After a strong, initial response to our inaugural report on notable ghost towns, the next step was clear, if not logical. Quench the public’s thirst for more cool ghost towns! Thus, without further ado, here are ten additional gems that stand out as eerie reminders of bygone prosperity and what once was.
The ghost village of Tyneham is a popular stop on the UNESCO World Heritage Dorset and East Devon Coast. Known as the Jurassic Coast, the English Channel shoreline is home to 180 million years of geological history and remarkable limestone scenery. While not quite as old as some of the fossils scientists have unearthed up and down the coast over the years, Tyneham is a wonderful gem nonetheless.
Craco is one of the most memorable ghost towns on record, with medieval hillside architecture that is absolutely frozen stiff in time. Earthquakes and adverse agricultural conditions doomed residents to relocation in the early 20th century. For visitors to the Basilicata region of Italy and in particular, the province and UNESCO World Heritage city of Matera, a visit to Craco is a must.
The end of the gold rush and silver mine era in California left many small towns without any discernible populace by the end of the 19th century. Fated to become dust-strewn relics of the past, they now draw a fair share of interest from tourists who yearn to take a venerable peek into the state’s heavily-romanticized past. Calico, in California’s Mojave Desert, was once the focal point for over 500 silver mines.
One of the most unusual ghost towns on record is in Syria. The former capital of the Quneitra Governate sits near the borders of Lebanon, Jordan and Israel but fell to the latter in the wake of the Six-Day War in 1967 and Yom Kippur War in 1973. As such, Quneitra is now part of the highly controversial and heavily disputed Golan Heights region. Virtually flattened by war, the city is now a pilgrimage site of sorts.
A once vibrant mine and mill town, Eureka’s demise is a bit of a mystery. Whatever the events were that led to the final abandonment, the ruins of the Colorado town draw scores of visitors every year.
It seems odd to cite Chernobyl as a “great ghost town”. With the city’s tragic legacy still fresh in the shadow of history, great is certainly the wrong word. However, it may surprise many to learn that the Kiev Oblast city in Ukraine, together with the former nuclear power plant city of Prypiat, has become a popular, if not grim, tourist attraction in the country.
The Bullfrog Hills, some 200 km north of the neon glare of Las Vegas, is not the destination of choice for most visitors to Sin City. The ghost town of Rhyolite however, is a great reason to get out of the casinos and explore other parts of Nevada. Check out the Goldwell Open Air Museum just outside of town.
The Selkirk Mountains in British Columbia contain some of the most beautiful wilderness in the pristine province. The town of Sandon was once a hotbed of activity in the Selkirks, as vast deposits of galena ore drew prospectors from all over North America in the late 19th century. Alas, a flood and steep decline in the price of silver some fifty years later left the town empty.
Once a lively silver and gold mine settlement, Gold Point, Nevada soon became obsolete after a mine shaft dynamite explosion in the 1960s. In a post-World War II economy and world, the mine operation was left to wilt but today, Gold Point thrives as a major tourist attraction in the state.
Once home to more than 500 people, several saloons and brothels, a post office and school, today Ballarat, California is a classic ghost town near Death Valley and Yosemite National Park. Fans of the film Easy Rider will recognize Ballarat as the place where Peter Fonda’s character sheds his Rolex watch.
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