||
Bonita[8] | Graham | c. 1885 | 1950 | Abandoned site | Catered to Fort Grant | ||
Boyles | Carpenter | Greenlee | 1904 | 1908 | Barren site | Farming and ranching community at the mouth of the Blue River (Arizona)[9] | |
Bradshaw City | Yavapai | c. 1860 | c. 1880 | Barren site | Town supported the Tiger Mine. Namesake of its founder, William D. Bradshaw. | ||
Brigham City[10] | Navajo | 1876 | 1881 | Historic site | Founded by member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints near the present city of Winslow in 1876, it was one and one-half miles north of Winslow's current city center, along the Little Colorado River. It was organized as a Latter-Day Saints ward in 1878, but by 1881 it had been abandoned. | ||
Bumble Bee[1][2] | Yavapai | 1863 | Semi-abandoned site | Privately owned, few residents.[1] | |||
Calabasas[2] | Calabazas | Santa Cruz | 1866 | 1913 | Abandoned site | Was a Tohono O'odham Village, Mexican Garrison, Military Base, mining town. Town was known as the gateway to Mexico and had the finest hotel from San Francisco to Denver.[11] | |
Camp Crittenden | Santa Cruz | 1867 | 1873 | Semi-abandoned site | Private property, named Camp Crittenden by Generals Orders No. 57 Department of California, September 30, 1867, in honor of Thomas S. Crittenden, Col. 32nd U.S. Infantry Major General U.S. Volunteers. Established to protect settlements of Babocomari. | ||
Camp Reno | Gila | 1867 | 1870 | Neglected site | Area was once occupied by the United States Army to keep surveillance on the Apache.[12] | ||
Canelo | Santa Cruz | c. 1904 | Semi-abandoned site | Several historic buildings remain, including a one-room schoolhouse and a United States Forest Service ranger station complex. | |||
Canyon Diablo | Exit 230 off Interstate 40 | Coconino | 1882 | Before 1947 | Neglected | Only existed because of an error in constructing a railway bridge, died out shortly after the bridge was completed | |
Cascabel | Cochise | 1916 | 1936 | Semi-abandoned site | Several occupied adobes and ruined adobe walls, adjacent to Cascabel Rd. | ||
Castle Dome[13] | Yuma | 1869 | 1876 | Historic site | Site of the Castle Dome Mines Museum. | ||
Castle Dome Landing[1][2] | Castle Dome City | Yuma | 1869 | 1884 | Submerged | A steamboat landing, submerged in Martinez Lake. | |
Catoctin | Yavapai | c. 1902 | c. 1920 | Barren site | A small mining town | ||
Cedar | Mohave | c. 1875 | c. 1911 | Neglected site | gold, silver and copper mining town | ||
Cerbat | Campbell | Mohave | c. 1869 | c. 1912 | Neglected site | From June 25, 1890, to October 24, 1902, the town was known as Campbell.[2] | |
Cerro Colorado | Pima | c. 1856 | c. 1911 | Neglected site | The subject of a lost treasure story | ||
Chaparral | Yavapai | c. 1895 | c. 1918 | Barren site | |||
Charleston[2] | Cochise | 1879 | 1888 | Neglected site | Maintained by the Bureau of Land Management.[14] | ||
Cherry[2] | Yavapai | 1884 | 1943 | Semi-abandoned site | Once a mining town, now the site of a retirement community. | ||
Chloride | Mohave | 1863 | Semi-abandoned site | ||||
Cleator | Yavapai | ||||||
Clemenceau | Yavapai | 1917 | Historic site | Now part of Cottonwood, Arizona | |||
Cochise | Cochise | Semi-abandoned site | |||||
Cochran[2] | Pinal | 1905 | 1915 | ||||
Colorado City | Yuma | 1853 | 1862 | Barren site | Colorado River ferry crossing, destroyed by Great Flood of 1862 | ||
Congress[1] | Yavapai | ||||||
Contention City[2] | Contention | Cochise | 1880 | 1888 | Neglected site | Maintained by the Bureau of Land Management.[14] | |
Copper Creek[2] | Pinal | 1880s | 1942 | Neglected site | In recent years, several companies have proposed opening a mine here. | ||
Cordes | Antelope Junction | Yavapai | 1883 | 1950s | Semi-abandoned site | ||
Courtland[2] | Cochise | 1908 | 1942 | Abandoned site | Remains of old Jail and Cemetery | ||
Crown King[2] | Yavapai | 1894 | 1954 | Historic site | Old Saloon and Many occupied buildings including general store | ||
Curtis | Arizona City | Yavapai | 1889 | 1907 | Former mining town. Currently the site of a mining operation, just north of Mayer on Big Bug Creek. | ||
Dome | Yuma | 1892 | 1904 | Neglected site | Ruins of an adobe building, cemetery | ||
Duquesne | Santa Cruz | 1880s | 1920s | Semi-abandoned site | Several wood buildings including Westinghouse home | ||
