Anyone else into the hobby of ghost towning? I've often found searching for ghost towns often coincides with my highway and rail related research, especially when it comes to map research. For the most part I've found that there are several ghost town types which are common:
- Former rail sidings that are no longer necessary due to diesel locomotives.
- Former communities located on old highway alignments that were bypassed by newer routes.
- Anywhere a large mine claim was struck tends to have a large cluster of ghost towns.
- Former company towns related to mining or agriculture.
- Communities destroyed by natural disasters like hurricanes.
- Communities that were located in what became National Parks.
Regarding the definition of a ghost town, that seems to be somewhat vague. The most obvious type I've seen cited is a "total" ghost town which is completely devoid of population. Another type that typically pops up is a community that lost the overwhelming majority of it's population; mining communities tend to fit that definition quite commonly.
To that end I've featured a Ghost Town Tuesday on the Surewhynotnow blog but many of my road and rail topics include ghost towns as well. These are the ghost towns featured the two previous months on Surewhynotnow:
Laws Depot near the western end of US 6
http://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/09/the-western-end-of-us-route-6-and-laws.html
Millerton and the Stockton-Los Angeles Road
http://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/09/ghost-town-tuesday-millerton-california.html
Brewster, Florida
http://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/09/ghost-town-tuesday-brewster-florida.html
NV 341/342; Lousetown, Gold Hill, and Silver City
http://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/09/nevada-state-route-341-nv-342-and.html
Slavia, Florida
http://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/09/ghost-town-tuesday-slavia-florida.html
Edit: I added "exploring abandoned places" to the thread title since that tends to go hand in hand with exploring ghost towns.
You need to move east, young man.
https://www.sunburynews.com/news/4294/ohio-ghost-towns-at-big-walnut-area-historical-society-meeting
Quote from: Hot Rod Hootenanny on October 05, 2018, 11:11:21 PM
You need to move east, young man.
https://www.sunburynews.com/news/4294/ohio-ghost-towns-at-big-walnut-area-historical-society-meeting
Heh...actually I've done a little bit of it in the Cleveland Area, originally from Detroit and have a bunch of family in the area. Florida and Michigan (the UP) have a surprisingly large number of former settlements.
http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/ca/locke.html
Locke,CA its viewed as a ghost town but its in the Sacramento Delta and its on the southern half of Sacramento County.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodie,_California
Bodie CA its on the east side of the Sierra Nevada of California.
https://www.kqed.org/news/11549263/the-island-ghost-town-in-the-middle-of-san-francisco-bay
And there's Drawbridge, CA its a ghost town just outside of San Jose and Palo Alto.
https://trip101.com/article/ghost-towns-of-california
Here is the rest of the list.
Quote from: bing101 on October 06, 2018, 12:10:14 AM
http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/ca/locke.html
Locke,CA its viewed as a ghost town but its in the Sacramento Delta and its on the southern half of Sacramento County.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodie,_California
Bodie CA its on the east side of the Sierra Nevada of California.
https://www.kqed.org/news/11549263/the-island-ghost-town-in-the-middle-of-san-francisco-bay
And there's Drawbridge, CA its a ghost town just outside of San Jose and Palo Alto.
Been through both may times, Bodie is pretty spectacular...heading there this weekend again in fact:
https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2017/07/california-state-route-270-to-bodie.html
Locke is pretty neat, there are some other worthwhile interesting places in the Delta:
https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2017/02/disaster-tourism-road-trip-part-8-san.html
I don't think this is the same thing, but it's close. I was curious why RI-3 left the New London Turnpike for another road instead of staying on it and found out that certain portions were pretty much abandoned well before the bicycle; let alone the automobile. Hence it wasn't paved all the way through. The stretch in West Greenwich sounds more like it was in the Wild West than in New England.
More detail starts at page 8 (page 20 of the PDF) of the linked doc:
http://www.preservation.ri.gov/pdfs_zips_downloads/survey_pdfs/west_greenwich.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nothing,_Arizona
Much ado about nothing
Quote from: SSOWorld on October 06, 2018, 09:13:10 AM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nothing,_Arizona
Much ado about nothing
I wrote the ghosttowns.com article on Nothing, I used to pass it at least weekly on my way to work trips in Mohave and/or Clark County. The Surewhynotnow article I did is a slight revision:
https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2017/12/ghost-town-tuesday-nothing-az-us-route.html
Shaniko OR is close to being a ghost town. A massive brick hotel and a collection of junk cars from the early postwar period with dulled paint plus shiny chrome are this town's features. Will it be ghosted completely or revived as the years pass?
Rick
Briefly visited Tyneham (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyneham) en route to a beach my Scout Troop was going to litter pick (it had a surprising amount given it was inside the area taken by the military and so only open a couple of weekends each year).
The village was full of visitors, so it didn't quite feel like a ghost village. There was still an oddness about - the signs warning to stay on paths, the odd bullet hole in a building or fence post, the way that the village was like a literal 1940s village rather than a fake one at a museum or for a film set.
The beach was more eerie as people didn't typically head down there and so had that ghostly vibe much more than the village - the ones either side would have been rammed on a Saturday with that weather. Add in that the beach was a major part of why the area was commandeered in 1943 - they wanted beaches to practice landing on them for the upcoming invasion (at the time rough area not chosen), which meant it took on much more significance than the firing ranges up by the village.
The USA's high plains is loaded with ghost towns that were set up to serve area farms and the progressive advance of farming and transportation technology rendered them obsolete. Also, Michigan's Upper Peninsula is chocked full of mining ghost towns that are worth checking out.
Mike
Depending on how you define the cause of it, Centralia (PA) could arguably be considered a "ghost town" these days...
Cisco, UT is a great little modern-day ghost town along I-70 near Moab. Its along the original alignment of US-6/50. At most, there may be a dozen residents still there, but the abandoned buildings well outnumber the population.
Quote from: thenetwork on October 06, 2018, 03:32:39 PM
Cisco, UT is a great little modern-day ghost town along I-70 near Moab. Its along the original alignment of US-6/50. At most, there may be a dozen residents still there, but the abandoned buildings well outnumber the population.
The thing I thought about Cisco was that that it is almost totally silent aside from the cranking of oil wells in the distance. There was a hanging stuffed animal in one of the old stores when I rolled through three years ago:
https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/04/ghost-town-tuesday-cisco-ut-and-old-us.html
Thompson Springs is nearby and has the same classic US 50/6 abandoned Americana vibe to it. I have my photos already but haven't uploaded to the website yet.
There's a ghost town here in Huntsville, AL that was named Whitesburg. The town once sat where Ditto Landing is now.
Maryland has a few ghost towns, many seem to be related to coal mining, which is effectively gone in the state.
