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Ghost town

A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it (usually industrial or agricultural) has failed or ended for any reason (i.e. a host ore deposit exhausted by mining). The town may have also declined because of natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, prolonged droughts, extreme heat or extreme cold, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, pollution, or nuclear and radiation-related accidents and incidents. The term can sometimes refer to cities, towns, and neighborhoods that, though still populated, are significantly less so than in past years; for example, those affected by high levels of unemployment and dereliction.[1]

"Ghost city" redirects here. For the silent Western serial film, see The Ghost City. For other uses, see Ghost city (disambiguation) and Ghost town (disambiguation).

Some ghost towns, especially those that preserve period-specific architecture, have become tourist attractions. Some examples are Bannack, Montana and Oatman, Arizona in the United States; Barkerville, British Columbia in Canada; Craco and Pompeii in Italy; Aghdam in Azerbaijan; Kolmanskop in Namibia; Pripyat and Chernobyl in Ukraine; Dhanushkodi in India; Fordlândia in Brazil and Villa Epecuén in Argentina.

Definition[edit]

The definition of a ghost town varies between individuals, and between cultures.[2] Some writers discount settlements that were abandoned as a result of a natural or human-made disaster or other causes using the term only to describe settlements that were deserted because they were no longer economically viable; T. Lindsey Baker, author of Ghost Towns of Texas, defines a ghost town as "a town for which the reason for being no longer exists."[1] Some believe that any settlement with visible tangible remains should not be called a ghost town;[3] others say, conversely, that a ghost town should contain the tangible remains of buildings.[4] Whether or not the settlement must be completely deserted, or may contain a small population, is also a matter for debate.[3] Generally, though, the term is used in a looser sense, encompassing any and all of these definitions. American author Lambert Florin defined a ghost town as "a shadowy semblance of a former self."[5]

U.S., inundated by the creation of Norris Dam and reconstructed on nearby higher ground[8]

Loyston, Tennessee

U.S., flooded by up to 70 feet of water by Lake Mead following construction of the Hoover Dam[9]

St. Thomas, Nevada

of Ontario, flooded by Saint Lawrence Seaway construction in 1958[10]

The Lost Villages

and Middle Hambleton in Rutland, England, which were flooded to create Rutland Water[11]

Nether Hambleton

and Derwent, England, flooded during the construction of the Ladybower Reservoir[12][13]

Ashopton

The flooded the village of Tignes in France, displacing 78 families [14]

Tignes Dam

in Russia was flooded by the creation of Rybinsk reservoir in 1940.[15]

Mologa

Many ancient villages were abandoned during construction of the in China, leading to the displacement of many rural people[16]

Three Gorges Dam

In , Costa Rica, inhabitants of Arenal and Tronadora were forced to relocate in 1978 to make room for the human-made Lake Arenal.[17]

Guanacaste Province

in New South Wales, Australia, was flooded by a dam of the Snowy River Scheme.[18]

Old Adaminaby

Construction of the on the Nile River in Egypt submerged archaeological sites and ancient settlements, such as Buhen under Lake Nasser.[19]

Aswan High Dam

was drowned after the construction of the Tehri Dam in the Indian state of Uttarakhand.[20]

Tehri

and five other villages in the region of Galicia, Spain, drowned by the construction of Alto Lindoso Dam downstream in Portugal in 1992[21] (later exposed after extreme drought conditions in early 2022[22][23])

Aceredo

Curtis, Daniel R. . Academica.edu.

"Pre-industrial societies and strategies for the exploitation of resources. A theoretical framework for understanding why some settlements are resilient and some settlements are vulnerable to exploitation"