Oregon Ghost Towns
Embark on a fascinating tour of Oregon's most fascinating ghost towns, mining camps, fishing villages, lumber towns, and historic forts!
With 18 officially designated "ghost towns" still on the map, Oregon is reported to more ghost towns than any other state.
Tour these once-thriving communities and relive the optimism of the explorers and settlers who journeyed in pursuit of the American dream.
1.
Eastern Oregon
The gold rush of the late 19th century sprouted many towns and settlements across the majestic plains of Eastern Oregon.
Auburn: A gold mining town about four miles west of US 30 at a point seven miles southeast of Baker City. Accessible via four-wheel drive road. (more)
Bourne: This old town is seven miles north of Sumpter, along Cracker Creek. Sumpter is on SH 7, 20 miles northwest of Salisbury and West of Baker City in the Blue Mountains. (more)
Cornucopia: Some 20 million dollars in gold came from this wild and wooly gold mining town full of shootings, saloons and "sporting" ladies.(more)
Granite: A late 1800s gold mining town that once had 5000 people. It is 15 miles northwest of Sumpter, in the northeastern corner of the county about 45 miles out of Baker City. (more)
Greenback: Early 1900s placer mining company town, on a winding dirt road three miles north of Placer. (more)
Hardman: A travel center and agricultural ghost on Oregon's eastern grasslands. It is located on SH 207, nine miles south of Ruggs and 20 south of Heppner. (more)
Horse Haven: Early 1900s-1930s mercury mining town east of Ashwood. (more)
Sumpter: Tucked away in the trees and nestled in Oregon's Elkhorn Mountain Range, lies the historic gold mining town of Sumpter. (more)
2.
Central Oregon
Antelope: A 1860s mining supply center on SH 218, about 80 miles south of The Dalles.(more)
Ashwood: Early 1900s gold mining camp. (more)
Boyd: This is an 1870s milling town/shipping center just east of US 197 about 12 miles south of The Dalles. (more)
Shantiko: An early 1900s wool shipping center on US 97, in north-central Oregon's high grasslands, 36 miles north of Madras, and 58 miles south of Biggs. (more)
3.
Southern Oregon
Jacksonville: While Jacksonville is not necessaily a "ghost town" in the practical sense of the term, it is stil technically designated as such due its population being much smaller than during its boom. (more)
Kerby: This former gold mining town is on US 199, five miles south of Selma. (more)
Placer: Early 1900s gold mining town on a four-wheel-drive road northeast of Grants Pass and about four miles east of I-5.(more)