America was built fast, and parts of it were abandoned just as fast. Gold veins ran dry. Coal seams caught fire. Rivers flooded one too many times. Industries packed up overnight. Across the country, entire towns were left standing with nobody in them, their storefronts, homes, churches, and schools preserved by dry desert air or slowly consumed by vegetation and weather. Ghost towns are scattered across every region of the United States, from the arid West to the hollowed-out coal fields of Appalachia. Some are protected as state parks. Others are accessible only by dirt roads that haven't been maintained in decades. Here are five ghost towns across five different states, each one abandoned for a completely different reason.
The most famous ghost towns in America include Centralia in Pennsylvania (a town sitting atop an underground coal fire burning since 1962), Bodie in California (a gold rush town preserved in a state of arrested decay since the 1940s), and Kennecott in Alaska (a copper mining town frozen in time inside Wrangell-St. Elias National Park). Urbex Maps documents 400+ ghost towns across the United States with free GPS coordinates.
| # | Site | State | Type | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Centralia | Pennsylvania | Coal mining town | Population ~5, mine fire ongoing |
| 2 | Bodie | California | Gold rush town | State Historic Park, arrested decay |
| 3 | Old Cahawba | Alabama | Former state capital | Archaeological park, free admission |
| 4 | Kennecott | Alaska | Copper mining town | National Park Service, guided tours |
| 5 | Thurmond | West Virginia | Railroad coal town | Population ~5, NPS historic district |
1. Centralia, Pennsylvania
Centralia is the ghost town that's still dying. In May 1962, a trash fire in an abandoned strip mine pit ignited an exposed coal seam beneath this small Columbia County borough. That fire found its way into the labyrinth of abandoned coal mines below the town and has been burning ever since. Temperatures in some underground areas exceed 900 degrees Fahrenheit. Toxic gases, including carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, vent through cracks in the ground.
Through the 1960s and 1970s, residents noticed sinkholes opening in their yards and steam rising from the ground. In 1981, a 12-year-old boy fell into a sinkhole that suddenly opened beneath his feet, surviving only because his cousin pulled him out. That incident made national news and triggered a federal response. In 1984, Congress allocated $42 million to relocate the town's 1,000-plus residents. Most accepted buyouts and left. A handful refused.
By the 2020 census, Centralia's population was five. The borough's zip code was revoked in 2002. Most structures have been demolished, and the street grid is slowly being reclaimed by vegetation, though cracked asphalt and overgrown sidewalks still trace the old layout. Route 61, the highway that once passed through town, was rerouted after the road surface buckled and cracked from the heat below. The old stretch of highway, now called the Graffiti Highway, became a tourist attraction until it was covered with dirt in 2020 to discourage visitors.
Centralia inspired the "Silent Hill" horror franchise. It remains one of the most visited ghost towns in the eastern United States, despite official warnings about the hazards of the ongoing mine fire.
Sources: [Wikipedia - Centralia, Pennsylvania](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centralia,_Pennsylvania)
Explore all abandoned places in Pennsylvania on our interactive map →
2. Bodie, California
Bodie is the gold rush ghost town frozen exactly as it was left. Located at 8,379 feet elevation in the eastern Sierra Nevada, about 75 miles southeast of Lake Tahoe, this former boomtown exploded into existence after a gold strike in 1859. By 1879, Bodie had a population of nearly 10,000, a stock exchange, 65 saloons, a Chinatown, a red-light district, and a reputation as one of the most lawless towns in the West.
The decline was just as dramatic. By the mid-1880s, the mines were producing less, and residents began leaving. A devastating fire in 1892 destroyed much of the business district. Another fire in 1932 wiped out all but about 10 percent of the remaining structures. By the 1940s, Bodie was empty.
What makes Bodie exceptional is its state of preservation. In 1962, California designated it a State Historic Park and adopted a policy of "arrested decay," meaning the roughly 200 remaining buildings are maintained exactly as they stand, neither restored nor allowed to collapse. You can peer through dusty windows and see goods still on grocery shelves, billiard balls on saloon tables, and tools scattered on workbenches. The Methodist church still has its Bible on the pulpit.
Bodie is also famously "cursed." Park rangers report receiving packages from visitors who took rocks, nails, or other small items as souvenirs and later mailed them back, claiming they'd experienced runs of bad luck. The park maintains a collection of these letters, some genuinely distressed, alongside the returned items.
Visiting Bodie requires a 13-mile drive on a partially unpaved road, and the town is typically inaccessible in winter due to snow.
Sources: [Wikipedia - Bodie, California](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodie,_California)
Explore all abandoned places in California on our interactive map →
3. Old Cahawba, Alabama
Old Cahawba is the ghost town that used to be a state capital. In 1819, when Alabama was carved out of the Mississippi Territory and admitted to the Union, Governor William Bibb selected Cahawba as the capital city because of its strategic location at the confluence of the Alabama and Cahaba Rivers. A two-story brick statehouse was erected, and the town rapidly expanded with stores, hotels, river ferries, two newspapers, a theater, and a state-owned bank. Land prices skyrocketed from $1 per acre to between $60 and $70.
The unraveling started almost immediately. The National Panic of 1819 devastated the local economy. Yellow fever broke out in the summers of 1821 and 1822. Heavy rains flooded the low-lying town that same year. By 1825, the state legislature had seen enough and moved the capital to Tuscaloosa.
Cahawba survived the capital's departure and actually experienced a revival during the cotton boom of the 1830s and 1840s, becoming a prosperous river port. But the Civil War ended that prosperity. During Reconstruction, the county seat was relocated to Selma, and Cahawba rapidly emptied. By 1900, it was effectively a ghost town. Former slave quarters, mansions, and commercial buildings were either dismantled for materials or left to rot.
