List of ghost towns in Oregon Facts for Kids

The state of Oregon in the United States is home to more than 200 ghost towns. A ghost town is a place that was once a busy community but now has very few or no people living there. Many historians believe Oregon has around 256 ghost towns, some well-known and others very hard to find.

Oregon has so many ghost towns because of its history as a frontier state. Many pioneers moved to the area in the 1800s. A lot of these ghost towns were once busy mining camps or lumber towns. When the mines ran out of gold or the lumber industry slowed down, people left to find work elsewhere, and the towns became empty.

This list includes towns and communities that are considered ghost towns. Some are completely abandoned, while others might have a very small number of people still living there. Some might only have a few old buildings left, but they are still called ghost towns.

Types of Ghost Towns
Oregon's Ghost Towns
Images for kids
See also

Types of Ghost Towns

People who study ghost towns often use a system to sort them into different types. This system helps describe what's left of a ghost town. Here are the main types:

Type	What You Might Find There
A	There are no clear signs left of the old town. Sometimes, you might find a marker or a cemetery.
B	You can see old, broken-down buildings or parts of buildings, along with some rubble.
C	No one lives here, but the buildings are mostly still standing. They might even be looked after to keep them from falling apart.
D	A few people might live here, and there are old buildings (some in good shape, some not). There might also be a cemetery, but it's not a busy town anymore.
E	This type of town still has a small number of people and some historic buildings. However, it's much smaller and quieter than it was in its busiest days.

Oregon's Ghost Towns

Here is a list of some of Oregon's ghost towns. You'll see when they were started, which county they are in, and what type of ghost town they are.

