List of ghost towns in Arizona explained

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]

Conditions

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.

Barren site

• Site is no longer in existence
• Site has been destroyed, covered with water, or reverted to empty land
• May have a few difficult to find foundations/footings at most

Neglected site

• Little more than rubble remains at the site
• Dilapidated, often roofless buildings remain at the site

Abandoned site

• Building or houses still standing, but all or almost all are abandoned
• No population, with the possible exception of a caretaker
• Site no longer in use, except for one or two buildings

Semi-abandoned site

• Buildings or houses still standing, but most are abandoned
• A few residents may remain

Historic site

• Buildings or houses still standing
• Site has been converted to a historical site, museum, or tourist attraction
• Still a busy community, but population is smaller than its peak years

Ghost towns

Town name	Other name(s)	Location	County	Settled	Abandoned	Current status	Remarks
				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.
	Sanford			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				1858		Neglected site	Hotel, ruins of a stone house and a swimming pool.
	Alimo			1899	1918	Submerged	Submerged in Alamo Lake.
Alexandra^[2]				1875		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.
				1883	1921	Neglected site	Walls of some of the school buildings, and some of the walls of the trading post are still standing.
	Gunsight, Allen City					Barren site	Allen was founded by John Brackett Allen, he named his town after himself.
	Stringtown			1880		Historic site	Mormon settlement now part of Mesa, Arizona.^[3]
				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.
				1907	1933	Neglected site	Adobe Walls of old Post office and Sign for "Alto Camp". Historic Mining district back to the 18th Century.
							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.
	Lee's Ranch			1863		Barren site	A stage stop on Mint Wash in Little Chino Valley on the Hardyville–Prescott Road with a large hotel for travelers.^[4] ^[5]
	Dunlap						Originally named Dunlap after Burt Dunlap, the local rancher who established it in 1882.
	Aubrey					Barren site	A steamboat landing, later inundated when Lake Havasu was formed
				1899
				1880s		Semi-abandoned site	Former railroad station
				1880s		Site completely devoured by mine	Segregated town near Kelvin
				1906	1927	Abandoned site	Town was built to harbor the Gibson Cooper Mine
	Bigbug, Red Rock			1862		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.
Bonita^[6]					1950	Abandoned site
Boyles	Carpenter			1904	1908	Barren site
						Barren site	Town supported the Tiger Mine. Namesake of its founder, William D. Bradshaw.
Brigham City^[7]				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.
				1863		Semi-abandoned site	Privately owned, few residents.
	Calabazas			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.
				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.
				1867	1870	Neglected site	Area was once occupied by the United States Army to keep surveillance on the Apache.^[8]
							Semi-abandoned site	Several historic buildings remain, including a one-room schoolhouse and a United States Forest Service ranger station complex.
		Exit 230 off Interstate 40		1882	Before 1947	Neglected	Only existed because of an error in constructing a railway bridge, died out shortly after the bridge was completed
				1916	1936	Semi-abandoned site	Several occupied adobes and ruined adobe walls, adjacent to Cascabel Rd.
Castle Dome^[9]				1869	1876	Historic site	Site of the Castle Dome Mines Museum.
	Castle Dome City			1869	1884	Submerged	A steamboat landing, submerged in Martinez Lake.
						Barren site
				1879	1888	Neglected site	Maintained by the Bureau of Land Management.^[10]
						Barren site	A small mining town
						Neglected site	gold, silver and copper mining town
	Campbell					Neglected site	From June 25, 1890, to October 24, 1902, the town was known as Campbell.
						Neglected site	The subject of a lost treasure story
				1884	1943	Semi-abandoned site	Once a mining town, now the site of a retirement community.
				1863		Semi-abandoned site
				1917		Historic site	Now part of Cottonwood, Arizona
						Semi-abandoned site
				1905	1915
				1853	1862	Barren site	Colorado River ferry crossing, destroyed by Great Flood of 1862
	Contention			1880	1888	Neglected site	Maintained by the Bureau of Land Management.
				1880s	1942	Neglected site	In recent years, several companies have proposed opening a mine here.
	Antelope Junction			1883	1950s	Semi-abandoned site
				1908	1942	Abandoned site	Remains of old Jail and Cemetery
				1894	1954	Historic site	Old Saloon and Many occupied buildings including general store
	Arizona City			1889	1907		Former mining town. Currently the site of a mining operation, just north of Mayer on Big Bug Creek.
				1892	1904	Neglected site	Ruins of an adobe building, cemetery
				1880s	1920s	Semi-abandoned site	Several wood buildings including Westinghouse home
	Mineral City			1863	1915	Neglected site	A steamboat landing, Colorado River ferry, junction of the Bradshaw Trail and La Paz–Wikenburg Road
	Junction City, Kendall, Fairbanks			1883	1970s	Abandoned site	Maintained by the Bureau of Land Management.^[11]
	Fortuna Mine			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.
	Battle site			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.
				1881	1882	Barren site
	Gillette			1878	1880	Neglected site	Gillett Cemetery and nearby Burfind Hotel foundations.
	Ligurta			1858	1863	Barren site	Destroyed by the Great Flood of 1862
	Turquoise			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.
	Youngsburg			1892,1920	1898,1926	Historic site	Goldfield revived as Youngsburg in 1920, is now a tourist attraction.
Goldroad^[12]	Acme			1902	1942		Died out due to railroad closure
				1880s	1922	Neglected site	An important railroad stop along the Arizona & New Mexico Railway. Transfer point of the Morenci Southern Railway.
Hardyville				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
	Durazno			1880	1960	Semi-abandoned site	Cemetery, several adobe walls, flat townsite pads still visible
				1891	1921	Neglected site	small cemetery on approach with period graves, road to gunsite pass, small adobe wall and smelter stone wall still visible
				1880s	1940s	Neglected site
						Semi-abandoned site
Jerome Junction^[13]				1894	1920
				1874	1912	Historic site	Maintained by US Forest Service
						Historic site	Maintained by US Forest Service
	Laguna			1860	1862	Submerged	Mining camp. Site under Mittry Lake
				1862	1875	Neglected site	Site of the first major gold strike along the Colorado River. Steamboat landing to 1866, Yuma County seat until 1871.
					1986	Neglected site
				1889	1936	Neglected site	A copper mining town, died after the ore ran out in 1918. Its post office lasted from 1899 to 1936.
Marinette^[14]						Barren site	Sun City was built on the site of Marinette in the 1960s
	McMillianville, McMillanville			1876		Neglected site
	Mojave City			1863	1938	Barren site	A steamboat landing, mining and garrison town, absorbed into Fort Mojave Indian Reservation.^[15]
Mowry^[16]	The Patagonia Mine			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.
Mt. Trumbull^[17]	Bundyville			1916		Abandoned site, historic site	The site is mostly abandoned, but remains home to a reconstruction of a historic schoolhouse.^[18] 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.^[19]
				1977	2005	Abandoned site	An attempted revival occurred sometime after August 2008, but by April 2011, Nothing was marked as abandoned again.
				1902		Historic site
				1876	1877	Barren site
						Neglected site
				1873	1915	Neglected site
	Oro			1880	1882	Neglected site	A farm community supporting Clifton.
				1858		Barren site
				1901	1943	Barren site
	–			1854	1879	?	Steamboat landing on the east bank of the Colorado River, just above the Sonora – Arizona border.
Piedmont
				1896	1942	Semi-abandoned	Mine Gold/silver workings, general store, cemetery and several occupied dwellings, Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church.
						Abandoned site
				1958
						Semi-abandoned	Adobe walls at junction, old house now owned by Rosemont Mine. Soon to be destroyed by pit mine. Rosemont Mine
	Montana Camp			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.
						Barren site
				1884	1890	Neglected site	Old Bunkhouse and Assay Office, now off limits on private property (Gated)
	Santa Claus Acres			1937		Abandoned site
				1857	1880s	Barren site	One of the 19th century Maricopa villages among the Pima Villages
				1907	1920s	Neglected site
				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
	Wilson, Williamson's Valley			1871	1934	Barren site	A stop on the Hardyville–Prescott Road, and a local post office.
				1858	1870s	Barren site	Stagecoach station
				1898	1899	Barren site
	Antelope Station			1863	1905	Historic site	Owned and maintained by the Lost Dutchman Mining Association
	Flap Jack Ranch, Grinnell's Station			1858	1880s	Barren site	Stagecoach station. Site of the Skirmish at Stanwix Station, often considered the westernmost engagement of the American Civil War.
Stoddard^[20] ^[21]				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				1876	1887	Abandoned site	Only the cemetery remains today
	Signal			1908	1937	Abandoned site	Maintained by the Bureau of Land Management.
	Schultz			1881	1954	Barren site	All structures demolished
				1876
				1879		Neglected site	Smelter walls and mine still remain, small rock cabin foundation to south, filming location for movie Hombre
				1874	1886	–
						Barren site	Buried under the Twin Buttes Mine. All that remains is the cemetery.
				1863	1942	Historic site	Privately owned and operated as a tourist attraction
				1880s	1920s	Semi-abandoned site
	Weaverville			1863	1900	Neglected site
Webb			Maricopa
Wilford^[22]				1883	1926	Barren site	Loose rock foundations.
				1909	1940s	Barren site	Few walls precariously standing amid piles of wood and adobe rubble.

