Want to know more about the ghost towns that linger in WA? Us too! Join us for this FREE virtual tour of Washington State's ghost towns and learn a little about how they got there and what remains.
I was born in Seattle in 1973, where I grew up. Japanese-American. The first ghost town in Washington I knew about is Monte Cristo. I looked on a list of ghost towns about 10 years ago, and Index was listed as a ghost town! That's in Snohomish County, just one county away from King County, where Seattle is in.
@@gloomish5120 I didn't think Index was a ghost town, either. At one time, Index was listed on Wikipedia under "Ghost Towns in Washington." Before the pandemic, there was a small restaurant along Highway 2. Are Zeke's and Alpen Drive In still going ok?
@@unappealingundesirable2826 It depends on the definition of ghost town. The term doesn't necessarily mean completely abandoned. It can also mean in serious decline (with a much smaller population). That said, I don't see how index really qualifies.
So I grew up in Colville (pronounced CALLville) and the old Fort Colville is located about 50-70 miles east of Molson. It is located just outside of the town of Colville. Perhaps there was another old Fort located in Okanagan county but Ft. Colville wasn't it. As to the fort Colville graveyard I have spent a good amount of time out there and have experienced a couple strange encounters. The most common phenomenon is bright colored orbs. I have seen numerous orbs floating around the graveyard on a couple different occasions. The scariest encounter I experienced, I was parked in my car out there once with a buddy and someone or something walked by my car. I caught the outline of a person out of my peripheral and when I looked there was nothing there. I not only saw something but actually could feel whatever it was disturb the air and felt a slight breeze as it walked past. But yea there was nobody there and it definitely freaked my buddy and I out enough to hightail it out of there quickly!
Yes… please, please please learn how to pronounce the names of towns (Colville pronounced CALLville by locals) before making film about it. Don’t be a Frazier and go to Lake cheLAWN (aka to Washingtonians as Lake cheLAN as in as) 😢
As a teen in the sixties I spent a wonderful summer in Lester, Wa. My brother-in-law was the stationmaster for the railroad station there. One lane dirt track up, which was the same road that you could at anytime ,come face to face with a fully loaded logging truck that has no brakes. I came across this video, It's made this old man remember a world gone by and take a step back...Thank you. I'll do everything but turn on notification.
At the 20:33 mark, what you identify as Bodie at its peak, is actually a picture of the main street of Loomis, Washington around 1908. I grew up in northern Okanogan County and loved exploring the area's ghost towns and mines. You could easily do a whole program on the ghost towns of Okanogan County.
I have good memories of Bordeaux. Back in the late 50s we lived next door to the Bordeaux family on Budd Inlet just north of Olympia. One weekend they gave my dad the keys to the old mills in Bordeaux. I remember walking up the overgrown railroad right of way to the town and spending the afternoon exploring the town and the lumber mill. It was all very well preserved then.
This was pretty awesome. Pretty Gritty Tours should do a Part II, and feature Fairfax, Wellington/Tye, Lester, Taylor, Night Hawk, Sherman, Sheridan, & Copper City.
I visited the logging camp of Lester when I was a kid-and can't remember anything about where it is located, or was I should say, we were on a family outing to visit a family friend named Joy Harris who was a Cat-skinner for Scott Paper Co. out of the Sedro-Woolley yard. I was watching some old videos by Skadill earlier tonight and an old Skagit yarder brought back memories of those days when we lived on the Miller farm in Burlington and went up in these mountains every weekend going by the Skagit Steel factory every time hoping to see the newest blue and white steel monster they had created! We camped on LK. Cavanaugh when there were no cabins on it! And the "Finn Settlement" still had loggers from Finland living in those shacks with kerosene lamps burning at night! Seems like 200 years ago, and at times like yesterday!
I used to own an old place located in upper Fairfax. It was on a 99 year railroad lease.I drew my water out of Icey Creek This little house is now gone. It had to be torn down at the end of the 99 year lease. This was located on the road to the Carbon River entrance to Mt. Rainier National Park.
