Many people still consider Marfa a ghost town because, for the most part, it’s desolate and uninhabited. There are a few businesses, a courthouse, and a small town square, but seldom will you see residents out and about or pass another car on the street. You might be asking yourself what led to the town’s decline and why it’s known as the creepiest abandoned town in Texas…and there’s a pretty simple answer: the Marfa Lights.
This ghostly phenomenon draws a few brave souls to the town but drives most people far, far away. Nobody knows exactly what they are – UFOs seem to be the running rumor – but whatever they are, they’re completely real and terrifying.
If you haven’t made your way to Marfa, Texas, just yet, it’s the kind of place you need to check out. Eerie and strange, beautifully abandoned yet in a way that has completely captured the heart of the nation, it’s a Texas experience you simply won’t get anywhere else. You haven’t seen the great state of Texas until you’ve seen Marfa, folks. It represents a level of nuance that the state simply doesn’t exhibit anywhere else, in its whole grand expanse.
Although Marfa is a hub for artists, anyone without a specific agenda usually steers clear of the town.
Flickr/joebehr It’s become much more popular due to social media and national news outlets running stories about its eerie, lonely brilliance.
There’s a legend associated with it that sends even the bravest souls running for the hills…the legend of the Marfa Lights.
Flickr/wrherndon It adds a bit of darkness to this artistically-minded abandoned town in Texas.
See that red orb above and to the right of the binoculars?
Flickr/macq You may have to squint, but it’s there. We promise.
And here it is again. The huge glow at the top is obviously the moon, but the tiny red dot in the center of the photo is inexplicable.
Flickr/misti_k Can you explain how these lights come out of nowhere? No one else can, either.
Marfa even built a viewing center for those brave enough to venture out at night and try to catch a glimpse of the anomalies.
Flickr/mytravelphotos Texas will own its oddities, you have to give the state that. Even the strangest parts of its abandoned places are on display.
As far as the rest of the town goes, it’s as ghostly as can be apart from a few buildings, mostly art pieces like this Prada store replica in the middle of the desert.
Flickr/mathieulebreton Which, of course, you’ve seen. Everyone has seen. How iconic is this tiny Prada store in the middle of nowhere?!
As you drive down the streets, you’ll come across overgrown, abandoned shells of once successful businesses…
Lars Plougmann/Flickr
…like this Palace Theatre that was once full of lively moviegoers but now only houses forgotten memories.
Flickr/mytravelphotos There are no words for this ghost town in Texas. Remarkable.
So does the town’s abandonment have something to do with the lights? Were the residents scared off by…something?
Flickr/atelier_flir We’ll never know for sure. For now and for all the forseeable future, Marfa will remain one of the best-known ghost towns in Texas.
Have you ever experienced the Marfa lights? What about other ghost lights in Texas? It’s a truly wonderful experience, something you can’t create anywhere else. Whereas Marfa may not be the scariest place in the state, it is definitely a creepiest abandoned town in Texas. What do you say?
Flickr/joebehr
It’s become much more popular due to social media and national news outlets running stories about its eerie, lonely brilliance.
Flickr/wrherndon
It adds a bit of darkness to this artistically-minded abandoned town in Texas.
Flickr/macq
You may have to squint, but it’s there. We promise.
Flickr/misti_k
Can you explain how these lights come out of nowhere? No one else can, either.
Flickr/mytravelphotos
Texas will own its oddities, you have to give the state that. Even the strangest parts of its abandoned places are on display.
Flickr/mathieulebreton
Which, of course, you’ve seen. Everyone has seen. How iconic is this tiny Prada store in the middle of nowhere?!
Lars Plougmann/Flickr
There are no words for this ghost town in Texas. Remarkable.
Flickr/atelier_flir
We’ll never know for sure. For now and for all the forseeable future, Marfa will remain one of the best-known ghost towns in Texas.
If you’re looking for more fun ways to experience the state of Texas, then you’ll want to check out one of the 12 best, underrated spaces and places available to locals and tourists alike. They make for the best kind of Saturdays spent in the greatest state in the union! Not that we’re biased or anything, of course…
OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article.