There's the coal mining town of Kempton (http://www.coalcampusa.com/nowv/potomac/kempton-md-coal-mine/kempton-md-coal-mine.htm) in the far southwest corner of the state near the headwaters of the North Branch of the Potomac River.
Also in Garrett County is Shallmar, Maryland (http://www.coalcampusa.com/nowv/potomac/shallmar-md-coal-mine/shallmar-md-coal-mine.htm) which is also a ghost town.
Port Tobacco Village (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Tobacco_Village,_Maryland) in Charles County might qualify as an "almost" ghost town. It's still an active municipality (smallest one in the state at 13 persons), but not the important seaport (for the export of tobacco) that it once was.
Holiday themed ghost town this time with Santa Claus, AZ:
https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2017/12/ghost-town-tuesday-santa-claus-az-santa.html
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 06, 2018, 04:56:46 PM
Quote from: thenetwork on October 06, 2018, 03:32:39 PM
Cisco, UT is a great little modern-day ghost town along I-70 near Moab. Its along the original alignment of US-6/50. At most, there may be a dozen residents still there, but the abandoned buildings well outnumber the population.
The thing I thought about Cisco was that that it is almost totally silent aside from the cranking of oil wells in the distance. There was a hanging stuffed animal in one of the old stores when I rolled through three years ago:
https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/04/ghost-town-tuesday-cisco-ut-and-old-us.html
Thompson Springs is nearby and has the same classic US 50/6 abandoned Americana vibe to it. I have my photos already but haven't uploaded to the website yet.
Despite Thompson Springs's status as a near-ghost town, there is still a state-maintained spur into the town from the interstate: SR-94. Always found that interesting: there must be some mine or oil development that keeps traffic up, or there's enough population left that UDOT still finds it worthwhile.
Quote from: US 89 on December 25, 2018, 01:29:37 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 06, 2018, 04:56:46 PM
Quote from: thenetwork on October 06, 2018, 03:32:39 PM
Cisco, UT is a great little modern-day ghost town along I-70 near Moab. Its along the original alignment of US-6/50. At most, there may be a dozen residents still there, but the abandoned buildings well outnumber the population.
The thing I thought about Cisco was that that it is almost totally silent aside from the cranking of oil wells in the distance. There was a hanging stuffed animal in one of the old stores when I rolled through three years ago:
https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/04/ghost-town-tuesday-cisco-ut-and-old-us.html
Thompson Springs is nearby and has the same classic US 50/6 abandoned Americana vibe to it. I have my photos already but haven't uploaded to the website yet.
Despite Thompson Springs's status as a near-ghost town, there is still a state-maintained spur into the town from the interstate: SR-94. Always found that interesting: there must be some mine or oil development that keeps traffic up, or there's enough population left that UDOT still finds it worthwhile.
Isn't there a UDOT maintenance yard right off I-70 on UT 94?
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on December 25, 2018, 01:30:45 AM
Quote from: US 89 on December 25, 2018, 01:29:37 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 06, 2018, 04:56:46 PM
Quote from: thenetwork on October 06, 2018, 03:32:39 PM
Cisco, UT is a great little modern-day ghost town along I-70 near Moab. Its along the original alignment of US-6/50. At most, there may be a dozen residents still there, but the abandoned buildings well outnumber the population.
The thing I thought about Cisco was that that it is almost totally silent aside from the cranking of oil wells in the distance. There was a hanging stuffed animal in one of the old stores when I rolled through three years ago:
https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/04/ghost-town-tuesday-cisco-ut-and-old-us.html
Thompson Springs is nearby and has the same classic US 50/6 abandoned Americana vibe to it. I have my photos already but haven't uploaded to the website yet.
Despite Thompson Springs's status as a near-ghost town, there is still a state-maintained spur into the town from the interstate: SR-94. Always found that interesting: there must be some mine or oil development that keeps traffic up, or there's enough population left that UDOT still finds it worthwhile.
Isn't there a UDOT maintenance yard right off I-70 on UT 94?
I had no idea that was there, but I see it now. Weird place for one. Still doesn't explain why 94 goes all the way to old 6/50, though. Also, there are maintenance yards that don't connect directly to other state highways (one in Salt Lake comes to mind).
Quote from: US 89 on December 25, 2018, 01:37:07 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on December 25, 2018, 01:30:45 AM
Quote from: US 89 on December 25, 2018, 01:29:37 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 06, 2018, 04:56:46 PM
Quote from: thenetwork on October 06, 2018, 03:32:39 PM
Cisco, UT is a great little modern-day ghost town along I-70 near Moab. Its along the original alignment of US-6/50. At most, there may be a dozen residents still there, but the abandoned buildings well outnumber the population.
The thing I thought about Cisco was that that it is almost totally silent aside from the cranking of oil wells in the distance. There was a hanging stuffed animal in one of the old stores when I rolled through three years ago:
https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/04/ghost-town-tuesday-cisco-ut-and-old-us.html
Thompson Springs is nearby and has the same classic US 50/6 abandoned Americana vibe to it. I have my photos already but haven't uploaded to the website yet.
Despite Thompson Springs's status as a near-ghost town, there is still a state-maintained spur into the town from the interstate: SR-94. Always found that interesting: there must be some mine or oil development that keeps traffic up, or there's enough population left that UDOT still finds it worthwhile.
Isn't there a UDOT maintenance yard right off I-70 on UT 94?
I had no idea that was there, but I see it now. Weird place for one. Still doesn't explain why 94 goes all the way to old 6/50, though. Also, there are maintenance yards that don't connect directly to other state highways (one in Salt Lake comes to mind).
94 used to extend north of Thompson Sorings to Sego. Sego was a mining town and suspect was the primary driver for UT 94 at all to begin with. The irony is that the present Route was part of an extension to I-70 and the present route doesn't have any of the original alignment.
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on December 25, 2018, 01:41:40 AM
Quote from: US 89 on December 25, 2018, 01:37:07 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on December 25, 2018, 01:30:45 AM
Quote from: US 89 on December 25, 2018, 01:29:37 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 06, 2018, 04:56:46 PM
Quote from: thenetwork on October 06, 2018, 03:32:39 PM
Cisco, UT is a great little modern-day ghost town along I-70 near Moab. Its along the original alignment of US-6/50. At most, there may be a dozen residents still there, but the abandoned buildings well outnumber the population.
The thing I thought about Cisco was that that it is almost totally silent aside from the cranking of oil wells in the distance. There was a hanging stuffed animal in one of the old stores when I rolled through three years ago:
https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/04/ghost-town-tuesday-cisco-ut-and-old-us.html
Thompson Springs is nearby and has the same classic US 50/6 abandoned Americana vibe to it. I have my photos already but haven’t uploaded to the website yet.