I can confirm that there's something out in Clay City. Me and my friends are camping up there one night and in the middle of the night we heard a woman screaming and woke us all up. Nobody else was up there. That was back before they tore down the brick factory. Every time we went up there something weird happened. The tunnels were really scary to go down we had a flashlight go out on us one time down there we had to come out with just our lighters.
Thank you and others for filming or still pictures of the ghost towns of WA and other western states that still. Many of us cannot get out there, but thanks to you, we get to see real life history.
My wife showed me a short you did that my friend sent to her about 2 weeks ago about Franklin. Now, I have been to Melmont, Fairfax, Wilkeson(Skookum Slope), Bayne, and many more I including the "Navy Mine" . I did extensive research on Franklin and have been there on numerous occasions in the past(yes, the cemetery was sad to see). As a matter of fact, I actually assisted with the clean ups done there at Franklin and have worked with the museum. I have also, over the past 10 years, put a 3D model of Franklin together, which is far from done but hoping to bring that town back to life virtually for the museum eventually. Keep up the great work you do!
This is a very good history walk through and filmed .. My country for sure NE WA .. You covered the town very well along with the history .. I love doing that kind of history .. I mostly capture the sites using a film camera which i have done for over 50 years now .. well done ..
I just love to see and hear history from these towns. I just love old pictures to see what it was like back then and to see the clothes and if they have it the cars
from Priest River Idaho, hello! we have a new channel. Hardluck Survival, different from your format but new to online. Thank you so much for taking me to places of my homeland. Stuck in AZ now, it is nice to see something so personal. Be Safe
Melmont, also known as Fairfax. The picture of the bridge is known to locals as the Fairfax bridge. Clay City is now gone but I visited it about 3 times.... super creepy!! When we were there there were many brick kilns.
I used to live in Winlock when my son was young and used to tell him Horton from, "Horton Hears a Who by Dr Suess" sits on the egg at night so it would hatch. He would get so excited when we would drive by the egg.
thats it! im camping in Clay City overnight!! any other haunted towns...like reaaaally haunted to send me out on an investigative trip? can expect pictures....
I'm living in Moses Lake Washington. Dang! !!! I wish I seen this before, I'm leaving to Florida Tomorrow's but in my way back home in will check it out. Thanks.
For those of you trying to find Fort Colvile (yes that is how it's spelled) it was submerged after the completion of the Grand Coulee dam in 1941. Fort Colville was located near Colville Washington, but it is not the same fort. If you want to see the monument stone, it is located at St Pauls Mission in Kettle Falls, on the bank of Lake Roosevelt/Columbia River.
The atv camper video at Clay City along that path showed alot of crooked trees. Trees that grow like that are usually close to some of the earths magnetic lay lines. If you or someone goes out there try using some dosing rods, or even just use some green sticks. It is the energy subconsciously cruises thru the person holding the dosing rods that make them work. It would be interesting to see how active they would be. And yes a seasoned doser is still best way to find water or spot to dig a well.
Living just out of Chesaw, it saddens me seeing the building slowly giving way to Nature. Makes me want to try and buy each and every one of them and bring them back to life. Now, if I were only 60 years younger.
Liberty is one of the best little places in WA. Sure, you overpay mightily to pan for gold, but you always end up with a little speck of Liberty WA gold.
Sad to report the school house in Govan, Washington was demolished several years ago. Once I was exploring the school house and took a picture of the window to the right of the main entrance and captured an image of a woman standing in it. The school house was such a magnificent structure, I’m unsure why they tore it down?!
I lived in western Washington, Tacoma,Northbend,Mount Vernon I have been to the places in Okanogan and enjoyed site seeing Molson was really nice one of my trips there I ask what happened to the clocks they had someone stoled them what a shame I now live in Montana since 1990 lots to see here and do thanks for your time Dennis Freed
My son bought property in East Skagit County, Washington and later found out it was a portion of the old Sauk Logging Camp (early 1900s), the home a remodeled bunkhouse! Had/has a huge creek fed concrete swimming pool with local stories of bear's jumping in and scaring off soaking loggers, and trees bearing rope marks from the log rafts on the river. Monte Cristo - been there many times. Changes every year! Have visited others, to numerous to yak on about! Great video!