Address: Marfa, TX 79843, USA
The OIYS Visitor Center
Creepiest Abandoned Town In Texas September 21, 2019 Meghan Kraft What other abandoned places are there in Texas? Since Texas is such a large state, there are quite a few places that no longer have inhabitants or daily activity. The Baker Hotel is a testament to a world that once was in Mineral Wells, and it just might be the most popular abandoned place in Texas. There’s the Swift Armor Meat Packing Plant in Fort Worth to remember, the Mineral Wells-based Fort Wolters Training Site, and the Rig Theatre in Premont, all lost to the ravages of time. Are there any hiking trails to abandoned places in Texas? There are a few ghostly hiking trails that will take you to some of the loneliest places in Texas. Witch Mountain in Cedar Hill will drop you off at a creepy, dilapidated cabin that looks like its straight from a horror movie, whereas White Rock Lake in Dallas will reveal its own creepy remnants of civilization. Camp Lulu in Brownsville will take you through an old summer camp that apparently saw the deaths of all of its girl campers, and you can walk it. How terrifying is that?! What ghost towns can you find in Texas? Texas is a massive state, which means it’s not hard to find a few abandoned places in Texas, across the broad stretch of its landscape. Head to Adobes or Chinese Coal Mine, Soash or Audubon, maybe Cheapside or Bomarton. Make your way to Fort Holland for a true experience, or the famed Terlingua. Throw a stone and you’ll find an abandoned town in the Lone Star State!
The OIYS Visitor Center
Creepiest Abandoned Town In Texas
September 21, 2019
Meghan Kraft
What other abandoned places are there in Texas? Since Texas is such a large state, there are quite a few places that no longer have inhabitants or daily activity. The Baker Hotel is a testament to a world that once was in Mineral Wells, and it just might be the most popular abandoned place in Texas. There’s the Swift Armor Meat Packing Plant in Fort Worth to remember, the Mineral Wells-based Fort Wolters Training Site, and the Rig Theatre in Premont, all lost to the ravages of time. Are there any hiking trails to abandoned places in Texas? There are a few ghostly hiking trails that will take you to some of the loneliest places in Texas. Witch Mountain in Cedar Hill will drop you off at a creepy, dilapidated cabin that looks like its straight from a horror movie, whereas White Rock Lake in Dallas will reveal its own creepy remnants of civilization. Camp Lulu in Brownsville will take you through an old summer camp that apparently saw the deaths of all of its girl campers, and you can walk it. How terrifying is that?! What ghost towns can you find in Texas? Texas is a massive state, which means it’s not hard to find a few abandoned places in Texas, across the broad stretch of its landscape. Head to Adobes or Chinese Coal Mine, Soash or Audubon, maybe Cheapside or Bomarton. Make your way to Fort Holland for a true experience, or the famed Terlingua. Throw a stone and you’ll find an abandoned town in the Lone Star State!
The OIYS Visitor Center
The OIYS Visitor Center
Since Texas is such a large state, there are quite a few places that no longer have inhabitants or daily activity. The Baker Hotel is a testament to a world that once was in Mineral Wells, and it just might be the most popular abandoned place in Texas. There’s the Swift Armor Meat Packing Plant in Fort Worth to remember, the Mineral Wells-based Fort Wolters Training Site, and the Rig Theatre in Premont, all lost to the ravages of time.
Are there any hiking trails to abandoned places in Texas?
There are a few ghostly hiking trails that will take you to some of the loneliest places in Texas. Witch Mountain in Cedar Hill will drop you off at a creepy, dilapidated cabin that looks like its straight from a horror movie, whereas White Rock Lake in Dallas will reveal its own creepy remnants of civilization. Camp Lulu in Brownsville will take you through an old summer camp that apparently saw the deaths of all of its girl campers, and you can walk it. How terrifying is that?!
What ghost towns can you find in Texas?
Texas is a massive state, which means it’s not hard to find a few abandoned places in Texas, across the broad stretch of its landscape. Head to Adobes or Chinese Coal Mine, Soash or Audubon, maybe Cheapside or Bomarton. Make your way to Fort Holland for a true experience, or the famed Terlingua. Throw a stone and you’ll find an abandoned town in the Lone Star State!