Despite Thompson Springs’s status as a near-ghost town, there is still a state-maintained spur into the town from the interstate: SR-94. Always found that interesting: there must be some mine or oil development that keeps traffic up, or there’s enough population left that UDOT still finds it worthwhile.
Isn’t there a UDOT maintenance yard right off I-70 on UT 94?
I had no idea that was there, but I see it now. Weird place for one. Still doesn’t explain why 94 goes all the way to old 6/50, though. Also, there are maintenance yards that don’t connect directly to other state highways (one in Salt Lake comes to mind).
94 used to extend north of Thompson Sorings to Sego. Sego was a mining town and suspect was the primary driver for UT 94 at all to begin with. The irony is that the present Route was part of an extension to I-70 and the present route doesn’t have any of the original alignment.
Now you got me curious, so I went and had a look at some old maps — looks like the state considered them to be two completely different iterations of SR-94. The route to Sego was removed as part of the mass 1969 route deletion (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_highways_deleted_by_the_Utah_State_Legislature_in_1969), while the connection to 70 was added that year as an immediate re-use of the number.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ghost_towns_in_Texas
http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/tx/tx.html
Quote from: US 89 on December 25, 2018, 01:58:40 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on December 25, 2018, 01:41:40 AM
Quote from: US 89 on December 25, 2018, 01:37:07 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on December 25, 2018, 01:30:45 AM
Quote from: US 89 on December 25, 2018, 01:29:37 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on October 06, 2018, 04:56:46 PM
Quote from: thenetwork on October 06, 2018, 03:32:39 PM
Cisco, UT is a great little modern-day ghost town along I-70 near Moab. Its along the original alignment of US-6/50. At most, there may be a dozen residents still there, but the abandoned buildings well outnumber the population.
The thing I thought about Cisco was that that it is almost totally silent aside from the cranking of oil wells in the distance. There was a hanging stuffed animal in one of the old stores when I rolled through three years ago:
https://surewhynotnow.blogspot.com/2018/04/ghost-town-tuesday-cisco-ut-and-old-us.html
Thompson Springs is nearby and has the same classic US 50/6 abandoned Americana vibe to it. I have my photos already but haven't uploaded to the website yet.
Despite Thompson Springs's status as a near-ghost town, there is still a state-maintained spur into the town from the interstate: SR-94. Always found that interesting: there must be some mine or oil development that keeps traffic up, or there's enough population left that UDOT still finds it worthwhile.
Isn't there a UDOT maintenance yard right off I-70 on UT 94?
I had no idea that was there, but I see it now. Weird place for one. Still doesn't explain why 94 goes all the way to old 6/50, though. Also, there are maintenance yards that don't connect directly to other state highways (one in Salt Lake comes to mind).
94 used to extend north of Thompson Sorings to Sego. Sego was a mining town and suspect was the primary driver for UT 94 at all to begin with. The irony is that the present Route was part of an extension to I-70 and the present route doesn't have any of the original alignment.
Now you got me curious, so I went and had a look at some old maps – looks like the state considered them to be two completely different iterations of SR-94. The route to Sego was removed as part of the mass 1969 route deletion (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_highways_deleted_by_the_Utah_State_Legislature_in_1969), while the connection to 70 was added that year as an immediate re-use of the number.
It's definitely one of the stranger decommissioning/recommissioning I've seen. I just wish that I had the time to head as far north as close to Sego as I could back in 2015.
Massachusetts had 4 removed towns due to the damming to create the Quabbin Reservoir (Dana, Enfield, Prescott, and Greenwich). Enfield and Greenwich are mostly underwater. Prescott still exists but is completely cordoned off by the state. Dana, however, is accessible a mile off of route 32A in Petersham.
Many of the old roads around those towns still exist, many leading you right into the water if you so choose. All of these roads are closed to vehicular traffic.
I'm intrigued, but besides the Quabbin towns there are not many near my area.
https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-photographers-capture-haunting-beauty-ghost-towns?fbclid=IwAR1DrVfplAHOveYetsLci10Xp5HZIapMxfvZyZozChyJXm_os5DJ959XHqs
Other notable ghost towns...
-Jamestown, the first successful British colony in America, was abandoned twice. There was a brief period of abandonment during the starving time of the winter of 1610, and permanently in 1699 when the capital of Virginia moved to Williamsburg. Most buildings were razed to the ground, but the church tower and a giant grave remains.
-Part of Clairton, PA was abandoned for unknown reasons. Specifically, a street called Lincoln Way was abandoned extremely quickly, with former occupants leaving everything behind (even a car from the 1970s remained). Recently - last year or so, the last of the abandoned houses and the rest of Lincoln Way was demolished, with the remnants being power lines marching into a field of grass.
-Staying in Pennsylvania, south of Clairton lies Somerfield. This town was submerged under the Youghiogheny River after a dam was constructed in 1942, creating a lake. During extremely low lake tides, a bridge once carrying US 40 and foundations of the town remain.
Quote from: noelbotevera on January 11, 2019, 11:44:45 PM
Other notable ghost towns...
-Jamestown, the first successful British colony in America, was abandoned twice. There was a brief period of abandonment during the starving time of the winter of 1610, and permanently in 1699 when the capital of Virginia moved to Williamsburg. Most buildings were razed to the ground, but the church tower and a giant grave remains.
-Part of Clairton, PA was abandoned for unknown reasons. Specifically, a street called Lincoln Way was abandoned extremely quickly, with former occupants leaving everything behind (even a car from the 1970s remained). Recently - last year or so, the last of the abandoned houses and the rest of Lincoln Way was demolished, with the remnants being power lines marching into a field of grass.
-Staying in Pennsylvania, south of Clairton lies Somerfield. This town was submerged under the Youghiogheny River after a dam was constructed in 1942, creating a lake. During extremely low lake tides, a bridge once carrying US 40 and foundations of the town remain.
Clairton has lost over half it's population since the mid-20th century. Seems like Lincoln Way is just a run of a mill former blue collar neighborhood street, there are a ton of them just like it in the Mid-West (Detroit is like that over the majority of the city). I'm to understand that somehow a monster story got associated with Lincoln Way, this article touches on it:
http://darkinvestigations.blogspot.com/2016/01/a-totally-made-up-urban-legend-about.html
Haven't had a stand alone ghost town feature on Gribblenation in awhile (most have been mentioned in highway articles). I recently visited a couple ghost town sites in the Indiana Dunes:
https://www.gribblenation.org/2019/05/ghost-town-tuesday-ghost-towns-of.html
I often hear jokes about Detroit being the largest ghost town in America because its population is about a third less than what it was 50 years ago.
