5 Oklahoma Ghost Towns That Will Scare Your Pants Off
Spooky Season is upon us! And what better way to celebrate than exploring creepy abandoned towns that are rumored to be haunted?
Oklahoma has a ton of ghost towns thanks to the oil boom, land run, and natural disasters. But now, some of the creepier towns have become tourist attractions to some degree.
Picher, OK
Why not start with the creepiest ghost town in Oklahoma of all? It will be like watching a scary movie and then watching a funny one before you go to sleep so you don’t dwell on the scary parts.
About 100 years ago, Picher was a thriving lead and zinc mining community. I wonder what happened to it. Kidding. We all know lead is poison so it’s no wonder this place was shut down.
The mining and discarding of lead eventually resulted in the town being evacuated and the township dissolved.
Not only was the town affected by lead poisoning (and cave-in risks due to the mining), an EF4 tornado in 2008 was the nail in the coffin for Picher, Oklahoma.
Today, you can explore abandoned the town (at your own risk), and even attend the annual (I’m not even kidding) “Coming Home for Christmas Parade”.
Beer City
This ghost town in Oklahoma, at its peak, lived up to its name. In the late 1800s, its main business was selling whiskey and beer at saloons and dance halls. At the time, it was part of “No Man’s Land” now known as the Oklahoma Panhandle. Because it wasn’t under a governing body until 1890, it was literally and figuratively the Wild West. Saloons at the time of prohibition, brothels, and gambling. It was heaven for outlaws.
During my research for this blog, one reference cited the strict Kansas prohibition saying “Cowboys and cattle dealers wanted their liquor and women after a long drive…” which really paints a picture.
Today, Beer City is just a field of wheat. Very un-criminal.
Ingalls
You can’t talk about Oklahoma ghost towns without talking about some pretty famous outlaws. The Doolin-Dalton Gang (or my favorite nickname for them: The Oklahombres), set up shop in Ingalls, Oklahoma, spending their stolen money at the local saloons.
Today, you can visit replicas of former buildings and a monument dedicated to the Marshals that lost their lives trying to apprehend the Oklahombres.
Keystone + Appalachia
Ok, so these 2 ghost towns in Oklahoma actually can’t be visited. They met the same demise, flooded (on purpose) with the completion of the Keystone Dam.
Appalachia was the nearest “wet” territory to the “dry” Indian Territory, so naturally, once a saloon was opened, business was booming. Don’t you love that a lot of the history of Oklahoma has to do with alcohol? Is that our origin story? I’m here for it.
Keystone, located south of Appalachia, got its start from…you guessed it…a saloon! It was apparently easier to navigate to and from while intoxicated. Safety first.
Like most ghost towns in Oklahoma, Keystone and Appalachia basically faded with the growth of surrounding areas. Once the Keystone Dam was built, both towns were flooded. When the water level is low, you can actually see the tops of some of the buildings. Talk about creepy.
Loveland
Despite the name, Loveland is in fact a ghost town in Oklahoma. Loveland got its start as a town when the railroad was built, comprised of a couple of cotton farms, a few stores, a hotel, a bank, and a blacksmith shop.
Plagued with fires and tornados, Loveland was short-lived.
Today, the remains of Loveland include a crumbling water tower, some abandoned buildings, and a recently closed post office. Back when people would send Valentine’s through the mail, the Loveland post office was a popular place to get your Valentine’s card postmarked. It would read “Postmarked from Loveland”…get it? Silly.
There you have it. My top 5 ghost towns in Oklahoma. There are over 2000 towns in Oklahoma that can technically be called ghost towns, so this is by far not an exhaustive list.
Check these out and report back with any scary stories you have!
