: Hardman ghost town by Daniel Ter-Nedden/GhostTownGallery.com

The Secrets of Oregon’s Ghost Towns

Stay in a ghost-town hotel, reopened after 16 years.
September 29, 2017 (Updated September 7, 2023)
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Oregon’s frontier history is a series of booms and busts. It’s no wonder some have alleged that the state has more ghost towns than any other. And while it’s nearly impossible to prove a statement like that true, it’s a fact that dozens of once lively and now abandoned communities dot the landscape — specters of America’s restless heart, shadow monuments to the West’s dreamy-eyed ambition.

“Shifting economics and transportation are what create ghost towns,” says Ian Johnson, who works at the State Historic Preservation Office. “If you’re the town that gets bypassed when a railroad goes in, you’re out of luck.”

The state’s varied ghost towns hold secrets of the speculators, gold miners, traders and Oregon Trail pioneers who once called them home — each decaying community humming its own unique swan song.

Classifications of these ghost towns vary widely (no official system exists), but most experts agree on three main categories: “True” ghost towns have zero permanent inhabitants, “partial” ghost towns have lost the majority of their populations and “tourist” ghost towns have changed their purpose entirely while retaining much of the historic character of their economic heyday.

“Ghost towns are like time capsules,” Johnson adds. “People who visit them see much of how those people lived in a way that archival documents just can’t capture.”

Visiting ghost towns is the ultimate Oregon history road trip. You’ll find the lion’s share in Central, Eastern and Southern Oregon, where you can visit full-fledged Wild West relics set up for tourism, like Shaniko, as well as ghostlier “true” ghost towns, like Golden. Here’s a rundown of some of the state’s most fascinating ghost towns.

 

“Ghost towns are like time capsules,” says Ian Johnson. “People who visit them see much of how those people lived in a way that archival documents just can’t capture.”

By Greg Vaughn

Sumpter
Eastern Oregon

Named after South Carolina’s Fort Sumter, Sumpter is a former mining boomtown. Built around a historic gold dredge (now a designated state heritage area), the town is home to 200 and has a new mission as a place where tourists can legally pan for gold and experience a reenacted train robbery. Many buildings burned in the devastating fire of 1917, which is said to have killed several miners and left hundreds of other residents homeless. You can also visit four nearby ghost towns: Granite, Bourne, Greenhorn and Whitney.

By Daniel Ter-Nedden/GhostTownGallery.com

Shaniko
Central Oregon

Once touted as the “Wool Capital of the World,” Shaniko survives as a living ghost town with a year-round population of 30. Of all of Oregon’s mostly abandoned boomtowns, Shaniko saw one of the most dramatic declines. Today, run-down cars, a darling schoolhouse and annual events make it a tourist-friendly place. As of August 2023, the Historic Shaniko Hotel has reopened to guests after 16 years, with 18 uniquely appointed rooms and one elegantly appointed master suite. Guests can enjoy the views, walk around town, have a meal at the on-site cafe and play cards in the parlor lodge.

By Tim LaBarge

Jawbone Flats
Willamette Valley

Set amid the Opal Creek Wilderness, the onetime mining town of Jawbone Flats may be ground zero for old-growth forest wanderers, but it is also a fun destination for history buffs, gear heads and anyone who wants to understand Oregon’s twin magnetic pulls of environmentalism and industry. Abandoned mining equipment and corroding old vehicles rest here, decaying with each passing year.

By Daniel Ter-Nedden/GhostTownGallery.com

Hardman
Eastern Oregon

Formed from the merging of towns called Raw Dog and Yellow Dog, Hardman lived hard and died fast as a favorite stopping point for stagecoaches. But it still has a couple dozen great structures to admire, as well as a kind and welcoming year-round populace of about 20. Sites include an old lodge listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

By Larry Myhre / Flickr

Buncom
Southern Oregon

Located 16 miles south of Jacksonville, perhaps Oregon’s best-preserved Wild West town, Buncom is a completely uninhabited, old gold-mining camp that gets flooded with people each May for Buncom Day, a festival created to raise money for its continued preservation.

By Daniel Ter-Nedden/GhostTownGallery.com

Galena
Eastern Oregon

Tucked in the Malheur National Forest and Eastern Oregon’s Blue Mountains, Galena is certainly out of the way, but the scenic drive there makes the trip worthwhile. You’ll follow U.S. Route 20 as it winds along Elk Creek to abandoned homesteads and other ghostly structures, the only remaining signs of this 1860s mining community.

By Richard Bauer / Flickr

Millican
Central Oregon

Perhaps Central Oregon’s creepiest ghost town, Millican had a population that sunk to zero after its last inhabitant was murdered in 1988. Now home to just a handful of people, it has an old gas station and store, and it falls into the category of mid-20th-century ghost towns.

By Bill Edwards

Golden
Southern Oregon

Founded as a mining camp on Coyote Creek amid the 1840s gold rush, Golden benefits from its strong on-site interpretive signs, a charming 1890s church and an uncommonly picturesque setting — even for ghost towns. Golden has four remaining buildings that crumble with time, and the entire town is now on the National Register of Historic Places.


If You Go: Ghost Town Etiquette

Oregon’s ghost towns are often located in remote corners of the state, so be sure to review your route for possible closures and inclement weather on TripCheck.com. When you visit a ghost town, make sure you leave only with photographs. Just because a town may look abandoned doesn’t mean it actually is. A small number of people still live among these crumbling relics, and many ghost towns are actually on private property. Thankfully, locals are usually willing to answer questions and possibly show you around. Keep in mind that debris gathers around ghost towns. Pulling boards, artifacts or other materials is illegal. Engage with ghost towns as you would with the wilderness: Pack in, pack out and leave no trace.

About The
Author

Emily Grosvenor
Emily Grosvenor is the editor of Oregon Home magazine and author of Find Yourself at Home: A Conscious Approach to Shaping Your Space and Your Life.