We Dare You To Take This Road Trip To Arkansas’s Most Abandoned Places
Congratulations! In a few hours, you’ll have made it through another work week. That kind of five day persistence, week after week, deserves some kind of relaxing trip, don’t you think? For this Friday, I’ve concocted a special road trip that will take you far away from your modern house and the fast-food-lined streets of your town. These six places are some of the most abandoned places in Arkansas, and on this trip you’ll find solitude and a way to step back in time, to when things were simpler.
There is something else I need to say about this trip before you pack the car. At this juncture, I’d like to remind every single one of you that you are not Indiana Jones, and trespassing is illegal. So as much as you’d like to perform tricks with your amazing whip skills, defeat the Nazis with a plucky group of misfits, and find amazing treasure in these abandoned places, neither Only In Your State, nor its Arkansas Writer, J.B. Weisenfels, condones the activity of trespassing. If you feel like you’re about to disobey a sign about trespassing, please repeat to yourself, “I am not Indiana Jones, and trespassing is illegal,” until you change your mind.
We’re aware that these uncertain times are limiting many aspects of life. While we continue to feature destinations that make our state wonderful, please take proper precautions or add them to your bucket list to see at a later date. If you know of a local business that could use some extra support during these times, please nominate them here: onlyinyourstate.com/nominate
East Calico Rock is the only authentic ghost town in the United States located entirely within the city limits of another town. You’ll find more than 20 buildings to tour there and a map that describes their significance. Calico Rock grew away from the ghost town that exists today, giving the community a truly unique ghost town that everyone should see.
Rush is probably the best known ghost town in Arkansas. This mining community was the second biggest city in the Natural State during its heyday, and it went bust after the zinc mines dried up. Set against the intense greenery of the Ozarks, Rush is a piece of history being absorbed into the forest.
I’ll be honest and tell you guys that from the time I first heard that someone was building a replica of a 13th-century French castle using methods from the 13th-century, I was beside myself with excitement. My little nerd heart grew 13 sizes that day. Unfortunately, the project went bankrupt and has since been abandoned. What that leaves us with, though, is the ruin of a medieval fortress right here in the Ozarks.
Dinosaur World was a T-Rex sized attraction from 1967 until 2005, when it closed its gates forever. What remains is a park being reclaimed by nature, and it’s pretty incredible.
At this point I’d like to reiterate that neither Only In Arkansas nor its intrepid writer condone the activity of trespassing, so please enjoy this one from the road. If necessary, take several deep breaths and repeat your mantra for this trip: "I am not Indiana Jones, and trespassing is illegal."
The resort town of Monte Ne is under Beaver Lake, and when the water is very low, you can spot the ruins of many structures. The part that’s almost always entirely above the water line is the tower pictured above, called Oklahoma Row. It’s been badly vandalized, but it’s still standing strong, and it's an incredible place to visit.
I’m going to admit that I’m not one who gets creeped out easily. I love horror movies and stories and I don’t need a nightlight after they’re over. This place, however, is the one place I find creepy on this list. I suppose it’s something about the fact that people suffered and died there that really gets me. This sanitorium once housed so many people it grew to be something like a small city back in the day, but it has been left to decay since its closure in 1973. Pictured above is the abandoned dairy barn on the property.
To find more abandoned places in Arkansas, click here.
J.B. Weisenfels has lived in rural Arkansas for three decades. She is a writer, a mom, and a graduate student. She is also an avid collector of tacky fish whatnots, slightly chipped teapots, and other old things. In her spare time she enjoys driving to the nearest creek to sit a while. If you were to visit her, she'd try to feed you cornbread.
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