Town	Est.	County	Type	Notes
Airlie	1882	Polk	D	The railroad left in 1927, but a general store and gas station kept the community going for a while.
Ajax	1888	Gilliam	B
Andrews	1880	Harney	C	The town became a ghost town when it burned down in 1996. An artist later moved into the old school.
Anlauf	1901	Douglas	D	The original family home was sold and later torn down when a freeway was built.
Antelope	1871	Wasco	D	Many original residents left when a religious group moved in and changed the town.
Apiary	1889	Columbia	D	New roads were built, and parts of the old road to Apiary were no longer used.
Ashwood	c. 1870	Jefferson	C
Auburn	1861	Baker	B	This was the site of the first gold rush in eastern Oregon.
Aurora	1858	Marion	E	Started as the Aurora Colony. It still has some people living there today.
Austin	1888	Grant	B
Ballston	1878	Polk	D	Founded by Isaac Ball, who came to Oregon in 1848. It was first called "Ballsville."
Bayocean	1906	Tillamook	A	This town was destroyed by ocean waves and erosion. The last house fell into the sea in 1960.
Beaver Hill	1896	Coos	A
Bethel	1865	Polk	D
Blalock	1879	Gilliam	A	This town was covered by water when the John Day Dam was built in 1968.
Blitzen	c. 1915	Harney	B
Bohemia	1893	Lane	B
Boston	1858	Linn	D	Part of this town was taken over by the nearby town of Shedd in 1899.
Bourne	1895	Baker	B
Boyd	1861	Wasco	C	The area is now used as farmland.
Bridal Veil	1886	Multnomah	D
Buena Vista	1850	Polk	D
Bull Run	1893	Clackamas	D	It was first called Unavilla. The power plant here was abandoned in 2008.
Buncom	1851	Jackson	C
Burlington	1854	Linn	A	This town was abandoned after 1874.
Butteville	1840	Marion	D
Cabell City	1880s	Grant	B	This was a mining camp and still has a cemetery.
Cascadia	c. 1898	Linn	C
Champoeg	1841	Marion	D
Cherryville	1884	Clackamas	D	Its cemetery was made a local historic site in 2014.
Chitwood	1887	Lincoln	D
Clifton	1874	Clatsop	D
Copper	1924	Jackson	A	Buildings were torn down or flooded to create Applegate Lake.
Copper	1904	Wallowa	Unknown
Copperfield	1898	Baker	A
Cornucopia	1884	Baker	C
Danner	1863	Malheur	C
Dee	1906	Hood River	B
DeMoss	1897	Sherman	C
Divide	1900	Lane	A
Dufur	1893	Wasco	E
Early	1902	Sherman	A
Elk City	1868	Lincoln	D	It was originally named Newton.
Ellendale	1850	Polk	D
Eola	1844	Polk	D
Erskine	1882	Sherman	A
Eureka	1892	Baker	B
Eureka Bar	1903	Wallowa	B	Only building foundations remained in 2015.
Fargher	c. 1878	Wasco	D
Flora	1897	Wallowa	D
Fort Clatsop	1804	Clatsop	C
Fort Stevens	1863	Clatsop	C
Frankport	1850s	Curry	A
Friend	1903	Wasco	C
Galena	1865	Grant	C
Geneva	1910	Jefferson	A
Golden	c. 1840	Josephine	C
Gordon	1896	Sherman	A
Gorman	1892	Sherman	A
Granite	1867	Grant	D
Greenback	1897	Josephine	B
Greenhorn	1897	Baker, Grant	C
Greenville	1871	Washington	D
Hardman	1881	Morrow	D
Horse Heaven	1933	Jefferson	B
Hoskins	1856	Benton	A	Founded where Fort Hoskins used to be.
Izee	1889	Grant	D
Jawbone Flats	1931	Marion	C
Jimtown	1904	Baker	D
Kent	1887	Sherman	D
Kerby	c. 1884	Josephine	E
Kernville	1896	Lincoln	D
Kings Valley	1855	Benton	D
Kinton	1894	Washington	D
Kinzua	1927	Wheeler	A
Klondike	1899	Sherman	B
Lamonta	1890	Jefferson	A	It was first named Desert.
Latourell	1876	Multnomah	D
Lime	1899	Baker	B	This was the site of an old lime cement factory.
Locust Grove	1895	Sherman	B
Lonerock	1881	Gilliam	D
Luper	1850	Lane	C
McCoy	1879	Polk	B
McDonald	1904	Sherman	A	Only modern ranch buildings remain at this old river crossing site.
McEwen	1891	Baker	D
Mabel	1878	Lane	C
Malheur City	1863	Malheur	A	All wooden buildings were destroyed in a 1957 fire, leaving only stone parts.
Marysville	1848	Benton		This town was taken over by Corvallis.
Mayville	1884	Gilliam	D
Medical Springs	1868	Union	D	In 2014, three buildings were still standing.
Miller	c. 1860	Sherman	A
Millican	1913	Deschutes	D
Mitchell	1873	Wheeler	E
Monkland	1886	Sherman	A
Narrows	1889	Harney	A
Nelson	1880s	Baker	A	A lime cement factory was located here from 1979 to 1980.
New Era	1876	Clackamas	D	This is also where the New Era Spiritual Camp is located.
Nolin	1860s	Umatilla	D	It was first named Happy Canyon.
Nonpareil	1882	Douglas	D
Orleans	1850	Linn	A	This town was badly damaged in the Great Flood of 1862.
Ordnance	1943	Umatilla	B
Orodell	1867	Union	A
Ortley	1911	Wasco	A
Paisley	1873	Lake	E
Persist	1902	Jackson	Unknown
Pinehurst	1878	Jackson	D	A public school was still open here in 2017.
Pittsburg	1879	Columbia	D
Placer	1885	Josephine	D
Pocahontas	1862	Baker	A
Pondosa	1927	Union	D
Richmond	1899	Wheeler	B
Robinette	1898	Baker	A	This town was flooded by Brownlee Reservoir in 1958.
Rock Point	1852	Jackson	C	An old tavern from 1864 was restored in 2001.
Rosebush		Sherman	A
Rutledge	1884	Sherman	A
Saint Joseph	1872	Yamhill	D
Sanger	1871	Baker	D	It was first named Augusta, then changed to Sanger in 1887.
Scottsburg	1850	Douglas	D	The population dropped a lot after the Great Flood of 1862.
Shaniko	1901	Wasco	D
Shelburn	c. 1850	Linn	D
Sherar's Bridge	1860	Sherman	A
Southport	c. 1875	Coos	A
Sparta	1872	Baker	B
Sterlingville	1854	Jackson	A
Sumpter	1889	Baker	E
Susanville	1864	Grant	B
Thatcher	1895	Washington	D
Thornberry	1916	Sherman	A
Tiller	1902	Douglas	C	The town was sold in 2018 to be turned into a resort.
Valsetz	1919	Polk	A
Waldo	1852	Josephine	A
Wendling	1899	Lane	A
Westfall	1870	Malheur	B	It was first named Bully.
Whitney	1900	Baker	C
Yaquina	1887	Lincoln	A
Zena	1858	Polk	C
Zumwalt	1903	Wallowa	B