List of ghost towns in California

Ghost towns in California were caused by factors including the end of the California gold rush, the creation of new lakes, and the abandonment of formerly-used rail and motor routes.

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MAD

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MRN

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Classification

Barren site

• Sites no longer in existence
• Sites that have been destroyed
• Only remnants of structures left
• Reverted to pasture

Neglected site

• Only rubble left
• Roofless building ruins
• Buildings or houses still standing, but majority are roofless

Abandoned site

• Building or houses still standing
• Buildings and houses all abandoned
• No population, except caretaker
• Site no longer in existence except for one or two buildings, for example old church, grocery store

Semiabandoned site

• Building or houses still standing
• Buildings and houses largely abandoned
• few residents
• many abandoned buildings
• Small population

List

Town	Other names	County	Latitude/Longitude	Founded	Abandoned	Status	Remarks
Agua Fria		Mariposa	37°29′06″N 120°01′13″W	1850	1862[1]	Barren[2]	Truly was abandoned after a fire burnt down the town in 1866.
Agua Mansa		San Bernardino	34°02′31″N 117°21′50″W	1853	After 1862[3]	Barren[4]	Declined slowly after the Great Flood of 1862.[3]
Alma	Lexington[5]	Santa Clara	37°10′48″N 121°58′48″W	1861	1952	Submerged	Already declined to less than 100 residents, Alma was demolished during the 1952 construction of the James J. Lenihan Dam. Currently the few remaining structures are underneath the Lexington Reservoir and can only be seen during low water levels.[6]
Amboy		San Bernardino	34°33′25″N 115°44′42″W	1858	N/A	Semiabandoned	declined slowly from the opening of Interstate 40
Ashford Mill		Inyo	35°55′08″N 116°41′05″W	1914	unknown	Neglected
Ash Hill		San Bernardino	34°42′25″N 116°03′18″W	unknown	unknown	Neglected
Asphalto	La Brea	Kern	35°18′17″N 119°36′03″W	Before 1893	1932	Barren
Atolia		San Bernardino	35°18′53″N 117°36′33″W	1906	After 1965	Abandoned
Bagdad		San Bernardino	34°34′58″N 115°52′32″W	1883	1973	Barren[7]	Abandoned due to opening of Interstate 40
Ballarat		Inyo	36°02′52″N 117°13′24″W	1897	1968	Neglected	The Manson Family left graffiti here. The town became abandoned after its sole resident, who had been living there alone for five decades, died
Beeks Place		Orange	33°49′14″N 117°38′20″W	Before 1940	unknown	Abandoned
Belleville		San Bernardino	34°18′4″N 116°53′3″W	1860	Before 1900	Abandoned	Slowly declined after gold deposits in the region dried up
Bennettville	Tioga	Mono	37°56′15″N 119°15′38″W	1860	1890	Abandoned	Abandoned after not enough silver was found in the region
Bend City		Inyo	36°49′09″N 118°07′50″W	1863	After 1872	Abandoned	the 1872 Owens Valley Earthquake caused the Owens River to flow away from the town, driving the last remaining residents out