Today, the Alabama Historical Commission maintains the site as Old Cahawba Archaeological Park. Visitors can walk the old street grid, explore cemeteries, and see the ruins of the town's foundations and a few standing structures. The site is open daily from 9 AM to 5 PM, with no admission fee.
Sources: [Wikipedia - Old Cahawba](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cahaba,_Alabama)
Explore all abandoned places in Alabama on our interactive map →
4. Kennecott, Alaska
Kennecott is a copper mining ghost town embedded in one of the most remote landscapes in North America. Located beside the Kennicott Glacier in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, the site is accessible only by a 60-mile gravel road from Chitina, followed by a footbridge across the Kennicott River. There's no cell service, limited electricity, and the nearest real town is hours away.
In the summer of 1900, two prospectors spotted a green patch on the mountainside that turned out to be a massive deposit of malachite and chalcocite, among the richest copper ore bodies ever discovered. The Kennecott Copper Corporation (note the different spelling; a clerical error in the company filing stuck) built a complete mining and processing town on the spot. By the 1910s, Kennecott had a 14-story ore concentration mill, a hospital, a school, a general store, staff housing, a recreation hall, and a power plant. The mines produced copper worth over $200 million (in early 20th-century dollars) before the ore ran out.
The last train left Kennecott on November 10, 1938. Workers walked away from their jobs, leaving tools on workbenches, documents in filing cabinets, and equipment in the mill. The town has been essentially frozen since that day.
The National Park Service purchased many of the buildings in 1998, and stabilization work has kept the most important structures standing. The 14-story concentration mill, painted the iconic Kennecott red, remains the visual centerpiece. Guided tours are available in summer months, but much of the town can be explored independently along maintained trails. The combination of industrial ruins and pristine wilderness makes Kennecott unlike any other ghost town in the country.
Sources: [Wikipedia - Kennecott, Alaska](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennecott,_Alaska)
Explore all abandoned places in Alaska on our interactive map →
5. Thurmond, West Virginia
Thurmond doesn't look like a typical ghost town. There are no crumbling Western saloons or desert-bleached boardwalks. Instead, there's a cluster of brick and wood-frame buildings along a railroad track in a narrow river gorge in the Appalachian Mountains. But the numbers tell the story: as of the most recent counts, Thurmond has a population of five, making it the least-populous incorporated municipality in West Virginia.
Captain William D. Thurmond established the town in the 1880s to serve miners working the surrounding coal seams. The location was strategic: the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway ran through the gorge, and Thurmond became a major coal-shipping hub. During its 1920s peak, more freight tonnage passed through Thurmond's rail yard than through Cincinnati. The town had banks, hotels, restaurants, and a notorious reputation for gambling and roughhousing among off-duty miners.
The decline came in stages. The coal industry mechanized, reducing the need for labor. Highways bypassed the gorge, making Thurmond's rail-dependent location a liability rather than an asset. Residents drifted away through the mid-20th century. By the time the National Park Service began acquiring property in the area for the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, Thurmond was already a near-ghost town.
Today, about 80 percent of Thurmond is owned by the National Park Service. The restored depot serves as a visitor center, and the remaining buildings stand along the tracks in various states of preservation and decay. The entire town is a designated historic district on the National Register of Historic Places. There's no admission fee, and visitors are welcome to wander at their own pace.
Sources: [Wikipedia - Thurmond, West Virginia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thurmond,_West_Virginia)
Explore all abandoned places in West Virginia on our interactive map →
Beyond the List
The United States has thousands of ghost towns. The Bureau of Land Management estimates over 6,000 in the western states alone. From former logging camps in Oregon to abandoned fishing villages in Maine, every region has communities that time left behind. If you're looking for ghost towns to explore, our interactive map covers all 50 states and includes thousands of abandoned locations with coordinates, photos, and access information.
FAQ: Ghost Towns in America
What is the most famous ghost town in America?
Bodie, California, is the most visited and best-preserved ghost town in the country. Maintained in a state of arrested decay by California State Parks, its 200 remaining buildings contain artifacts exactly as they were left. Centralia, Pennsylvania, is the most infamous, as an underground coal fire has been burning beneath the town since 1962.
Is it legal to explore ghost towns?
Many ghost towns are on public land or operate as parks and historic sites. Bodie is a California State Historic Park with regular hours and admission fees. Old Cahawba is a free Alabama archaeological park. Thurmond is part of New River Gorge National Park. However, some ghost towns sit on private property, and entering without permission is trespassing.
Where can I find ghost towns near me?
The western United States has the highest concentration, with the Bureau of Land Management estimating over 6,000 ghost towns in the western states alone. The Urbex Maps interactive atlas pins ghost towns across all 50 states with GPS coordinates, access notes, and current condition reports.
Are ghost towns dangerous?
Hazards vary by site. Former mining towns may have open mine shafts, unstable ground, and toxic soil. Centralia has active subsidence and toxic gas venting from the underground fire. Older wooden structures can collapse without warning. Desert ghost towns present heat and dehydration risks. Always research specific conditions before visiting.
How do I get GPS coordinates for ghost towns?
Urbex Maps provides free GPS coordinates for hundreds of documented ghost towns across the United States. Each listing includes directions, access information, and historical context. The interactive map lets you filter by state and site type to find ghost towns specifically.
Related reads: - Abandoned Schools in America: 5 Forgotten Campuses - Abandoned Churches in America: 5 Forgotten Houses of Worship - Abandoned Factories in America: 5 Industrial Ruins - Abandoned Asylums in America: 5 Psychiatric Hospitals Left to Decay - Explore all abandoned places in the United States on our interactive map →