See also

• American Old West
• Arizona Territory
• Copper mining in Arizona
• History of Arizona
• New Mexico Territory
• Silver mining in Arizona
• Tombstone, Arizona
• List of cemeteries in Arizona

Further reading

• Book: Austin . Noah . Vaughn . Kelly . Arizona Ghost Town: 50 of the State's Best Places to Get a Glimpse of the Old West . 2019 . Arizona Highways . Phoenix . 978-0998981307. 1147975628.
• Book: Paher . Stanley W. . Spude . Robert L.S. . Purcell . Roy E. . Colorado River Ghost Towns . 1976 . Nevada Publications . Las Vegas . 2687591.
• Book: Paher . Stanley W. . Northwestern Arizona Ghost Towns . 1980 . 1971. revised. Nevada Publications . Las Vegas . 978-0913814307. 7199950.
• Book: Paher . Stanley W. . Southwestern Arizona Ghost Towns . 1981 . Nevada Publications . Las Vegas . 978-0913814321. 7509446.
• Book: Paher . Stanley W. . Western Arizona Ghost Towns . Nevada Publications. 1990. 23172961. 978-0913814895.
• Book: Spude. Robert L.S. . Paher . Stanley W.. Central Arizona Ghost Towns . 1978 . Nevada Publications . Las Vegas. 4125889.
• Book: Varney . Philip . Hinckley . Jim . James . Kerrick . Ghost Towns of the West . 2017 . Voyager Press . Minneapolis . 978-0760350416 . 958797582.