To be more serious, what is the actual largest ghost town?
Quote from: Henry on May 15, 2019, 10:01:40 AM
To be more serious, what is the actual largest ghost town?
It depends whether your preferred measure is abandoned land area or % population decline.
Quote from: Henry on May 15, 2019, 10:01:40 AM
I often hear jokes about Detroit being the largest ghost town in America because its population is about a third less than what it was 50 years ago.
To be more serious, what is the actual largest ghost town?
While Detroit having lost two thirds of it's population certainly meets the general criteria of losing most of the populace I don't think it qualifies as a ghost town. The Detroit Metro area while not growing certainly hasn't declined on the whole, I'd attribute the decline of Detroit to a large degree of urban sprawl (certainly there are other issues at hand that played a part too...). You see a similar pattern of decline and sprawl associated with most blue collar industrial cities that peaked in the mid-20th Century. Cities like Cleveland show similar patterns of urban decline and suburban sprawl.
I recently read an article on what is arguably the world's most famous ghost town, that being Pripyat, Ukraine (+/- 50K population), hurriedly abandoned when someone in a control room at the next door nuclear power plant said (in Russian) "oops...", this back in 1986. Apparently, it is becoming increasingly inaccessible to tourists, not because it is becoming a more radiologically dangerous place, but rather in the 33 years since that 'oopsie', nature has been progressively reclaiming it such that more and more of the city's streets are becoming overgrown and impassible - and *nobody* is willing to trim that vegetation back.
Mike
Quote from: mgk920 on May 16, 2019, 10:54:45 AM
I recently read an article on what is arguably the world's most famous ghost town, that being Pripyat, Ukraine (+/- 50K population), hurriedly abandoned when someone in a control room at the next door nuclear power plant said (in Russian) "oops...", this back in 1986. Apparently, it is becoming increasingly inaccessible to tourists, not because it is becoming a more radiologically dangerous place, but rather in the 33 years since that 'oopsie', nature has been progressively reclaiming it such that more and more of the city's streets are becoming overgrown and impassible - and *nobody* is willing to trim that vegetation back.
Mike
Wasn't there a certain number of hours you're supposed to be out there before overexposure to radiation? It probably wouldn't make for a bad hike if it wasn't for all the fallout.
I actually went looking for this one once, but the path became too narrow and there were a bunch of no trespassing signs telling people to go back. Dudleytown, CT. Located in the town of Cornwall in Litchfield County, not too far from Mohawk Mountain ski area.
http://www.ghostvillage.com/legends/dudleytown.shtml
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dudleytown,_Connecticut
Take a look at Rocky Mount. Nothing to do there except fast food. It's also not that safe.
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 27, 2019, 04:09:19 PM
Take a look at Rocky Mount. Nothing to do there except fast food. It's also not that safe.
But at about 54,000 residents it is still close to it's peak population, not exactly a ghost town by even the most fringe definition.
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on July 27, 2019, 04:16:20 PM
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 27, 2019, 04:09:19 PM
Take a look at Rocky Mount. Nothing to do there except fast food. It's also not that safe.
But at about 54,000 residents it is still close to it's peak population, not exactly a ghost town by even the most fringe definition.
Are you talking about like Detroit or East Cleveland?
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 27, 2019, 06:09:42 PM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on July 27, 2019, 04:16:20 PM
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 27, 2019, 04:09:19 PM
Take a look at Rocky Mount. Nothing to do there except fast food. It's also not that safe.
But at about 54,000 residents it is still close to it's peak population, not exactly a ghost town by even the most fringe definition.
Are you talking about like Detroit or East Cleveland?
He's talking about Rocky Mount, North Carolina. It is basically more populated now than it's ever been.
(https://i.imgur.com/c3l9OaL.png)
A ghost town has no people (or nearly none), whereas Rocky Mount is the 17th-largest municipality in the state.
Furthermore, TripAdvisor tells me Rocky Mount has a couple of children-friendly museums, several parks, a couple of breweries, and a mall. I see Edgecombe Community College periodically has concerts, plays, and ballet performances. Then, too, I see a few restaurants that appear to be head and shoulders above McDonald's. Not exactly outstanding for a town of its size, but a far cry from nothing.
Plus, of course, there's
this woman (https://www.google.com/maps/place/The+Imperial+Centre+for+the+Arts+%26+Sciences/@35.9473107,-77.795625,3a,75y,90t/data=!3m8!1e2!3m6!1sAF1QipNTeAEAUw1yc3cJOEhy4A0ZZwb6_MyI9AqhOhUU!2e10!3e12!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipNTeAEAUw1yc3cJOEhy4A0ZZwb6_MyI9AqhOhUU%3Dw203-h270-k-no!7i2448!8i3264!4m5!3m4!1s0x89ae8701531885b5:0xd85cb81dad8698c2!8m2!3d35.9473107!4d-77.795625), so it can't be all bad!
Quote from: kphoger on July 27, 2019, 08:12:37 PM
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 27, 2019, 06:09:42 PM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on July 27, 2019, 04:16:20 PM
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 27, 2019, 04:09:19 PM
Take a look at Rocky Mount. Nothing to do there except fast food. It's also not that safe.
But at about 54,000 residents it is still close to it's peak population, not exactly a ghost town by even the most fringe definition.
Are you talking about like Detroit or East Cleveland?
He's talking about Rocky Mount, North Carolina. It is basically more populated now than it's ever been.
(https://i.imgur.com/c3l9OaL.png)
A ghost town has no people (or nearly none), whereas Rocky Mount is the 17th-largest municipality in the state.
Furthermore, TripAdvisor tells me Rocky Mount has a couple of children-friendly museums, several parks, a couple of breweries, and a mall. I see Edgecombe Community College periodically has concerts, plays, and ballet performances. Then, too, I see a few restaurants that appear to be head and shoulders above McDonald's. Not exactly outstanding for a town of its size, but a far cry from nothing.
Plus, of course, there's this woman (https://www.google.com/maps/place/The+Imperial+Centre+for+the+Arts+%26+Sciences/@35.9473107,-77.795625,3a,75y,90t/data=!3m8!1e2!3m6!1sAF1QipNTeAEAUw1yc3cJOEhy4A0ZZwb6_MyI9AqhOhUU!2e10!3e12!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipNTeAEAUw1yc3cJOEhy4A0ZZwb6_MyI9AqhOhUU%3Dw203-h270-k-no!7i2448!8i3264!4m5!3m4!1s0x89ae8701531885b5:0xd85cb81dad8698c2!8m2!3d35.9473107!4d-77.795625), so it can't be all bad!
Remember sears, old navy, and home depot?
