No One Knows Exactly When This Almost Abandoned Ghost Town in Virginia Was Founded

As one of the original colonies, the Commonwealth of Virginia is full of fascinating history. Like anywhere, some of the stories here have happier endings than others. Take, for example, the partial ghost town of Pamplin, Virginia, where much of the commercial district sits abandoned. Fear not, though: This hardscrabble community may be a little down, but it's certainly not out.

If you love creepy content, Only In Your State’s Vacant series – which partners with talented photographer Johnny Joo – explores a dozen other fascinating abandoned places just waiting to be discovered. 

Editor’s Note: Due to the nature of abandoned destinations, many of the places featured in this series are off-limits to visitors or have actually been demolished. We do not condone trespassing and other illegal activity but rather encourage readers to enjoy learning about these fascinating destinations.

Nobody knows for sure when Pamplin became a settlement. Public records show that a town called Merriman's Shop - after local resident and storeowner Thomas Merriman - popped up in the 1820s, or perhaps earlier. The town was renamed Pamplin City in 1854, but many of the area's structures date back to the 1700s. So, it's pretty safe to assume that Pamplin has been around, in some form or another, since the 18th century. And it's definitely seen better days.

A prosperous 19th century community, Pamplin's economic backbone was the railroad after the tracks were laid in the 1850s. Sitting at the intersection of the Norfolk and Western rail lines, the town was a frequent stopping off point for travelers. This led to a tidy and bustling downtown business district and a spike in the community's population.

If the town's economic spine was the railroad, it's heart was a factory that made clay smoking pipes. The factory opened around 1880 and was, at one point, the largest producer of such pipes in the world. At its busiest, the factory was sending more than a million Pamplin Pipes a month down the line.

But with the advent of cars, rail travel dwindled, and by the 1930s, passenger service to Pamplin had ceased. Smoking habits changed, too, creating challenges for the pipe factory. It was sold at auction in 1938, shifting its focus toward novelty pipes, but by 1952, the business had dissolved altogether. The combined loss of rail travelers and manufacturing jobs rang a death knell for Pamplin's economy; and it's population began to drift away.

Pamplin has seen better days, but it's not dead - a little light still shines on the folks who live there. The pipe factory and other buildings were listed on the National Register of Historic Places. And in 2012, the town became a gateway community for one of Virginia's newest parks: High Bridge Trail State Park. You'll still find regular events at the Pamplin Train Depot, and plenty of celebrations take place throughout the year, including the Pamplin Christmas Parade and Craft Market and the annual Celebrate Pamplin! festival. You can even immerse yourself in the town's history with a stay at this rustic and historic bungalow. Did you know about Pamplin, VA? Have you visited? Let us know in the comments!

Special thanks to Cleveland-based photographer Johnny Joo of Odd World Studio for the photos used in this article. To discover more creepy and abandoned places, check out his website, Architectural Afterlife.