Ehrenberg | Mineral City | La Paz | 1863 | 1915 | Neglected site | A steamboat landing, Colorado River ferry, junction of the Bradshaw Trail and La Paz–Wikenburg Road | |
Fairbank[2] | Junction City, Kendall, Fairbanks[15] | Cochise | 1883 | 1970s | Abandoned site | Maintained by the Bureau of Land Management.[15] | |
Fortuna | Fortuna Mine | Yuma | 1896 | 1924 | Neglected site | Foundation of General Store, Mill and Reservoir. Interpretive hiking trail maintained with signs by USMC–Yuma Marines. Mine shaft, Sign in log. | |
Fort Buchanan | Battle site | Santa Cruz | 1857 | 1865 | Barren site | Civil War era Frontier Post, The post was officially abandoned in 1861 but during the American Civil War troops of the California Column occasionally manned the post. In February 1865 Apaches attacked and forced the small garrison to retreat. | |
Galeyville[2] | Cochise | 1881 | 1882 | Barren site | |||
Geronimo | Graham | ||||||
Gillett | Gillette[16] | Yavapai | 1878 | 1880 | Neglected site | Gillett Cemetery and nearby Burfind Hotel foundations. | |
Gila City | Ligurta[17] | Yuma | 1858 | 1863 | Barren site | Destroyed by the Great Flood of 1862 | |
Gleeson[2] | Turquoise | Cochise | 1870s | 1940 | Semi-abandoned site | Town was first settled as Turquoise in the 1870s in what was then the Arizona Territory, then later re-established as Gleeson in 1900. | |
Goldfield | Youngsburg | Pinal | 1892,1920 | 1898,1926 | Historic site | Goldfield revived as Youngsburg in 1920, is now a tourist attraction. | |
Goldroad[2][18] | Acme | Mohave | 1902 | 1942 | Died out due to railroad closure | ||
Guthrie | Greenlee | 1880s | 1922 | Neglected site | An important railroad stop along the Arizona & New Mexico Railway. Transfer point of the Morenci Southern Railway.[19] | ||
Hardyville | Mohave | 1864 | 1883 | Historic site | Hardyville Pioneer Cemetery, a historic landmark and an unofficial historical marker for nearby Bullhead City, Arizona. A steamboat landing, Colorado River ferry, mining town, junction of the Mojave Road and Hardyville–Prescott Road | ||
Harshaw[1][2] | Durazno | Santa Cruz | 1880 | 1960 | Semi-abandoned site | Cemetery, several adobe walls, flat townsite pads still visible | |
Helvetia | Pima | 1891 | 1921 | Neglected site | small cemetery on approach with period graves, road to gunsite pass, small adobe wall and smelter stone wall still visible | ||
Hilltop | Cochise | 1880s | 1940s | Neglected site | |||
House Rock | Coconino | Semi-abandoned site | |||||
Hyder | Yuma | ||||||
Jerome Junction[20] | Yavapai | 1894 | 1920 | ||||
Johnson | Cochise | ||||||
Kentucky Camp | Pima | 1874 | 1912 | Historic site | Maintained by US Forest Service | ||
Klondyke | Graham | c. 1900 | Historic site | Maintained by US Forest Service | |||
Kofa | Yuma | ||||||
La Laguna | Laguna | Yuma | 1860 | 1862 | Submerged | Mining camp. Site under Mittry Lake | |
La Paz | La Paz | 1862 | 1875 | Neglected site | Site of the first major gold strike along the Colorado River. Steamboat landing to 1866, Yuma County seat until 1871. | ||
Lochiel | Santa Cruz | c. 1880 | 1986 | Neglected site | |||
Metcalf | Greenlee | 1889 | 1936 | Neglected site | A copper mining town, died after the ore ran out in 1918.[21] Its post office lasted from 1899 to 1936.[22] | ||
Millville | Cochise | ||||||
Marinette[23] | Maricopa | Barren site | Sun City was built on the site of Marinette in the 1960s | ||||
McMillenville[2] | McMillianville, McMillanville | Gila | 1876 | c. 1886 | Neglected site | ||
Mohave City[2] | Mojave City | Mohave | 1863 | 1938 | Barren site | A steamboat landing, mining and garrison town, absorbed into Fort Mojave Indian Reservation.[24] | |
Mowry[25] | The Patagonia Mine | Santa Cruz | 1858 | 1880 | Abandoned | Originally a lead and silver mine called "The Patagonia Mine" which was renamed after Lieutenant Sylvester Mowry purchased the mine from the local Mexicans in 1860. Mowry was later arrested by General H. Carleton in 1862 and charged with selling lead to the confederate army. After his release Mowry returned to England where he hoped to get money so that he could resume his mining operations, but died before this was possible.[2] | |
Mt. Trumbull[26] | Bundyville | Mohave | 1916 | c. 1970 | Abandoned site, historic site |
The site is mostly abandoned, but remains home to a reconstruction of a historic schoolhouse.[27] Town was sometimes called Bundyville, after the family that settled the area. As of 2006 one member of the Bundy family still lived alone on a 320-acre ranch near the abandoned town site.[28] | |