Bestville		Siskiyou	41°18′03″N 123°08′35″W	1850	unknown	Barren
Blue Mountain City		Calaveras	38.37080°N 120.36642°W / 38.37080; -120.36642	1863	unknown	Barren
Bodie		Mono	38°12′44″N 119°00′44″W	1876	N/A	Semiabandoned	Declined slowly from mining profits decreasing since 1914
Branson City	Branson	San Diego	33°04′41″N 116°37′02″W	1870	unknown	Abandoned	Abandoned due to not being able to compete with nearby Julian
Cadiz		San Bernardino	34°31′12″N 115°30′46″W	1883	unknown	Neglected
Calico		San Bernardino	34°56′56″N 116°51′51″W	1881	1907	Abandoned [8]	Abandoned due to an end to borax mining in the region
Camanche	Clay's Bar	Calaveras	38°12′48″N 120°56′07″W	Before 1849	After 1962	Submerged	Inundated by Camanche Reservoir
Canon City		Trinity	40°49′53″N 123°03′10″W	1851	1891	Barren
Carnegie		San Joaquin	37°37′46″N 121°31′41″W	1902	1915	Neglected	Slowly declined after a flood in 1911 destroyed many roads and buildings
Carson Hill	Slumgullion	Calaveras	38°01′42″N 120°30′24″W	Before 1853	1935	Abandoned
Cement		Solano	38°17′34″N 121°59′46″W	1902	1927	Neglected	Slowly declined after limestone deposits in the region were depleted
Cerro Gordo		Inyo	36°32.2626′N 117°47.70186′W	1866	N/A	Semiabandoned	One man has been living here since 2020 after everyone else left
Chinquapin	Chincapin	Mariposa	37°39′00″N 119°42′19″W	1882	N/A	Semiabandoned	Still used as a rest stop and ranger station within Yosemite National Park
Chloride City		Inyo	36°42′24″N 116°52′56″W	1905	unknown	Neglected
Chrysopolis		Inyo	36°57′38″N 118°11′48″W	1863	1910	Neglected	Abandoned after a mining boom in the region started in 1900 went away
Coleman City	Emily City	San Diego	33°05′10″N 116°38′42″W	1870	unknown	Abandoned	Abandoned after depletion of gold deposits in the region
Coso	Granite Springs	Inyo	36°10′36″N 117°38′49″W	1860	unknown	Barren
Cox & Clark Trading Post		Kings	35°58′08″N 119°56′21″W	1870	unknown	Barren
Cuyamaca City	’Ekwiiyemak	San Diego	32°59′05″N 116°34′15″W	1887	1906	Abandoned
Deadwood		Placer	39°04′50″N 120°41′22″W	1852	unknown	Abandoned
Deadwood		Trinity	40°43′10″N 122°44′01″W	1851	1915	Abandoned	Abandoned with the closing of the town's post office
Dedrick		Trinity	40°51′46″N 123°02′12″W	1890	After 1941	Abandoned
Denny		Trinity	40°56′38″N 123°23′12″W	After 1851	After 1970	Abandoned
Desert Spring		Kern	35°16′20″N 118°37′34″W	Before 1834	After 1850	Barren
Dogtown	Dogtown Diggings	Mono	38°10′13″N 119°11′51″W	1857	After 1859	Barren
Drawbridge	Saline City	Alameda	37°27′54″N 121°58′28″W	1876	1979	Abandoned	Population slowly declined due to the closing of nearby bridges and rampant vandalism in the town
Dunmovin	Cowan Station	Inyo	36°05′19″N 117°57′40″W	Before 1936	N/A	Semiabandoned
Eagle Mountain		Riverside	33°51′27″N 115°29′14″W	1948	2003	Abandoned	A jailbreak at the Eagle Mountain Community Correctional Facility caused the prison to be shut down and the last population of the town to leave
