Because of the silence, the ruins of a long-gone way of life, and a general sense of desolation, an abandoned town can be extremely creepy. Certainly, Alabama is home to a number of communities that were once prosperous but have since lost their luster…as well as their inhabitants.
If you’re looking for a good scare or two, this is the place to go. In Alabama, there are numerous small towns with no residents that have been abandoned for a long time. There are numerous ghost towns that are both eerie and intriguing to visit, and they are all well worth your time.
Here is a list of the most fascinating ghost towns in Alabama, arranged in a particular order.
1. Cahaba
Cahaba served as the state capital of Alabama for a period of time between 1819 and 1826. It was also a thriving town at the time. Cahaba was a ghost town for a short period of time following the American Civil War. Unfortunately, much of Old Cahaba has been reclaimed by nature.
2. Arcola
There is a ghost town called Arcola in Alabama’s Hale County, which was formerly Marengo County, and was founded in the early 1820s on the Black Warrior River. Arcola’s first settler, Frederic Ravesies, made his home on what would later be dubbed the Hatch Plantation.
Settlers continued to move into the area in the 1830s in order to take advantage of Arcola’s river landing. An adjacent plantation took its place as a settlement in the 1850s.
3. Center dale
It stood atop a limestone bluff overlooking the Tombigbee River when the original St. Stephens was founded, and it remained there until it was abandoned. St. Stephens is located around 70 miles north of Mobile and served as the state capital of Alabama between 1817 and 1819, when Cahaba became the official state capital in 1819.
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4. Chandler Springs
Blakeley, Alabama, is a ghost town in Baldwin County that was the site of a major fort during the American Civil War. Blakeley was founded in 1813 and is now a ghost town. In 1974, the National Register of Historic Places recognized the significance of this popular ghost town.
5. Fort Gaines
Located on Dauphin Island, Fort Gaines is a historic fort that was constructed in 1821 and is best known for its participation in the Battle of Mobile Bay during the American Civil War. This historic fort is one of the best-preserved masonry fortifications from the Civil War era in the United States.
Fort Gaines has grown into a popular tourist destination, and the grounds include original cannons, a blacksmith shop, kitchens, a museum, gift shop, and a few tunnels, among other things.
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6. Cedric
At present the old community is owned privately. This old town is situated in northeastern Chambers County, about 3 to 4 miles to the southeast of Roanoke. Known as “jug towns” this small town used to produce valuable potteries. Also, a famous potter Joseph Rushton and his wife used to live near Cedric.
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7. St. Stephens
It stood atop a limestone bluff overlooking the Tombigbee River when the original St. Stephens was founded, and it remained there until it was abandoned. St. Stephens is located around 70 miles north of Mobile and served as the state capital of Alabama between 1817 and 1819, when Cahaba became the official state capital in 1819.
8. Riverton
Pickwick Landing Dam was constructed in the 1930s and completely destroyed the town of Riverton in Colbert County, Alabama. Riverton was an old trading center that was completely destroyed. It is now completely submerged, and the only thing that remains of the town is a cemetery.
9. Bellfonte
Located near the site of the Bellefonte Nuclear Generating Station in Jackson County, Alabama, Bellefonte is a ghost town that has been abandoned for many years. From 1821 to 1859, it served as the county seat of Jackson County.
The town suffered a great deal during the American Civil War, and by the 1920s, it had been completely abandoned by the Union Army. There are only a few things left standing in Bellefonte today, including the cemetery, the chimney of the local inn, and a few piles of bricks.
10. Prairie Bluff
A ghost town in Wilcox County, Alabama, Prairie Bluff first appeared on maps in 1819 and has remained a ghost town ever since. In the same year that Alabama was admitted to the Union as a state, this event occurred. When Prairie Bluff was no longer visible on maps, it was around 1900.
As the river trade continued to grow, the town’s population continued to increase. Prairie Bluff was at its zenith in the year 1861. Unfortunately, the introduction of new railroads following the American Civil War caused significant damage to the town.
It was also extremely difficult to complete the construction of the Millers Ferry Lock and Dam in 1963. In today’s world, the Prairie Bluff Cemetery is all that is left of the once-thriving community.
To conclude, if you enjoy exploring abandoned and forgotten, yet beautiful places that ghost town embodies, you should definitely check out these ghost towns in Alabama.