In 2026, Jerome, Arizona, remains widely recognized as the largest ghost town in the United States, though its status is unique because it is a "living" ghost town. At its peak in the 1920s, this copper-mining powerhouse boasted a population of nearly 15,000 people. Following the depletion of the ore and the closure of the mines in the 1950s, the population plummeted to fewer than 100 residents, leading to its "ghost town" designation. Today, it is a National Historic Landmark with a population of roughly 450, perched precariously at a 30-degree incline on Cleopatra Hill. Visitors in 2026 flock to see the "Sliding Jail," which moved 225 feet from its original location due to geological shifts, and to explore the many "haunted" hotels and artist studios that have breathed new life into the town's decaying Victorian structures. While other towns like Bodie, California, are more "frozen in time," Jerome’s sheer scale and remaining infrastructure make it the most significant "ghost" city in terms of historical footprint.
The title of the "largest" ghost town often depends on whether one measures by land area or former population, but Picher, Oklahoma, is widely cited as the largest "true" ghost town in America. At its peak in the 1920s, Picher was a booming lead and zinc mining hub with over 14,000 residents. However, decades of unregulated subsurface mining left the town riddled with sinkholes and contaminated by massive piles of toxic lead-laced "chat." In 2006, the EPA declared it part of the Tar Creek Superfund site, and the town was officially incorporated out of existence by 2009. Today, it remains a haunting landscape of abandoned schools, homes, and businesses. Another contender is Bodie, California, which is the largest "preserved" ghost town, maintained by the state in a condition of "arrested decay" with over 110 structures still standing from its gold-mining heyday.