Eastwood		San Diego	33°05′15″N 116°36′40″W	unknown	unknown	Barren
Eldoradoville		Los Angeles	34°13′47″N 117°46′11″W	1859	1862	Barren	Town was washed away during the Great Flood Of 1862
Elliott		San Joaquin	38°14′05″N 121°10′51″W	1846[9]	After 1901	Abandoned
Empire City		Stanislaus	37°38.239′N 120°54.167′W	1850	1862	Barren	Town was washed away during the Great Flood Of 1862
Essex		San Bernardino	34°44′01″N 115°14′42″W	Before 1937	N/A	Semiabandoned	Declined slowly due to the opening of Interstate 40 as well as the remoteness of the town
Falk		Humboldt
Fountain Springs		Tulare	35°53′28″N 118°54′56″W
Freeman Junction		Kern	35°36′06″N 117°54′11″W
Fremont Valley		Calaveras
French Flat		Tuolumne	37°58′20″N 120°28′17″W
Furnace		Inyo	36°11′29″N 116°39′54″W
Furnace Creek Inn		Inyo	36°27′02″N 116°51′08″W
Garlock		Kern	35°24′09″N 117°47′24″W
Gas Point		Shasta	40°24′56″N 122°32′04″W
Gibsonville		Sierra	39°44′25″N 120°54′32″W
Girard		Kern
Glenburn		Kern	43°38′19″N 116°14′28″W
Goffs		San Bernardino	34°55′09″N 115°03′46″W
Gold Town		Kern	35°00′06″N 118°10′08″W
Goler Heights		Kern	35°25′37″N 117°44′45″W
Greasertown		Calaveras	38°11′28″N 120°45′15″W
Greenwater		Inyo	36°10′46″N 116°36′59″W
Greenwich		Kern
Gerstley		Inyo	36°00′43″N 116°16′28″W
Grub Gulch		Madera	37°19′29″N 119°46′15″W
Gullion's Bar		Siskiyou	41°17′48″N 123°21′36″W
Haiwee		Inyo	36°08′48″N 117°58′33″W
Hamilton		Butte	39°27′09″N 121°38′28″W
Hart		San Bernardino	35°17′20″N 115°06′12″W
Hatfields Camp		Kern	35°28′26″N 117°52′06″W
Hector		San Bernardino	34°48′13″N 116°27′08″W	around 1937	unknown	Semiabandoned
Helena		Trinity	40°46′25″N 123°07′42″W
Hoboken		Sacramento	38°33′28″N 121°25′04″W
Hodson		Calaveras	37°59′48″N 120°41′08″W
Hokokwito		Mariposa	37°45′30″N 119°35′43″W
Holy City		Santa Clara	37°09′25″N 121°58′44″W
Horseshoe Bend		Mariposa	37°40′41″N 120°13′52″W
Hollands		Los Angeles					[10]
Igo		Shasta	40°30′20″N 122°32′30″W
Independence Flat		Calaveras					[citation needed]
Indian Gulch		Mariposa	37°26′22″N 120°11′49″W
Indian Springs		Kern
Iowa Hill		Placer	39°06′31″N 120°51′34″W
Isabella		Kern	35°39′20″N 118°27′40″W
Ivanpah		San Bernardino	35°32′42″N 115°32′07″W
Jaeger City		Imperial	32°43′52″N 114°37′47″W
Joe Walker Town		Kern	35°25′20″N 118°29′35″W
Joyfull		Kern
Kasson		Inyo
Kern River Slough		Kern	35°15′35″N 118°58′03″W
Kernvale		Kern
Kernville		Kern	35°42′51″N 118°26′12″W
Kearsarge		Inyo	36°48′36″N 118°19′30″W
Keeler		Inyo	36°29′14″N 117°52′26″W
Kelso		San Bernardino	35°00′45″N 115°39′13″W
Kingston		Kings	36°25′25″N 119°41′38″W
Kumaini		Mariposa
La Panza		San Luis Obispo	35°21′40″N 120°12′56″W
Langdon		Kern
Lavers' Crossing		Kern	35°44′12″N 118°43′16″W
Leadfield		Inyo	36°50′48″N 117°03′33″W
Lee		Inyo	36°34′46″N 116°40′12″W
Lee Camp		Kern
Leliter		Kern	35°42′38″N 117°49′49″W
Leon		Riverside	33°39′09″N 117°08′08″W