External links

• Ghost Town of the Month – azghosttowns.com
• GhosttownAZ
• Arizona Ghost Towns – GhostTownGallery.com
• GhostTowns.com

Notes and References

1. Book: Varney, Philip . Arizona Ghost Towns and Mining Camps: A Travel Guide to History . Stieve, Robert . Arizona Highways Books . Phoenix. 2005 . 10th . 1932082468 .
2. Book: Sherman, James E. . Sherman, Barbara H. . Ghost Towns of Arizona . registration . University of Oklahoma Press . 1969 . 978-0806108438. 21732.
3. Web site: Welcome bradhallart.com. www.bradhallart.com. January 19, 2015. January 19, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150119080011/http://www.bradhallart.com/images_phoenix/Arizona_Place_names_1935.pdf. dead.
4. Web site: Photographs Virtual Browsing Book – Buildings-Ranches – Sharlot Hall Museum. 7 April 2016.
5. Web site: A day trip to Seligman on the Williamson Valley Road. Sharlot Hall Museum Library & Archives. 7 April 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160502113224/http://www.sharlot.org/library-archives/days-past/a-day-trip-to-seligman-on-the-williamson-valley-road/. 2 May 2016. dead.
6. Web site: Ghost Towns, Arizona: Bonita . 2012-12-21.
7. Web site: Historic Sites – Brigham City . Arizona Heritage Traveler . 2010-07-27 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110707161826/http://arizonaheritagetraveler.com/templates/content-view.php?nid=2&sid=125 . 2011-07-07 .
8. Web site: Camp Reno. 30 May 2019.
9. Book: Lowe, Sam . Arizona Curiosities: Quirky Characters, Roadside Oddities & Other Offbeat Stuff . Globe Pequot . 2007 . 2nd . 226 . Southwest Arizona . 978-0762741144 . https://books.google.com/books?id=Vv4FAzcxRd8C&q=castle%20dome%20arizona&pg=PA226.
10. Web site: San Pedro RNCA – Cultural Resources . February 2, 2009 . Bureau of Land Management . 2009-06-30 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090115094113/http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/blm_special_areas/ncarea/sprnca/cultural.html . January 15, 2009 .
11. Web site: Fairbank Historic Townsite . February 2, 2009 . Bureau of Land Management . 2009-06-29 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090608072029/http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/recreation/cultural/fairbank.html . June 8, 2009 .
12. Book: Heatwole . Thelma . Ghost Towns and Historical Haunts in Arizona . 1991 . American Traveller Press. 14, 19–20. Phoenix . 978-0914846109.
13. Book: Massey, Peter . Wilson, Jeanne . Backcountry Adventures Arizona: The Ultimate Guide to the Arizona Backcountry for Anyone With a Sport Utility Vehicle . Adler Publishing Co . 2006 . 1930193289 . July 31, 2010.
14. Book: Grant, Tina . International directory of company histories . 14 . St. James Press . 1988 . 163 . 1558623426 . July 31, 2010.
15. Web site: Area Information: Our Past . Mohave Valley Chamber of Commerce . 2009-09-12 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090303094852/http://www.mohavevalleychamber.com/area-info . March 3, 2009 .
16. http://www.azghosttowns.com/towns/mowry.html Mowry – Ghost Town of the Month at azghosttowns.com
17. Geologic Map of the Upper Hurricane Wash and Vicinity, Mohave County, Northwestern Arizona: Pamphlet to accompany Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-2410. 2003. George H. Billingsley and Helen C. Dyer, prepared in cooperation with the National Park Service and the Bureau of Land Management. US Geological Survey. Hurricane Wash begins near the abandoned village of Mt. Trumbull (Bundyville), Arizona..
18. Web site: Mount Trumbull – Arizona Ghost Town. 21 May 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20120429015016/http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/az/mounttrumbull.html. 29 April 2012.
19. News: Mark. Shaffer. Arizona man cherishes freedom, isolation. 21 May 2013. The Arizona Republic. 21 May 2006.
20. Web site: Stoddard, Arizona. Arizona Pioneer & Cemetery Research Project. 29 October 2017.
21. http://www.azghosttowns.com/towns/stoddard.html Stoddard
22. Book: Hanchett, Jr., Leland J. . The Crooked Trail to Holbrook – An Arizona Cattle Trail. Arrowhead Press . 1993. First. 163 . 0963778501.