Wow, I live in a small town right next to Carbonado. I'll be checking out melmont for sure. Oh crap. I live even closer to clay city! I've taken the clay city road near Orville rd but it dead ends. I've always wondered why it's called clay city. Now I know. Thanks...I guess I could have just google it. Laziness.
I don't know about now with our current climate conditions. But it snowed every year on the 4th of July during the rodeo in scorching hot weather. Next to freezing rain it was amazing. Wonders of the universe
I tuned in and by the way thank you _ I'm from Washington and I live 3000 miles away in PA and I'm homesick so ghosts or not _ I'm not afraid _ you brought me home _ I lived off puget sound
I waa born & have lived in WA since 69. When I bought my house on Pilchuck Tree Farm Road by Lake Bosworth It was brand new nobody lived in it yet. The 1st time I used my riding lawn mower I saw a spirit of an Indian chasing me with a spear and had a picture on a small table of my daughter and grandson and evey day i woke up to it being face down. I said I don't mind sharring my home but stop touching that picture if you do it again your out of here. It never happened again
We actually just did the hike to Kerriston Ghost Town the other day!! I found a liquor bottle made by the Charles Boldt Glass Company on an Owens Automatic glass blowing machine between 1910 & 1919!!!!! I kept it as I found it in a bog WAY off trail!!!
A town people never hear of is the town of "Taylor" in the Seattle watershed above the town of Hobart. It was built mainly to produce bricks. I worked with a man that fired the furnaces in Taylor.
My dad was hunting in the Blue Mountains in the 50s and came upon a perfectly preserved schoolhouse in the woods, desks and all. I always wonder if it's still there (probably fallen down now)
Stadium high school... We called it "stay dumb & high." There for a while it was half stadium high. A landslide dropped the rest of it down on the road below.
Are you talking about OSO in 2014? They just had a 10yr anniversary thing out there. When you go out there to the memorial site you can feel this very heavy sadness
I have been curious about Clay City but never ventured down that road. I even lived in Kapowsin 30 years ago and still didn't explore. Google maps doesn't show much. Now, I gotta go. :-)
Black Carbonized wood is very attractive - it's surprising what's inside of them. I definitely would buy that if I lived in U.S.A. but New Zealand is too far from there - I can just dream about them - they are beautiful inside as that other one you cut. It's like black obsidian stone but highly polished - looks like a mirror.
I own land in Monte Cristo. Half the town sight and all the mines are privet owned the rest is owned by the U.S Forest service There is little to nothing left now the State and the Fed did the cleanup and hauled away of half the town. You should contact the Monte Cristo Historic society. PS I have my lot is up for sale. Eras G.
Our first virtual date and our first Pretty Gritty Tour! Thanks Chris looking forward to the next one. Have you heard about the old mental asylum near the auto mall in Olympia. Have been told by the locals it is haunted?
Great video spent many summers campin in chesaw growing up been through bodie a few times. My dad told about when he played basketball in the school in molson when he was in jr high. Grew up in republic so i wasnt far from these places.
I love cool old cemeteries and whenever I travel (especially to small towns) I always check out the local cemeteries. And the Roslyn cemetery is probably one of my top 3 favorites, if not my very favorite Cemetery ever!. It's really neat for some reason... kind of spooky!
Because Seattle has become a massive F'n sh*thole due to the liberal/communist braindead F'n American hating leaders from the governor to the mayor to communist mentally ill doped up city council....all those bastards destroyed my once great city.
