The Remnants Of This Arizona Ghost Town Are As Intriguing As Its History
By Monica Spencer|Published July 15, 2017
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Monica Spencer
Author
Monica is a Diné (Navajo) freelance writer and photographer based in the Southwest. Born in Gallup and raised in Phoenix, she is Tódich'ii'nii (Bitter Water People) and Tsi'naajinii (Black Streak Wood People). Monica is a staff writer for Only In Your State, photo editor for The Mesa Legend, and previously a staff writer for The Navajo Post. You can reach her at monica.d.spencer@gmail.com.
When traveling through Arizona, it’s not uncommon to stumble across long abandoned places. Each one is weather beaten and slowly disintegrating under the desert sun. Another thing they have in common? Intriguing stories and remnants that help embellish those tales with evidence of what once existed there.
Nothing, Arizona is one such place. Located on the lonely road between Wikieup and Wickenburg, this little ghost town was barely a town at all.
When it was established in 1977 by a group of four friends, Nothing had a mere two buildings: one a gas station with a garage and the other a small roadside market.
Caroline Donahue/Flickr
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Probably due to its remote location, the "town" was abandoned by 2005 and slowly began to succumb to the Arizona desert. However, in 2009, the property was purchased and life returned to Nothing.
That spark of life was brief yet hopeful. The new owners cleared away trash and debris, began restoring the old store, and sold pizza from a food truck.
Unfortunately, within a year, there once again was nothing in Nothing and the population returned to zero. The new owners closed up shop, took down signs, and gated the area with a fence.
Today, what’s left of the town still sits abandoned and crumbling. The fence is gone so you can wander around the area to see what’s left and a lot of people do.
The old garage is long gone, the store has been gutted with doors and windows missing, and its walls are covered in graffiti. Debris and items once standing on the property litter the ground.
Have you been to Nothing, Arizona before? Do you remember what it was like in the days before the Internet? We would love to hear your experiences and memories!
