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List of ghost towns in Alabama facts for kids

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Imagine a town where everyone has left, and the buildings are empty and quiet. These places are called ghost towns. Alabama has many such towns, each with its own story of why people moved away. This is a list of some of these fascinating places in Alabama, United States.

What Kinds of Ghost Towns Are There?

Ghost towns can look very different depending on how much is left of them. Here are some ways we classify them:

Gone Completely (Barren Site)

  • These towns have almost completely disappeared.
  • They might have been destroyed, covered by water, or turned back into fields.
  • You might only find a few hard-to-spot foundations.

Falling Apart (Neglected Site)

  • Only rubble or ruins are left.
  • All the buildings are empty and no one lives there.
  • Many buildings might not even have roofs anymore.

Empty but Standing (Abandoned Site)

  • Buildings and houses are still standing.
  • They are all empty, with no people living in them (except maybe a caretaker).
  • Sometimes, only one or two old buildings, like a church or a store, are left.

Almost Empty (Semi-abandoned Site)

  • Buildings and houses are still standing.
  • Most buildings are empty, but a few people still live there.
  • It's a town with many abandoned buildings but a very small population.

Still Alive, but Smaller (Historic Community)

  • Buildings and houses are still standing.
  • It's still an active community, but much smaller than it used to be during its busiest times.
  • The number of people living there has dropped a lot.

Ghost Towns in Alabama

Town name   Other name   County   Started   Abandoned   What's left today   Interesting facts   
Aigleville Marengo 1818 1830s Gone Completely Started by French settlers who came to grow grapes and olives.
Arcola Arcola Ferry Hale 1820s 1850s Still Alive, but Smaller Also started by French settlers who came to grow grapes and olives.
Bainbridge Bam Bridge, Bambridge Colbert, Lauderdale 1819 1840s Underwater Now underwater in Wilson Lake.
Barnesville Marion Still Alive, but Smaller
Battelle DeKalb Falling Apart
Beaver Mills Beaver Meadow Mobile Falling Apart Used as a uniform storage place during the Civil War.
Bellefonte Jackson 1821 1920s Falling Apart Was once the main town for Jackson County government.
Blakeley Baldwin 1813 1865 Falling Apart Was once the main town for Baldwin County government.
Blanche Cherokee Gone Completely Located where State Route 35 and State Route 273 meet.
Bluff City Bluff, Monroe Morgan 1818 1881
Bluffton Cherokee 1888 1934 Gone Completely Was a town where iron ore was mined.
Boston Franklin
Brownville Tuscaloosa 1925 Approx. 1989 Empty but Standing / Demolished Was a town built for workers of a lumber company. Some parts can still be seen.
Cahaba Dallas 1819 1865 Empty but Standing Was the very first capital city of Alabama from 1820 to 1826.
Cedric Randolph Located four miles southwest of Roanoke.
Centerdale Morgan
Chandler Springs Talladega 1832 1918 Empty but Standing Was a famous resort town from 1832 to 1918.
Choctaw Corner Clarke Gone Completely This area is now part of Thomasville.
Chulafinnee Placers Cleburne 1835 1840s
Claiborne Monroe 1816 1870s Empty but Standing Was one of the biggest settlements in early Alabama.
Clarkesville Clarkeville Clarke 1819 1860s Gone Completely Was the first main town for Clarke County government.
Dumphries Washington 1819 1839
Erie Hale 1819 1855 Gone Completely Was once the main town for Hale County government.
Failetown Clarke Site of a small battle during the Creek War.
Finchburg Finchburgh, Finchberg Monroe Amasa Coleman Lee, the father of famous author Harper Lee, lived here.
Fitzpatrick Bullock Still Alive, but Smaller
Fort Gaines Mobile Still Alive, but Smaller A fort built to defend Mobile Bay. Now it's a museum.
Fort McClellan Calhoun 1912 1999 Empty but Standing / Still Alive, but Smaller Was a former army base near Anniston.
Fort Morgan Baldwin A fort built to defend Mobile Bay.
Gantts Quarry Talladega 1830 2000 Empty but Standing Was a town built around a mining operation.
Gold Log Mine Talladega Was a camp for gold miners.
Houston Winston Still Alive, but Smaller Was once the main town for Winston County government.
Kaulton Tuscaloosa 1912 Gone Completely Was a town built for a lumber company and its mill. Now part of Tuscaloosa.
Kowaliga Benson, Kowaliga Industrial Community Elmore, later Tallapoosa c. 1890 c. 1926 Gone Completely and Underwater Was a community mainly for African-Americans with a focus on factories. Part of it went underwater when Martin Dam was built, creating Lake Martin.
Louina Randolph 1834 1905 Was once the biggest town in Randolph County.
Manasco Walker
Massillon Dallas
Minden Calhoun
Montezuma Covington Courthouse Covington Now a neighborhood of River Falls Was the first main town for Covington County government.
Morgan Stream
Mountain Mills Colbert 1872 1893 Gone Completely Was home to a large cotton mill.
Nottingham Jones Camp Ground Talladega 1880s 1895 Was a town built around a steel factory.
Odena Shirtee Plantation, Oden's Mill Talladega Gone Completely
Old Ramer Montgomery 1850 1895
Pansey Houston Lucy Baxley, who was the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Alabama, was born here.
Pikeville Marion Was the first main town for Marion County government.
Prairie Bluff Prairie Blue, Dale, Daletown Wilcox 1819 1870s Underwater Was a busy shipping port on the Alabama River.
Riverton Point Smith 1846-1851, Chickasaw 1851-1890, Riverton 1890-1930s Colbert 1846 1930s Underwater Was a port town on the Tennessee River, now underwater because of the Pickwick Landing Dam. Only a cemetery remains.
Rockcastle Davis Creek Tuscaloosa
St. Stephens Washington 1789 Still Alive, but Smaller Was the first capital city of Alabama when it was still a territory.
Stanton Chilton
Tooktocaugee Calhoun Gone Completely Was a village of the Creek Indian people.
Turkey Town Cherokee 1770 Gone Completely Was another village of the Creek Indian people.
Valhermoso Springs Chunn Springs, Manning Springs, Valhermosa Springs, White Sulpher Springs Morgan Was a health resort where people went for healing springs.
Vienna Pickens Was a port town on the Tombigbee River.
Washington Autauga 1817 1879 Gone Completely / Underwater Was the first main town for Autauga County government.
Bell Fontaine Bell Fountain Baldwin ca. 1760 1880s Empty but Standing / Replaced Was a stop for stagecoaches and a settlement.
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List of ghost towns in Alabama Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.