Quote from: froggie on October 06, 2018, 11:12:17 AM
Depending on how you define the cause of it, Centralia (PA) could arguably be considered a "ghost town" these days...
How many people are living in Centralia, PA, nowadays?
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on May 15, 2019, 10:53:02 AM
While Detroit having lost two thirds of it's population certainly meets the general criteria of losing most of the populace I don't think it qualifies as a ghost town. The Detroit Metro area while not growing certainly hasn't declined on the whole, I'd attribute the decline of Detroit to a large degree of urban sprawl (certainly there are other issues at hand that played a part too...). You see a similar pattern of decline and sprawl associated with most blue collar industrial cities that peaked in the mid-20th Century. Cities like Cleveland show similar patterns of urban decline and suburban sprawl.
Didn't some urban renewal projects also played a role as well like the Pruitt-Igoe buildings in St. Louis? (skip it to 3.00 in this clip to see the Pruitt-Igoe buildings before they was demolished)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNNJrHR53ZA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gRuyhf2opY
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on May 16, 2019, 11:00:17 PM
Quote from: mgk920 on May 16, 2019, 10:54:45 AM
I recently read an article on what is arguably the world's most famous ghost town, that being Pripyat, Ukraine (+/- 50K population), hurriedly abandoned when someone in a control room at the next door nuclear power plant said (in Russian) "oops...", this back in 1986. Apparently, it is becoming increasingly inaccessible to tourists, not because it is becoming a more radiologically dangerous place, but rather in the 33 years since that 'oopsie', nature has been progressively reclaiming it such that more and more of the city's streets are becoming overgrown and impassible - and *nobody* is willing to trim that vegetation back.
Mike
Wasn't there a certain number of hours you're supposed to be out there before overexposure to radiation? It probably wouldn't make for a bad hike if it wasn't for all the fallout.
External radiation levels are not a problem in the city any longer. All the short-lived stuff is long decayed (radioiodines which are quite problematic when ingested) and you are left with Cs-137 (30 yr half-life) outside of the reactor area. Fallout is a risk for ingesting the particles themselves, so it would be prudent to wear protective clothing at a minimum.
When I worked at Charleston Naval Shipyard almost 30 years ago you could still detect Cs-137 fallout within workers (using very sensitive detection equipment) from the 1950s-60s atom bomb tests, as it would collect in mosses and eaten by deer. So we could tell who ate a lot of deer meat.
Chernobyl runs week-long tours aimed at Health Physicists where they tour the city and the reactor site, plus participate in some low-level decontamination efforts.
East Cleveland, Detroit, Gary, are all dangerous ghost towns. Their economy is terrible and have declining population. Newark also had 400,000 and is now only at 200,000.
Flint is also declining.
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 28, 2019, 10:40:24 AM
East Cleveland, Detroit, Gary, are all dangerous ghost towns. Their economy is terrible and have declining population. Newark also had 400,000 and is now only at 200,000.
Flint is also declining.
The downtown area of Detroit, as well of several other parts of the city, are in a recovery mode.
Mike
Quote from: mgk920 on July 28, 2019, 10:51:56 AM
The downtown area of Detroit, as well of several other parts of the city, are in a recovery mode.
Mike
I also heard of gentrification in Detroit as well, it could be worth for a interesting thread. I spotted this article on the subject. http://www.deadlinedetroit.com/articles/22824/study_shows_gentrification_is_one_problem_detroit_doesn_t_have
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 28, 2019, 10:40:24 AM
East Cleveland, Detroit, Gary, are all dangerous ghost towns. Their economy is terrible and have declining population. Newark also had 400,000 and is now only at 200,000.
Flint is also declining.
I don't think you know what a "ghost town" is. Perhaps try reading the OP?
Quote from: MNHighwayMan on July 28, 2019, 11:18:06 AM
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 28, 2019, 10:40:24 AM
East Cleveland, Detroit, Gary, are all dangerous ghost towns. Their economy is terrible and have declining population. Newark also had 400,000 and is now only at 200,000.
Flint is also declining.
I don't think you know what a "ghost town" is. Perhaps try reading the OP?
A ghost town is an abandoned town basically. Deserted, everything is closed and there's nothing to do.
What I don't understand is how ghost towns can exist in Massachusetts, other than the one created by the Quabbin Reservoir. You're almost always within a few miles of several hundred people, no matter where you are in the state. There are no places where absolutely nobody lives (except bodies of water, airports, and other places where houses cannot exist).
Quote from: 1 on July 28, 2019, 11:50:17 AM
What I don't understand is how ghost towns can exist in Massachusetts, other than the one created by the Quabbin Reservoir. You're almost always within a few miles of several hundred people, no matter where you are in the state. There are no places where absolutely nobody lives (except bodies of water, airports, and other places where houses cannot exist).
The ones by the Quabbin, not just one. Dana's just the most infamous. Resentment still runs hot in the Swift River valley over the Quabbin.
Quote from: Rothman on July 28, 2019, 12:45:05 PM
Quote from: 1 on July 28, 2019, 11:50:17 AM
What I don't understand is how ghost towns can exist in Massachusetts, other than the one created by the Quabbin Reservoir. You're almost always within a few miles of several hundred people, no matter where you are in the state. There are no places where absolutely nobody lives (except bodies of water, airports, and other places where houses cannot exist).
The ones by the Quabbin, not just one. Dana's just the most infamous. Resentment still runs hot in the Swift River valley over the Quabbin.
I'm sure there is a ton of rail sidings that never really amounted to anything that are long gone as well. If you start digging into the main freight lines in the state you're bound to find something.
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 27, 2019, 10:20:44 PM
Remember sears, old navy, and home depot?
Huh? Of course I remember them. I've shopped at a Home Depot a couple of times in the last few months, as a matter of fact. What's your point?
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 28, 2019, 11:26:49 AM
Quote from: MNHighwayMan on July 28, 2019, 11:18:06 AM
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 28, 2019, 10:40:24 AM
East Cleveland, Detroit, Gary, are all dangerous ghost towns. ...
I don't think you know what a "ghost town" is. ...
A ghost town is an abandoned town basically. Deserted ...
So, basically, a ghost town is
not East Cleveland, Detroit, or Gary.
By the way, Lumberton (NC)–which is also not a ghost town–has higher crime rates than Detroit. Similar homicide rate, slightly lower rape rate–but significantly higher rates of robbery, burglary, and theft. Don't believe everything you hear.
Quote from: kphoger on July 28, 2019, 04:41:15 PM
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 27, 2019, 10:20:44 PM
Remember sears, old navy, and home depot?
Huh? Of course I remember them. I've shopped at a Home Depot a couple of times in the last few months, as a matter of fact. What's your point?