Lexington		Santa Clara	37°11′47″N 121°59′18″W
Liberty		San Joaquin
Linda Rosa		Riverside
Lila C		Inyo	36°14′36″N 116°29′56″W
Lillis		Fresno	36°26′18″N 119°43′03″W
Little Cienega	La Cienega, Falling Springs	Los Angeles	34°18′06″N 117°50′21″W	before 1934	after 1998	Barren	Former resort town most recently occupied by a religious group. Remnants mostly destroyed by the Curve Fire.
Llano del Rio		Los Angeles	34°30′23″N 117°49′38″W
Lone Pine Station		Inyo
Lookout City		Inyo	36°14′45″N 117°26′05″W
Lower Calaveritas		Calaveras
Ludlow		San Bernardino	34°43′16″N 116°09′36″W
Lyons Station		Los Angeles	34°21′46″N 118°30′27″W
Macheto		Mariposa
Mammoth City		Mono
Manchester		Monterey
Manzanar		Inyo	36°44′24″N 118°04′50″W
Martensdale		Kern
Martinez		Tuolumne County	38°01′24″N 120°22′47″W
Masonic		Mono	38°21′45″N 119°06′45″W
Melones		Calaveras	38°00′45″N 120°29′55″W
Mentryville		Los Angeles	34°22′44″N 118°36′40″W
Merced Falls		Merced	37°31′23″N 120°19′57″W
Mercuryville		Sonoma	38°46′34″N 122°50′22″W
Midland		Riverside	33°51′40″N 114°48′08″W
Midway		Kern
Mill Valley		Calaveras
Minear		Mariposa
Minersville		Trinity	40°51′05″N 122°46′59″W
Mount Ophir		Mariposa	37°30′53″N 120°03′53″W
Miramonte		Kern
Mono Mills		Mono	37°53′15″N 118°57′34″W
Monterio		Kern
Moore's Flat		Nevada
Mormon Island		Sacramento	38°42′13″N 121°07′03″W	1848	1856	Submerged
Mountain House		Kern	35°41′31″N 118°55′03″W
Muroc		Kern	34°55′23″N 117°52′20″W
Narka		Inyo	35°53′52″N 117°54′04″W
Negro Flat		Siskiyou	41°14′31″N 123°16′51″W
Neuralia		Inyo
New Almaden		Santa Clara	37°10′48″N 121°50′08″W
New Idria		San Benito	36°25′1″N 120°40′28″W
Newtown		Mariposa	37°42′12″N 120°11′31″W
Noonday Camp		Inyo	35°48′39″N 116°06′15″W
Norristown		Sacramento	38°33′28″N 121°25′04″W
North Muroc		Kern	35°00′18″N 117°49′08″W
North Shore		Riverside	33°30′46″N 115°55′38″W
Nortonville		Contra Costa	37°57′28″N 121°52′50″W
Notomidula		Mariposa
Olig		Kern	35°19′30″N 119°39′23″W
Oregon Bar		Calaveras
Oregon City		Butte	39°35′38″N 121°31′46″W
Owensville		Inyo	37°24′03″N 118°20′44″W
Packwood Station		Tulare
Panamint City		Inyo	36°07′06″N 117°05′43″W
Pasinogna		San Bernardino	33°59′24″N 117°43′03″W
Patchen		Santa Clara
Petersburg		Kern	35°36′09″N 118°36′13″W
Petroleopolis		Los Angeles
Picacho		Imperial	33°01′23″N 114°36′40″W
Pinacate		Riverside	33°45′36″N 117°14′00″W
Piute		Kern
Politana		San Bernardino
Port Chicago		Contra Costa	38°02′46″N 122°01′15″W
Port Wine		Sierra
Prado		San Bernardino
Prairie City		Sacramento
Providence		San Bernardino	34°58′49″N 115°30′19″W
Purissima		San Mateo	37°24′11″N 122°25′01″W	1868	early 1900’s	Barren	Declined slowly due to declined of Redwood Lumber industry, and failure of the Ocean Shore Railroad
Pylema		Kern
Quartzburg		Kern
Quartzburg		Mariposa	37°32′22″N 120°12′16″W
Ragtown		San Bernardino	34°39′36″N 116°09′03″W	after 1898	unknown	Barren
Rincon		San Bernardino
