This Haunting Road Trip Through Utah Ghost Towns Is One You Won’t Forget
When the weather is decent, it is the perfect time to explore the Beehive State. Why not take a ghost town road trip in Utah to see some of the remnants of our state’s Wild West history? These ten towns are perfect for exploring and photography…and a few of them might just send chills up your spine.
Utah is full of cool ghost towns, and we wanted to design a trip that you could reasonably do in 1-2 days, so this trip just covers some of the towns in southern Utah – we’ll create another ghost town road trip for the northern part of the state soon!
For the full road trip details, check out this Google map and route we’ve prepared for you.
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Google notes that this trip is over 14 hours long, so clearly you'll want to plan it over a few days so that you'll have time to explore each town and the many cool places nearby.
The little ghost towns of Sego, Cisco and Thompson Springs are just about five miles apart, so you can easily see all three. The towns were founded in the 1880s and were both involved in coal mining. Sego’s population declined during the 1930s; Thompson Springs still had about 40 residents during the 2010 U.S. Census.
Cisco was an important stop for the railroads - both for refueling the trains and the people (via the saloon). Like many towns in the area, when I-70 was built, traffic was diverted away from the area.
Sulpherdale was founded in 1870 thanks to a large deposit of sulpher ore in the area. The town once included many homes, a school and mining offices (an abandoned mining office is pictured here). Sulpher production started decreasing in the 1940s, and by the 1970s, Sulpherdale was a ghost town.
Widtsoe was only in existence from 1908 to about 1936. In the 1910s, the town thrived briefly with hotels, a church, schools, shops and sawmills. The drought in 1920 had significant impact on the town, as did the relocation of the Forest Service office in 1925. In 1936, the Resettlement Administration bought out the remaining families.
In the 1870s, Paria (also called Pahreah) was home to about 47 families. The town had a general store and church and many homes. Unfortunately, the Paria river flooded regularly, destroying property and crops. After many such floods, most families moved out. The post office shuttered its doors in 1914.
Grafton is popular with photographers and is one of the most well-known ghost towns in the West. It was founded in 1859, but farming was difficult. Frequent flooding and Indian attacks led to the abandonment of the town. Starting in 1997, the Grafton Heritage Partnership began renovating several buildings in Grafton. You can visit the church, cemetery and several homes.
Harrisburg had a short, tragic history. Originally founded as Harrisville in 1859, the town was flooded in 1869 and moved farther north up Quail Creek. The new town, Harrisburg, also flooded. Indian attacks and a locust plague finished the town off by 1895. Several stone houses, including the Orson Adams Home (pictured here) still stand.
Old Iron Town (also called Iron City), had a brief history. It was founded in 1868, and was vacated by 1876. Ruins include a charcoal oven, portions of the original foundry and some building foundations.
Frisco was once a thriving silver-mining town with over 6,000 residents. The town was founded in 1879, and quickly boomed. It was known for its wild, unlawful residents (the 23 saloons in town probably didn’t help). Homicides were a common occurrence in the mid-1880s. In February, 1885 the silver mine collapsed. Most people moved out shortly thereafter. By 1929 the town was completely abandoned.
Many places in Utah are said to be haunted by a paranormal presence. The Rio Grande Depot is just one of the places in Salt Lake City where strange happenings occur. At the This Is The Place Monument, the pink farmhouse is haunted by several spirits. Ann Eliza Webb was particularly unhappy with the Church and Young’s teachings. Another spirit, Lucy Ann Decker, is said to be a bit more kind. There are haunted hotels in Utah, too – the Silver Fork Lodge at Brighton is one of the most haunted places in the state.
Can I visit any abandoned places in Utah?
Luckily, thanks to the Bureau of Land Management and National Parks Service, many of Utah’s abandoned towns are open to visitors. While some may be tucked away in other monuments or regions – like Paria, in Grand Staircase-Escalante, many can also be found off the beaten path. If you head out to explore abandoned spots in Utah, be sure you’re prepared with a plan and emergency supplies, and that you leave no trace of your visit.
What are the creepiest cemeteries in Utah?
One of the spookiest graveyards in the Beehive State is the Logan Cemetery. Visit at midnight during a full moon and you may see the Weeping Woman statue cry. Many of our ghost towns have eerie pioneer cemeteries, and the Ogden City Cemetery is haunted by the young spirit of Florence Grange. At the Aultorest Memorial Park, some graves stay warm all year long, and even snow melts off in the winter.
Address: Sego, UT 84540, USA
Address: Cisco, UT 84540, USA
Address: Sulphurdale, UT 84713, USA
Address: Widtsoe, UT 84712, USA
Address: Paria, UT, USA
Address: Grafton, UT 84767, USA
Address: Harrisburg, Hurricane, UT 84737, USA
Address: Modena, UT 84753, USA
Address: Old Irontown, UT 84720, USA
Address: Frisco, UT, USA
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Writer, editor and researcher with a passion for exploring new places. Catherine loves local bookstores, independent films, and spending time with her family, including Gus the golden retriever, who is a very good boy.
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