Ghost towns are most commonly found in a belt running across the south of the USA from  Texas to California. The basic story  behind each town is similar - gold, silver or minerals found in the 19th century created a boom town until either the mines became exhausted or prices dropped, the mines then closed and everyone moved away leaving behind a ghost town. The best are in places remote enough to protect them from looting until the historical value of the town is recognised. The ghost towns that we have visited in Texas are OK, but not preserved as well as others that we have seen in elsewhere in the USA.

Terlingua Ghost Town

Abandoned Adobe buildings over time melt back into the desert, so there may be less of these ruins now than there was in 1997. Terlingua was originally a Mexican village on a creek of the same name. In the mid 1880s quicksilver was discovered and the Marfa and Mariposa mine was started. Over time the Marfa and Mariposa mining camp became known as Terlingua. Quicksilver production grew and the population of Terlingua did likewise, reaching around 1000 by 1913. Production peaked during the First World War but inter war decline resulted in cessation of operations at the end of the Second World War.

 Post Office, Shafter Ghost Town

The town of Shafter was, of course, named after Col. William R. Shafter and by 1900 it had a population of 110. The mines opened and closed many times, driven by the price of silver, but production finally ceased in 1942. By then Shafter had a population of around 1500 although it was local army bases rather than the mines that had driven the more recent population growth. When the army bases closed after the Second World War the population of Shafter plummeted down to only a handful of people. A few families still live in the area which  has kept the Post Office going, but most of the buildings are as derelict as the Gas Station shown above.

Old wagon, Terlingua Ghost Town

As always, when the mines closed the population moved on, leaving Terlingua as a Ghost Town. Old mine buildings and ruined houses abound and even an old wooden wagon. However Terlingua is not totally dead. Tourists heading for the nearby Big Bend National Park have provided a living for a population of around 25. The town has become famous for its annual Chili Cook-off and has even been awarded the title “Chili Capital of the World”.

Ghost Towns

Gas Station, Shafter Ghost Town

“Stop Motor. No Smoking” reads the sign at this ghostly Gas Station. In 1880 John W Spencer discovered silver ore at Shafter. Spencer showed the ore to Col. William R. Shafter at Fort Davis who bought the land in conjunction with  two partners from the army. Spencer was made a partner although he did not participate in the land transactions. So, Shafter and his partners had some land rich in silver ore, all they lacked was money and expertise to recover the silver. They turned to a Californian mining group who swapped their land for shares in the company, although one partner dissented resulting in a long battle though the courts before mining could start on part of the site.

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Grapetown School & Teacher's House

Ghost towns are most often found in mining areas, towns that boomed when the mine boomed  then died when the mine closed down. To the west of Austin near to the German town of Fredericksburg, there are a couple of ghost towns whose rise and fall lies in ranching rather than mining. Grapetown dates from 1848 when John Hemphill settled alongside the road between Fredericksburg and San Antonio. Over the next six years a further eight settlers joined him. In 1859 Friedrich Doebbler opened the first school in his house and the following year he opened  the Doebbler's Inn. This cattle ranching settlement was beginning to turn into a town. About 1870 a dedicated subscription school was built then in 1884 a stone school house was opened complete with a teachers house alongside it. The  Fredericksburg and Northern Railway arrived in 1913 but the first signs of decline appeared only 2 years later when the Doebbler's Inn closed. Highway 87 linking Fredericksburg to San Antonio was built in 1932 and it ran through Comfort to the west of Grapetown. The diversion of traffic away from Grapetown accelerated its decline. In 1948 reorganisation of local schools resulted in the closure of Grapetown school.  Although there are still working ranches in the area, Grapetown disappeared apart for the school house, teacher’s house and cemetery. Click Tab 2 to see Grapetown Cemetery.

Abandoned Morris Ranch Hotel, near Fredericksburg

To the west of Fredericksburg is a ranch community that died. The Morris Ranch was set up in 1856 by New Yorker Francis Morris to breed thoroughbred racing horses. He had not done much to develop it when he died in 1886 but his son John A. Morris invested heavily in the ranch and turned it into a self contained community complete with school, general store, post office  and hotel. The demise of the ranch was caused by anti-gambling legislation introduced in several states in the 1890s, including New York and New Jersey. Demand for thoroughbred horses slumped so they were sold and in 1902 the ranch was subdivided into small tenant cotton farms.  The self contained community that served the ranch became redundant and gradually the buildings were abandoned. The post office closed in 1954 and the school closed in 1962.

© Mike  Elsden 1981 - 2025

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