List of flooded towns in the United States

These are U.S. towns and villages flooded by the creation of dams, destroyed by the advancing sea, or washed away in floods and never rebuilt.

List of towns drowned by dam construction

State	Town	Reservoir	Notes
Alabama	Bainbridge	Wilson Lake	^[1]
	Kowaliga	Lake Martin
	Prairie Bluff	William "Bill" Dannelly Reservoir
	Riverton	Pickwick Lake	^[2]^[3]^[4]
Arizona	Alamo Crossing	Alamo Lake	^[5]
	Aubrey Landing	Lake Havasu	^[6]
	Castle Dome Landing	Martinez Lake	^[7]^[8]
	La Laguna	Mittry Lake
Arkansas	Crossroads	Lake Maumelle	^[9]
	Dubuque	Bull Shoals Lake
	Monte Ne	Beaver Lake
	Kingdon Springs	Bull Shoals Lake	^[10]
California	Alma	Lexington Reservoir
	Bagby	Lake McClure
	Baird	Lake Shasta	^[11]
	Copper City
	Elmore
	Etter
	Kennett
	Morley
	Pitt
	Winthrop
	Bidwell's Bar	Lake Oroville
	Camanche	Camanche Reservoir
	Poverty Bar	Camanche Reservoir
	Cedar Springs	Silverwood Lake	^[12]
	Crystal Springs	Crystal Springs Reservoir
	Jacksonville	Don Pedro Reservoir	^[13]
	Melones	New Melones Lake
	Monticello	Lake Berryessa	^[14]
	Condemned Bar	Folsom Lake	^[15]
	Mormon Island
	Salmon Falls
	Old Isabella	Lake Isabella
	Old Kernville	Lake Isabella
	Prattville	Lake Almanor
	Searsville	Searsville Lake
	Whiskeytown	Whiskeytown Lake
Colorado	Sopris	Trinidad Lake
	Dillon	Dillon Reservoir
	Stout	Horsetooth Reservoir
	Sapinero	Blue Mesa Reservoir
Connecticut	Barkhamstad Hollow	Barkhamsted Reservoir
	Jerusalem	Candlewood Lake	^[16]
	Valley Forge	Saugatuck Reservoir	^[17]
Georgia (U.S. state)	Oscarville	Lake Lanier	^[18]
	Etowah	Allatoona Lake
	Allatoona	Allatoona Lake
	Petersburg	Lake Strom Thurmond	^[19]
Illinois	Cotton Hill	Lake Springfield
Indiana	Fairfield	Brookville Lake
	Somerset	Mississinewa Lake
	Elon	Patoka Lake
	Ellsworth, Indiana
	Newton Stewart, Indiana
Kentucky	Eddyville, Kentucky	Lake Barkley
	Kuttawa, Kentucky	Lake Barkley
	Birmingham, Kentucky	Kentucky Lake
	Burnside, Kentucky	Lake Cumberland
Maine	Flagstaff	Flagstaff Lake
Maryland	Conowingo	Conowingo Reservoir
Maryland	Warren	Loch Raven Reservoir	^[20]
Massachusetts	Dana	Quabbin Reservoir
	Enfield
	Greenwich
	Prescott
Michigan	Rawsonville	Belleville Lake
Missouri	Linn Creek, Missouri	Lake of the Ozarks
Mississippi	Coldwater	Arkabutla Lake
Montana	Canton	Canyon Ferry Lake
Nevada	St. Thomas	Lake Mead
New York (state)	Arena	Pepacton Reservoir
	Pepacton
	Shavertown
	Boiceville	Ashokan Reservoir
	Brown's Station
	Glenford
	Olive
	Olive Bridge
	Shokan
	Stony Hollow
	West Hurley
	West Shokan
	Cannonsville	Cannonsville Reservoir
	Elko	Allegheny Reservoir
	Gilboa	Schoharie Reservoir
	Kensico	Kensico Reservoir
	Neversink	Neversink Reservoir
North Carolina	East Monbo	Lake Norman	^[21]
	Long Island	Lake Norman	^[21]
	Fonta Flora	Lake James
	Judson	Fontana Lake	^[22]
	Proctor	Fontana Lake	^[22]
New Jersey	Round Valley	Round Valley Reservoir	^[23]
Oregon	Arlington	Lake Umatilla
	Blalock	Lake Umatilla
	Celilo	Lake Celilo
	Copper	Applegate Reservoir
	Detroit	Detroit Lake
	Dorena	Dorena Reservoir
	Robinette	Brownlee Reservoir
Pennsylvania	Aitch	Raystown Lake	^[24]
	Big Creek Valley	Beltzville Lake	^[25]
	Cokeville	Conemaugh River Lake	^[26]
	Fillmore
	Livermore
	Social Hall
	Corydon	Allegheny Reservoir
	Kinzua	Allegheny Reservoir
	Instanter	East Branch Lake	^[27]
	Marburg	Lake Marburg	^[28]
	Milford Mills	Marsh Creek Lake
	Somerfield	Youghiogheny River Lake	^[29]
	Straight	East Branch Lake	^[30]
	Tohickon	Lake Nockamixon	^[31]
	Wilsonville	Lake Wallenpaupack
Rhode Island	Scituate	Scituate Reservoir
South Carolina	Dutch Fork	Lake Murray
	Saxe Gotha	Lake Murray
	Ferguson	Lake Marion
	Andersonville	Lake Hartwell
Tennessee	Awalt	Tims Ford Lake
	Butler	Watauga Reservoir	^[32]
	Loyston	Norris Reservoir
	Willow Grove	Dale Hollow Reservoir
	Morganton	Tellico Reservoir
	Tuskegee	Tellico Reservoir
	Johnsonville, Tennessee	Kentucky Lake
	Couchville, Tennessee	Percy Priest Lake
Texas	Aiken	Belton Lake
	Bland
	Brookhaven
	Sparta
	Curry	Hubbard Creek Reservoir
	Bluffton	Lake Buchanan
	Devils River	Lake Amistad
	Friendship	Granger Lake
	Halsell	Lake Arrowhead
	Preston	Lake Texoma
	Towash	Lake Whitney^[33]
	Canyon City	Canyon Lake
Utah	Connellsville	Electric Lake
	Hite	Lake Powell
	Hailstone	Jordanelle Reservoir
	Keetley	Jordanelle Reservoir
	Linwood	Flaming Gorge Reservoir
	Rockport	Rockport Reservoir
Washington (state)	Kosmos	Riffe Lake
	Nesika
	Riffe
	Mayfield	Lake Mayfield
	Vantage	Lake Wanapum
West Virginia	Shaw	Jennings Randolph Lake
West Virginia	Gad	Summersville Lake