Nothing | Mohave | 1977 | 2005 | Abandoned site | An attempted revival occurred sometime after August 2008, but by April 2011, Nothing was marked as abandoned again. | ||
Oatman | Mohave | 1902 | Historic site | ||||
Obed | Navajo | 1876 | 1877 | Barren site | |||
Octave | Yavapai | Neglected site | |||||
Oro Blanco | Santa Cruz | 1873 | 1915 | Neglected site | |||
Oroville | Oro | Greenlee | 1880 | 1882 | Neglected site | A farm community supporting Clifton.[29] | |
Pantano | Pima | 1858 | c. 1956 | Barren site | |||
Paradise[2] | Cochise | 1901 | 1943 | Barren site | |||
Pearce | Cochise | 1896 | 1942 | Semi-abandoned | Mine Gold/silver workings, general store, cemetery and several occupied dwellings, Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church. | ||
Pedrick's | – | Yuma | 1854 | 1879 | ? | Steamboat landing on the east bank of the Colorado River, just above the Sonora – Arizona border. | |
Piedmont | Yavapai | ||||||
Pinal City | Pinal | Abandoned site | |||||
Ray | Pinal | 1958 | |||||
Reymert | Pinal | ||||||
Rosemont | Pima | Semi-abandoned | Adobe walls at junction, old house now owned by Rosemont Mine. Soon to be destroyed by pit mine. Rosemont Mine | ||||
Ruby | Montana Camp | Santa Cruz | 1870s | 1941 | Historic site | 25 buildings under roof, including the old jail and houses, the old school, the playground, old mine machinery, buildings and mine workings. Ruby is entirely on private property. | |
San Rafael | Pima | Barren site | |||||
Salero | Santa Cruz | 1884 | 1890 | Neglected site | Old Bunkhouse and Assay Office, now off limits on private property (Gated) | ||
Santa Claus | Santa Claus Acres | Mohave | 1937 | Abandoned site | |||
Sacaton (village) | Pinal | 1857 | 1880s | Barren site | One of the 19th century Maricopa villages among the Pima Villages | ||
Sasco | Pinal | 1907 | 1920s | Neglected site | |||
Signal | Mohave | 1877 | 1932 | ||||
Silver Bell | Silverbell | 23 Miles West of I-10 Exit 242 | Pima | 1952 | 1984 | Barren site | 4 Miles south of original town of Silverbell. Abandoned due to Asarco Silver Bell mine temporary closure in 1984. Mine was reopened in 1998 and is currently in operation |
Simmons | Wilson, Williamson's Valley | Yavapai | 1871 | 1934 | Barren site | A stop on the Hardyville–Prescott Road, and a local post office. | |
Socatoon Station | Pinal | 1858 | 1870s | Barren site | Stagecoach station | ||
Spenazuma | Graham | 1898 | 1899 | Barren site | |||
Stanton | Antelope Station | Yavapai | 1863 | 1905 | Historic site | Owned and maintained by the Lost Dutchman Mining Association | |
Stanwix Station | Flap Jack Ranch, Grinnell's Station | Yuma | 1858 | 1880s | Barren site | Stagecoach station. Site of the Skirmish at Stanwix Station, often considered the westernmost engagement of the American Civil War. | |
Stoddard[30][31][2]: 147 | Yavapai | 1882 | 1830s | Neglected site | Supported by several nearby copper mines, the town had a smelter, school, stores, and up to 300 people until it was abandoned when the price of copper fell. | ||
Sunset | Navajo | 1876 | 1887 | Abandoned site | Only the cemetery remains today | ||
Swansea[1][2] | Signal | La Paz | 1908 | 1937 | Abandoned site | Maintained by the Bureau of Land Management. | |
Tiger[2] | Schultz | Pinal | 1881 | 1954 | Barren site | All structures demolished | |
Tip Top | Yavapai | 1876 | |||||
Total Wreck | Pima | 1879 | c. 1890 | Neglected site | Smelter walls and mine still remain, small rock cabin foundation to south, filming location for movie Hombre | ||
Tres Alamos | Cochise | 1874 | 1886 | – | |||
Twin Buttes | Pima | c. 1903 | c. 1930 | Barren site | Buried under the Twin Buttes Mine. All that remains is the cemetery. | ||
Vulture City | Maricopa | 1863 | 1942 | Historic site | Privately owned and operated as a tourist attraction | ||
Washington Camp | Santa Cruz | 1880s | 1920s | Semi-abandoned site | |||
Weaver | Weaverville | Yavapai | 1863 | 1900 | Neglected site | ||
Webb | Maricopa | ||||||
White Hills | Mohave | ||||||
Wilford[32] | Navajo | 1883 | 1926 | Barren site | Loose rock foundations. | ||
Wolf Hole | Mohave | ||||||
Zeniff[32] | Navajo | 1909 | 1940s | Barren site | Few walls precariously standing amid piles of wood and adobe rubble. |
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