Either those were examples of stores that used to have locations in Rocky Mount that have now closed...
...or he thought you were starting a comprehensive list of every store in Rocky Mount and wanted to add to it.
Quote from: kphoger on July 28, 2019, 04:41:15 PM
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 27, 2019, 10:20:44 PM
Remember sears, old navy, and home depot?
Huh? Of course I remember them. I've shopped at a Home Depot a couple of times in the last few months, as a matter of fact. What's your point?
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 28, 2019, 11:26:49 AM
Quote from: MNHighwayMan on July 28, 2019, 11:18:06 AM
Quote from: mrhappy1261 on July 28, 2019, 10:40:24 AM
East Cleveland, Detroit, Gary, are all dangerous ghost towns. ...
I don't think you know what a "ghost town" is. ...
A ghost town is an abandoned town basically. Deserted ...
So, basically, a ghost town is not East Cleveland, Detroit, or Gary.
By the way, Lumberton (NC)–which is also not a ghost town–has higher crime rates than Detroit. Similar homicide rate, slightly lower rape rate–but significantly higher rates of robbery, burglary, and theft. Don't believe everything you hear.
I think the term for exploring abandonment in blighted cities is technically "urban exploration." Usually both hobbies are looking for similar things like abandoned buildings or infrastructure.
Home Depot is not an abandoned building. It's now a church.
Sears doesn't appear to be an abandoned building. It's now an Ollie's (I think).
Old Navy does appear to be abandoned, but the rest of the strip mall seems to be doing fine.
Quote from: kphoger on July 29, 2019, 02:02:31 PM
Sears doesn't appear to be an abandoned building. It's now an Ollie's (I think).
It was part of the Tarrytown Mall that got flooded in 1999. It was sitting there until 2006 and when it got replaced with a Sam's club.
Australias Ghost town is Wittenoom. It became abandoned due to the Asbestos hazards.
Quote from: bing101 on December 25, 2019, 11:18:03 AM
Australias Ghost town is Wittenoom. It became abandoned due to the Asbestos hazards.
Sounds like New Idria here in California. They had Mercury contamination on top of naturally occurring asbestos fibers in the nearby Clear Creek Recreation Area.
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on December 25, 2019, 11:20:06 AM
Quote from: bing101 on December 25, 2019, 11:18:03 AM
Australias Ghost town is Wittenoom. It became abandoned due to the Asbestos hazards.
Sounds like New Idria here in California. They had Mercury contamination on top of naturally occurring asbestos fibers in the nearby Clear Creek Recreation Area.
This sounds a lot like Times Beach, the town about 25 miles away from St. Louis that had their streets sprayed with dioxin-contaiminated oil on their dirt roads.
There are quite a few of them around central Florida including the Brewster location you mention. I don't know that they all qualify as ghost towns, per se, because in many cases there's not really any buildings left. But there are lots of places which were once booming, especially with the cattle and logging industries that were once very common.
I discovered the ghosttowns.com website years ago and still visit from time to time. Some of the locations I already knew about, but when I was looking at the locations, I found several of them had pictures of places I'd been past while traveling on the back roads and never realized the significance. There is sometimes evidence, such as old buildings or cemeteries but I never realized they were once well populated areas since in many cases there's just nothing out there today to give the impression, other than a few scattered residents among orange groves and pastures.
I've also seen some other places listed on the internet as ghost towns but I cannot find any information on them. My neighborhood is actually right between two locations that were apparently once settlements, but I can find nothing existing today that remains from the time.
Quote from: crt08 on January 01, 2020, 09:22:10 AM
There are quite a few of them around central Florida including the Brewster location you mention. I don't know that they all qualify as ghost towns, per se, because in many cases there's not really any buildings left. But there are lots of places which were once booming, especially with the cattle and logging industries that were once very common.
I discovered the ghosttowns.com website years ago and still visit from time to time. Some of the locations I already knew about, but when I was looking at the locations, I found several of them had pictures of places I'd been past while traveling on the back roads and never realized the significance. There is sometimes evidence, such as old buildings or cemeteries but I never realized they were once well populated areas since in many cases there's just nothing out there today to give the impression, other than a few scattered residents among orange groves and pastures.
I've also seen some other places listed on the internet as ghost towns but I cannot find any information on them. My neighborhood is actually right between two locations that were apparently once settlements, but I can find nothing existing today that remains from the time.
Brewster is one of the better ones in Bone Valley because there is something to see with crumbling buildings. Nichols was probably the best of the lot given there much of the company town left over:
https://www.gribblenation.org/2018/06/ghost-town-tuesday-nichols-fl.html?m=1
Here (https://www.google.com/maps/@35.8179149,-77.4524711,3a,50.6y,216.31h,86.85t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s5TFJfcHIS1H8KCpY5zg_FA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en) is abandoned. One is an abandoned gas station and the other is a very slum one.
This is more of a village than a town though.
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.2637703,-77.5825086,3a,75y,152.56h,93.6t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sqLJWbounzO7IDVbu9wJVBQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en
East Kinston is bad! And I heard is one of the most dangerous towns in NC.
Quote from: tolbs17 on March 26, 2021, 08:59:53 PM
Here (https://www.google.com/maps/@35.8179149,-77.4524711,3a,50.6y,216.31h,86.85t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s5TFJfcHIS1H8KCpY5zg_FA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en) is abandoned. One is an abandoned gas station and the other is a very slum one.
This is more of a village than a town though.
It's also not abandoned. (https://goo.gl/maps/KzYk6M7cBomSsNT56) The town of Conetoe has a current estimated population of around 250.
Our nation is full of small towns that have passed their population peak, and I'm sure there are out-of-business gas stations in many of them. Conetoe's population peak was 20 years ago, but at no point before 1980 did it have more people than it does now.
(https://i.imgur.com/8t8928t.jpg)
Quote from: tolbs17 on March 26, 2021, 08:59:53 PM
Here (https://www.google.com/maps/@35.8179149,-77.4524711,3a,50.6y,216.31h,86.85t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s5TFJfcHIS1H8KCpY5zg_FA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en) is abandoned. One is an abandoned gas station and the other is a very slum one.
This is more of a village than a town though.
Quote from: kphoger on March 30, 2021, 09:04:49 AM
It's also not abandoned. (https://goo.gl/maps/KzYk6M7cBomSsNT56) The town of Conetoe has a current estimated population of around 250.
Our nation is full of small towns that have passed their population peak, and I'm sure there are out-of-business gas stations in many of them. Conetoe's population peak was 20 years ago, but at no point before 1980 did it have more people than it does now.