List of towns drowned by erosion or flooding

Alabama

Washington

Alaska

Chenega, the original location of which was destroyed in a Tsunami caused by the Good Friday earthquake in 1964.^[34]
Minto, the original site of which was abandoned due to repeat flooding.^[35]
Mumtrak, abandoned due to repeat flooding.^[35]
Holikachuk, abandoned due to flooding and inaccessibility.^[36]

Arizona

Adamsville, never rebuilt after being largely destroyed by a flood.
Colorado City, destroyed by the Great Flood of 1862

Arkansas

Napoleon, washed away by the Mississippi River

Maryland

Holland Island, destroyed by erosion into Chesapeake Bay

Mississippi

Oregon

Bayocean, destroyed by erosion into the Pacific Ocean
Champoeg, destroyed by the Great Flood of 1862
Linn City, destroyed by the Great Flood of 1862
Orleans, destroyed by the Great Flood of 1862
Vanport, destroyed by the flooding of the Columbia River

Utah

Adventure, destroyed by the Great Flood of 1862

References

^ "Guide to the Ghost Towns of Alabama". Ghost Town USA. Gary B Speck Publications. Dec 28, 2008. Retrieved May 12, 2009.
^ "Ghost Towns of Alabama". Ghost Towns. ghosttowns.com. Retrieved May 11, 2009.
^ Map of Northwest Alabama Area-alabama.hometownlocator.com/al/colbert/riverton.cfm
^ Ed Vengrouskie (1999). Colbert County Alabama History - History of the Northwest Corner of Alabama. www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/ alcolber/hist-nwal.htm
^ Sherman, James E.; Sherman, Barbara H. (1969). Ghost Towns of Arizona. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0806108438. OCLC 21732.
^ Sherman, James E.; Sherman, Barbara H. (1969). Ghost Towns of Arizona. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0806108438. OCLC 21732.
^ Varney, Philip (2005). Stieve, Robert (ed.). Arizona Ghost Towns and Mining Camps: A Travel Guide to History (10th ed.). Phoenix: Arizona Highways Books. ISBN 1932082468.
^ Sherman, James E.; Sherman, Barbara H. (1969). Ghost Towns of Arizona. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0806108438. OCLC 21732.
^ "Ghost Towns of Arkansas". Ghost Towns. ghosttowns.com. Retrieved May 11, 2009.
^ "Bull Shoals Dam". www.ozarkhistory.com. Archived from the original on April 24, 2003. Retrieved 2023-02-26.
^ "Once a Californian Boom Town, Now a Sunken City at the Bottom of a Lake". 29 March 2017.
^ "This San Bernardino Mountains community was swallowed by a lake". 11 December 2019.
^ "Jacksonville to be Flooded Under New Don Pedro Dam". Bay Area Television Archive, San Francisco State University. Retrieved 2023-03-07.
^ "Lost Beneath Lake Berryessa". 16 December 2019.
^ Lapp, Rudolph (1977). Blacks in Gold Rush California. New Haven Books.
^ "Is There Really a Town Called Jerusalem and a Graveyard Under Candlewood Lake?". 24 June 2019.
^ "The Lost Village of Valley Forge". 29 August 2024.
^ "The 'Racial Cleansing' That Drove 1,100 Black Residents Out Of Forsyth County, Ga". National Public Radio. 2016-10-15. Retrieved 2023-02-25.
^ "Petersburg". New Georgia Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2023-02-26.
^ Cassie, Ron (March 4, 2019). ""Rumor or Fact? A Town Under Loch Raven Reservoir"". Baltimore Magazine. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
^ Brinson, Carol (16 April 2020). "Most people have no idea that these towns under Lake Norman even exist". WSIC News. Archived from the original on May 5, 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
^ Tennessee Valley Authority, The Fontana Project: A Comprehensive Report on the Planning, Design, Construction, and Initial Operations of the Fontana Project, Technical Report No. 12 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1950), pp. 1-13, 43-45, 453.