Years ago when I was 18 we drove out past Kapowsin in the woods and rounded a bend in the woods. It opened up to a clearing the size of a football field. There were Satan worshippers practicing their stuff out there. They were dress in robes and had a bonfire. It was weird as crap. It’s a spooky area with dark energy for sure
Hey kapowsin thats where i grew up right by the lake across from the old high school that burned down in the 40s our house had a lady ghost in it. Only times i ever seen my dad scared. 2 story house and we all slept in the downstairs bedroom for months. We all had seen her several times. Though she never seemed to be trying to scare us but it was scary anyways. She would make are clock radio turn on n play music when it wasnt plugged to the wall more then a couple of times. She would also play with r toys. One time she had took all our barbies out they were in tye middle of the room. We never played with them but she had put clothes and shoes on them n messed with there hair. ..that was one of the last straws. One a. Big huge guy in overalls had his truck break down in front of our house. He came up to the fence n asked us to get a parent so dad came out n invited the giy inside to use our phone. Nope dude straight up refused to step one foot inside our yard he said he have to give my dad the number n make the call for him because he said his mother had lived in our house 8 or 9 years before and he said he would never step foot in our house again neither would his mother because of "the lady spirit" that eventually drove them to move because they kept seeing her all the time n she would do wierd thing with there stuff. After a long time of sleeping downstairs all of us squeezed in one room everybody to scared to go upstairs finally my parents had had enough. We drove back from reno dad was asleep so my mom and us just left him in the van sleeping. He woke up n she was inside the car with him. He came runinng in the house absolutely terrified. And he was a tough guy. He left that same night cause he was done we moved our stuff out that weekend. Moved into a small small ass house 1 story one bedroom. I kinda realy sucked moving to such a smaller home. But we were all to scared to stay. The lady who lives there now has been there for 17 years but has never seen her... I think the ghost lady died when the whole tiwn burned down in like 30s or 40s.. N e ways if ur reading i sure thank you for letting me share that memory with u.
@@calebblanford7353 one of the only places that actually changed at all wierd. Its just stuck in time i guess or maybe itss just stuck that way in my mind. Its been years since the last time i went there. Its a long drive but i sure would love to see it again. Oh how i wish i could literally go back in time. I totaly do things different. Life would be a whole lot different then it is today...oh n im guessing they werent robes probaly just blankets cause it was cold out. I think i know what field it probaly was.
@@brandonvanbrocklin9239 Wonder if anything is left. Forgot to look at when that video was. I'm good either way. I have a fascination with societies messes being taken back by nature. It Amazes me.
Unfortunately, Bordeaux can no longer be visited. I live just a few miles from it and wanted to go photograph the ruins but the owners have posted serious No Trespassing signs and even have security cams set up all around it. Sad. People have contacted the owners about getting permission to go and they always say NO. Tragic.
My step-grandfather owned a piece of property that use to be a town know as Gettysburg near Lyre River on Olympic Peninsula. It is know a nature conservation site. The history is unique and very creepy.
I have a question for the Washington people..I was born in Sunnyside and my step family move in between the dams .. so we were in the E Washington desert somewhere.Maybe Grand Collee ? heading i dont know . I remember a Oasis/ a Spring . Had palm trees and others and parking we always pulled over to it and got water or begged to play in it i dont think it was a hot spring. Down the road is a old trailer park rv/ camping. this was in the time area of 1960- 68. Anyone have a ideal where this might be ..? I would loved to see it if it is still there ..
A long time ago I had a magazine called Sunset magazine ,from about 1978-79-80 or so on ghost towns. In that magazine they rated ghost towns from 1-5 where 1 was a true ghost town 3 was almost a ghost town 4 and 5 were tourist ghost towns, like Silver city in Nevada DO you know anything about that list or the ratings? I been trying to find it but have not found anything
Lived all my life in yakama and it isnt to eventful. But not as boring as other smaller places. You have to live there all your life to appreciate it. Or not.
I’ve tried to message you before but I haven’t heard from you I know everything there is to know about the town of govan. I’ve preserved a lot of the history and have actually located the Home site of J.A Lewis! My grandfather was the one who found that 14-year-old boy years after his murder and disappearance!
I drove into Monte Cristo many times. I've been in most of the mines and never ran into any bad gases. I"drove" into Monte many times and the state wrecked that.