(https://i.imgur.com/8t8928t.jpg)
More importantly, it belongs in the Strange Pronunciation thread: coh-Nee-toe
Surprised this one didn't hit the list yet: Jerome, Arizona. During its heyday with a population of nearly 15,000, it had two working hospitals. IIRC, the population had dwindled to around 110 back in the early 2000s, but it looks like the population is up and holding steady at 444. Ahh, the smell of molten copper in the morning.
Quote from: Dirt Roads on March 30, 2021, 09:50:17 AM
Surprised this one didn't hit the list yet: Jerome, Arizona. During its heyday with a population of nearly 15,000, it had two working hospitals. IIRC, the population had dwindled to around 110 back in the early 2000s, but it looks like the population is up and holding steady at 444. Ahh, the smell of molten copper in the morning.
And I struggle to figure out where most of those people lived (probably tents and shack) every time I visit. For a near absolute ghost town Jerome definitely has a pulse to it and people love to go visit.
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on March 30, 2021, 10:26:01 AM
Quote from: Dirt Roads on March 30, 2021, 09:50:17 AM
Surprised this one didn't hit the list yet: Jerome, Arizona. During its heyday with a population of nearly 15,000, it had two working hospitals. IIRC, the population had dwindled to around 110 back in the early 2000s, but it looks like the population is up and holding steady at 444. Ahh, the smell of molten copper in the morning.
And I struggle to figure out where most of those people lived (probably tents and shack) every time I visit. For a near absolute ghost town Jerome definitely has a pulse to it and people love to go visit.
I loved my trip through Jerome. The the switchbacks of the highway through town and steep grades of the streets and reminded me more of a Swiss mountain town than something you'd normally find here in the States.
One ghost town in California, Cerro Gordo (https://goo.gl/maps/AyTvv6nNeCcS3MH48), was purchased by a YouTuber. He's been there just over a year and has an entire channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEjBDKfrqQI4TgzT9YLNT8g) dedicated to his life in this abandoned town as he restores the old buildings and explores the abandoned mines.
Quote from: zzcarp on March 30, 2021, 10:53:48 AM
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on March 30, 2021, 10:26:01 AM
Quote from: Dirt Roads on March 30, 2021, 09:50:17 AM
Surprised this one didn't hit the list yet: Jerome, Arizona. During its heyday with a population of nearly 15,000, it had two working hospitals. IIRC, the population had dwindled to around 110 back in the early 2000s, but it looks like the population is up and holding steady at 444. Ahh, the smell of molten copper in the morning.
And I struggle to figure out where most of those people lived (probably tents and shack) every time I visit. For a near absolute ghost town Jerome definitely has a pulse to it and people love to go visit.
I loved my trip through Jerome. The the switchbacks of the highway through town and steep grades of the streets and reminded me more of a Swiss mountain town than something you'd normally find here in the States.
AZ 89A/Old US 89A was one of my favorite drives to take my Camaro out on. There hardly was ever any traffic heading north from Prescott Valley for some reason.
A ghost town I hit recently was Rockport of Mendocino County on CA 1 north of Fort Bragg. Rather than repeat what I said on Gribblenation I'll just link the blog:
https://www.gribblenation.org/2021/02/california-state-route-1-shoreline_14.html?m=1
Quote from: Dirt Roads on March 30, 2021, 09:50:17 AM
Surprised this one didn't hit the list yet: Jerome, Arizona. During its heyday with a population of nearly 15,000, it had two working hospitals. IIRC, the population had dwindled to around 110 back in the early 2000s, but it looks like the population is up and holding steady at 444. Ahh, the smell of molten copper in the morning.
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on March 30, 2021, 10:26:01 AM
And I struggle to figure out where most of those people lived (probably tents and shack) every time I visit. For a near absolute ghost town Jerome definitely has a pulse to it and people love to go visit.
Was there almost exactly 20 years ago, and it looked like a pretty big empty town back then. The guide at the State Park said that the population was once over 33,000 and Jerome was listed as the largest city in Arizona for a while. Doubtful, and I can't find any evidence. But I did see both of the hospital locations as I drove around town. Unless the competing mine barons couldn't agree on sharing a hospital, it seems unlikely that a town of nearly 15,000 could support two hospitals (even if the mines produced a steady stream of patients).
This one also belongs in the Strange Pronunciation thread: jher-uhm, rhymes with our city Durham
Quote from: Dirt Roads on March 30, 2021, 12:29:15 PM
Quote from: Dirt Roads on March 30, 2021, 09:50:17 AM
Surprised this one didn't hit the list yet: Jerome, Arizona. During its heyday with a population of nearly 15,000, it had two working hospitals. IIRC, the population had dwindled to around 110 back in the early 2000s, but it looks like the population is up and holding steady at 444. Ahh, the smell of molten copper in the morning.
Quote from: Max Rockatansky on March 30, 2021, 10:26:01 AM
And I struggle to figure out where most of those people lived (probably tents and shack) every time I visit. For a near absolute ghost town Jerome definitely has a pulse to it and people love to go visit.
Was there almost exactly 20 years ago, and it looked like a pretty big empty town back then. The guide at the State Park said that the population was once over 33,000 and Jerome was listed as the largest city in Arizona for a while. Doubtful, and I can't find any evidence. But I did see both of the hospital locations as I drove around town. Unless the competing mine barons couldn't agree on sharing a hospital, it seems unlikely that a town of nearly 15,000 could support two hospitals (even if the mines produced a steady stream of patients).
This one also belongs in the Strange Pronunciation thread: jher-uhm, rhymes with our city Durham
Another mining town of interest in Arizona that I've always liked is Vulture City out by Wickenburg. Apparently that was close to 5,000 residents at one point but most of the housing structures have also disappeared. What is neat with Vulture City was that most of the mining administration and infrastructure was left intact when it was shuttered in World War II.
Those former mining cities/towns in AZ just reminds me Murdochville, QC (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murdochville,_Quebec).
In 1950, Noranda Mines started mining copper ore there, and in 1953, the town was incorporated. The population climbed around 5000 in the mining peak, in the 1970s, but the mine closed definitively in 1999, followed by the foundry in 2002, so the population declined since. Just take a look...
1991 - 1689 inhabitants.
1996 - 1595 (-5.6%)
2001 - 1171 (-26.6%)
2006 - 812 (-30.7%)
2011 - 764 (-5.9%)
2016 - 651 (-14.8%)
In 2002, a referendum was held to close the town. Out of 799 people having the right to vote, 672 did; 434 of them to close the town, 238 to keep it alive. But go figure, the town is still alive today, but its population is melting like snow under spring sun.
Other "real" ghost towns in QC are Gagnon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gagnon,_Quebec), and Joutel (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joutel).
Oak City is also abandoned.