Reefer City		Kern	35°00′21″N 118°11′06″W
Reilly		Inyo	36°00′25″N 117°22′08″W
Rice		San Bernardino	34°05′01″N 114°50′59″W
Ridleys Ferry		Mariposa
Rincon		San Bernardino
Rio Bravo		Kern	35°17′49″N 119°03′24″W
Riverview		Kern
Roachville		Inyo
Rock Springs		Kern
Sablon	Rudolph	San Bernardino	34°10′29″N 114°59′39″W	1909	unknown	Barren
Sage		Kern
San Carlos		Inyo	36°48′14″N 118°07′34″W
San Joaquin City		San Joaquin	37°40′12″N 121°15′58″W
San Miguel de los Noches		Kern
Sakaya		Mariposa
Salmon Falls		El Dorado	38°45′29″N 121°03′30″W	1850	1950s	Submerged	California State Historical Marker #571
Saltus		San Bernardino	34°32′27″N 115°41′20″W	unknown	unknown	Abandoned	Supported salt evaporation. Notable for an unverified claim to the hottest temperature ever recorded.	Sandy Bar		Calaveras
Sawmill Flat		Tuolumne	38°01′14″N 120°22′51″W
Scheelite		Inyo
Schwaub		Inyo	36°30′20″N 116°43′25″W
Scovern Hot Springs		Kern	35°37′17″N 118°28′27″W
Second Garrotte		Tuolumne	37°49′30″N 120°11′51″W
Seneca		Plumas	40°06′38″N 121°05′05″W
Shamrock		Kern
Shasta		Shasta	40°35′32″N 122°28′40″W
Siberia		San Bernardino	34°37′36″N 115°59′09″W
Silver Lake		San Bernardino	35°22′16″N 116°6′54″W
Skidoo		Inyo	36°26′08″N 117°08′51″W
Sloss		Mariposa
Smyrna		Kern
Sodan		Inyo	35°55′16″N 117°54′10″W
Sorrell's		Kern
Spanish Bar		Calaveras
St. Louis		Sierra
Stedman	Steadman, Rochester, Copenhagen	San Bernardino	34°37′45″N 116°10′13″W	1898	1930s	Neglected	Abandoned when the Bagdad-Chase Mine went into recievership.
Stickneys Ferry		Tulare
Stonewall		San Diego
Stony Bar		Calaveras
Strader		Kern
Strand		Kern
Stratton		San Diego
Styx		San Bernardino	33°52′41″N 114°47′42″W	unknown	unknown	Semiabandoned
Sullivan		Kern
Sunland		Inyo	37°19′57″N 118°24′16″W
Sunset		Kern
Swansea		Inyo	36°31′29″N 117°54′14″W
Taylors Bar		Calaveras
Teagle		Kern
Tehichipa		Kern
Tejon		Kern
Telegraph City	Grasshopper City	Calaveras	37°56′04″N 120°44′24″W	1860		Neglected
Temescal		Riverside
Terese Siding		Kern
Terra Cotta		Riverside	33°42′11″N 117°22′29″W
Timbuctoo		Yuba	39°13′01″N 121°19′07″W
Toolwass		Kern
Tumco		Imperial
Unadilla		Kern
Vaca Adobe		Kings	36°03′08″N 119°57′52″W
Vallecito		San Diego	32°58′34″N 116°21′01″W
Valley Wells		San Bernardino	35°49′42″N 117°19′54″W
Vanderbilt		San Bernardino	35°19′38″N 115°14′59″W
Vaughn		Kern
Water Station		Kern
Wenger		Mariposa
Westville		Placer	39°10′30″N 120°38′53″W
White Mountain City		Inyo
Willard		Riverside
Wingo		Sonoma	38°12′33″N 122°25′36″W
Winter Garden		Kern
Wiskala		Mariposa
Woolsey Flat		Nevada	39°24′41″N 120°52′05″W
Wrights		Santa Clara	37°08′21″N 121°56′49″W
Yaqui Camp		Calaveras
You Bet		Nevada	39°12′33″N 120°54′00″W				A gold mining town
Zurich	Alvord, Station[11]	Inyo	37°10′58″N 118°15′36″W

Gallery

• 
  Alma in present times at low tide
• 
  A sign for Amboy on the west side of town
• 
  Roy's Motel and Café in Amboy on U.S. Route 66 in California in the Mojave Desert