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.9044118,-77.3073594,3a,80.9y,128.55h,87.04t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sIy1rIyaeSSFv_snmzSEHOA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!5m1!1e1
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.9638468,-77.3025122,3a,20.5y,238.99h,86.38t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s9lZQpAoJZYndhmhtst1BRg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!5m1!1e1
Took Old CA 1 on Swanton Road through Swanton. Swanton wasn't much more than a rail road siding and aside from a historic marker long gone. There are some neat bridge structures to be found though on Swanton Road:
https://www.flickr.com/gp/151828809@N08/6vS61h
Fluteville and Campville in Connecticut, along the old CT 8, were abandoned when dams were set up in the area and CT 8 was relocated in the late 1950s:
https://hiddeninplainsightblog.com/tag/fluteville/
http://www.countytimes.com/news/when-litchfield-harwinton-really-went-under-water/article_853408f9-997b-587f-aef3-8c11dd0d8121.html
https://kurumi.com/roads/ct/abandoned.html#d_8_route
Quote from: kurumi on July 24, 2021, 01:40:06 PM
Fluteville and Campville in Connecticut, along the old CT 8, were abandoned when dams were set up in the area and CT 8 was relocated in the late 1950s:
https://hiddeninplainsightblog.com/tag/fluteville/
http://www.countytimes.com/news/when-litchfield-harwinton-really-went-under-water/article_853408f9-997b-587f-aef3-8c11dd0d8121.html
https://kurumi.com/roads/ct/abandoned.html#d_8_route
Makes me think of the 5 MA towns flooded for the Quabbin. You can still go see the mostly empty foundations in the defunct town of Dana.
Quote from: tolbs17 on July 24, 2021, 01:49:38 AM
Oak City is also abandoned.
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.9044118,-77.3073594,3a,80.9y,128.55h,87.04t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sIy1rIyaeSSFv_snmzSEHOA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!5m1!1e1
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.9638468,-77.3025122,3a,20.5y,238.99h,86.38t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s9lZQpAoJZYndhmhtst1BRg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!5m1!1e1
A single abandoned building or two does not make a ghost town. Looks to me like Oak City NC is a town of 300-ish people; hardly a ghost town
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Oak+City,+NC+27857/@35.9613982,-77.3086233,2478m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x89ae5615803124c7:0xc1f20d047978162b!8m2!3d35.9637687!4d-77.3080209
A true abandoned/ghost town would have no (or very few) active residents. Most of them that I am aware of are out west; one example in the eastern US would be Centralia PA.
Quote from: dlsterner on July 24, 2021, 05:56:28 PM
Quote from: tolbs17 on July 24, 2021, 01:49:38 AM
Oak City is also abandoned.
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.9044118,-77.3073594,3a,80.9y,128.55h,87.04t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sIy1rIyaeSSFv_snmzSEHOA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!5m1!1e1
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.9638468,-77.3025122,3a,20.5y,238.99h,86.38t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s9lZQpAoJZYndhmhtst1BRg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!5m1!1e1
A single abandoned building or two does not make a ghost town. Looks to me like Oak City NC is a town of 300-ish people; hardly a ghost town
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Oak+City,+NC+27857/@35.9613982,-77.3086233,2478m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x89ae5615803124c7:0xc1f20d047978162b!8m2!3d35.9637687!4d-77.3080209
A true abandoned/ghost town would have no (or very few) active residents. Most of them that I am aware of are out west; one example in the eastern US would be Centralia PA.
They must be nearby if the CDP isn't even half 0.50 square miles. It would be different if it was say a place like Allensworth, CA where the core town is long dead but the CDP included a fairly dispersed area.
Quote from: tolbs17 on July 24, 2021, 01:49:38 AM
Oak City is also abandoned.
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.9044118,-77.3073594,3a,80.9y,128.55h,87.04t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sIy1rIyaeSSFv_snmzSEHOA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!5m1!1e1
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.9638468,-77.3025122,3a,20.5y,238.99h,86.38t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s9lZQpAoJZYndhmhtst1BRg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!5m1!1e1
You mean, except for the 300 people who live there?
https://goo.gl/maps/2Rc56Me8YQoRqdgm6
Quote from: kphoger on July 25, 2021, 05:05:39 PM
Quote from: tolbs17 on July 24, 2021, 01:49:38 AM
Oak City is also abandoned.
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.9044118,-77.3073594,3a,80.9y,128.55h,87.04t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sIy1rIyaeSSFv_snmzSEHOA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!5m1!1e1
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.9638468,-77.3025122,3a,20.5y,238.99h,86.38t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s9lZQpAoJZYndhmhtst1BRg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!5m1!1e1
You mean, except for the 300 people who live there?
https://goo.gl/maps/2Rc56Me8YQoRqdgm6
It's not like he was there where they could say "peekaboo" to him.
Got to talking about ghost towns on a road chat and forgot I hit some new stuff during the year:
New Almaden Quicksilver Mining District
https://www.gribblenation.org/2021/02/santa-clara-county-g8-and-new-almaden.html?m=1
Success Siding
https://www.gribblenation.org/2021/10/former-california-state-route-190-at.html?m=1
Fresno Hot Springs
https://www.gribblenation.org/2021/12/coalinga-mineral-springs-road-fresno.html?m=1
Cairo, Illinois. Steep population decline
Quote from: tolbs17 on December 15, 2021, 06:48:49 PM
Cairo, Illinois. Steep population decline
Not a ghost town with a couple thousand residents. By that logic Detroit would be a ghost town too, it isn't.
I dunno. Cairo sure feels like a ghost town. Knowing that there are people that have to live in that environment in their day-to-day life actually makes it creepier.
Quote from: Scott5114 on December 15, 2021, 07:16:16 PM
I dunno. Cairo sure feels like a ghost town. Knowing that there are people that have to live in that environment in their day-to-day life actually makes it creepier.
Part of is because of I-57, the Cairo Rail Bridge, and other bypasses. Riots were part of the reason too.
^^^
Suffice to say Cairo has a ton of stuff not going for it that has led to it's decline. It will be interesting to see if 20-30 years from now if it will become truly abandoned.
Quote from: Scott5114 on December 15, 2021, 07:16:16 PM
I dunno. Cairo sure feels like a ghost town. Knowing that there are people that have to live in that environment in their day-to-day life actually makes it creepier.
I don't disagree that it feels that way, every time I've been through there the effect is more and more pronounced. It's the same vibe I get from much of Detroit when I go home and go out looking for ruins porn/notable abandoned buildings.
Also, I edited the thread title to include exploring abandoned places. This Cairo talk got me thinking abandonment tends to go hand in hand with looking for ghost towns, so why exclude it?