^ "The Tragic Story Behind the Village That Was Flooded to Make Way for New Jersey's Round Valley Reservoir".
^ Enhancing Wildlife Habitat: Demonstration Sites in Pennsylvania. PennState, College of Agricultural Sciences, Cooperative Extension. 1997. p. 39. accesses are at the Aitch Boat Launch...
^ "Big Creek Valley before Beltzville Lake". Times News. Pencor Services, Inc. May 4, 2013. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
^ "Ghost Town, Hoodlebug & West Penn Trails: Regional Trail Guide" (PDF). visitindianacountypa.org. Retrieved 2023-02-25.
^ "Instanter-The Town Lost to Flood Control | Visit PA Great Outdoors". visitpago.com. Retrieved 2023-02-25.
^ Wentz, Jennifer. "Underwater ghost town: Codorus State Park celebrates 50 years". The Evening Sun. Retrieved 2023-02-25.
^ "A bridge to the 19th century". old.post-gazette.com. Archived from the original on December 1, 2015. Retrieved 2023-02-25.
^ Kissel, Kelly P. (1991-12-15). "Fading Lake Reveals 'Allegheny Atlantis' : History: Former residents come from miles around to see old haunts thought gone forever". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-02-25.
^ Morgan, Michele (7 Oct 1993). "Under Blue Waters Lake Nockamixon's Depths Contain Remnants of Tohickon Village". mcall.com. The Morning Call. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
^ Schools, in The History of Johnson County, Mountain City Elementary School website, accessed March 21, 2008
^ Lawrence, Katie (2022-07-09). "Most People Have No Idea This Underwater City In Texas Even Exists". OnlyInYourState. Retrieved 2023-03-07.
^ "Ghost towns scattered across Alaska map | Geophysical Institute". www.gi.alaska.edu. Retrieved 2023-05-09.
^ ^a ^b "Ghost towns scattered across Alaska map | Geophysical Institute". www.gi.alaska.edu. Retrieved 2023-05-09.
^ "Before there was Grayling, there was Holikachuk | Delta Wind". Retrieved 2025-02-01.
^ "Ben Lomond Landing, Mississippi". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
^ "Ben Lomond Landing, Mississippi" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved March 2, 2019.
^ Hall, Russell S.; Nowell, Princella W.; Childress, Stacy (2000). Washington County, Mississippi. Arcadia. p. 7. ISBN 9780738506555.
^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Port Anderson (historical)
^ "Port Anderson, Mississippi" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
^ Crider, Bill (July 11, 1954). "Mississippi River Uncovering Community it Buried Years Ago". St. Joseph News-Press.

External links

[ala2-1] "Guide to the Ghost Towns of Alabama". Ghost Town USA. Gary B Speck Publications. Dec 28, 2008. Retrieved May 12, 2009.

[ala1-2] "Ghost Towns of Alabama". Ghost Towns. ghosttowns.com. Retrieved May 11, 2009.

[3] Map of Northwest Alabama Area-alabama.hometownlocator.com/al/colbert/riverton.cfm

[4] Ed Vengrouskie (1999). Colbert County Alabama History - History of the Northwest Corner of Alabama. www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/ alcolber/hist-nwal.htm

[sherman-5] Sherman, James E.; Sherman, Barbara H. (1969). Ghost Towns of Arizona. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0806108438. OCLC 21732.

[sherman2-6] Sherman, James E.; Sherman, Barbara H. (1969). Ghost Towns of Arizona. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0806108438. OCLC 21732.

[varney-7] Varney, Philip (2005). Stieve, Robert (ed.). Arizona Ghost Towns and Mining Camps: A Travel Guide to History (10th ed.). Phoenix: Arizona Highways Books. ISBN 1932082468.

[sherman3-8] Sherman, James E.; Sherman, Barbara H. (1969). Ghost Towns of Arizona. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0806108438. OCLC 21732.

[arkansas1-9] "Ghost Towns of Arkansas". Ghost Towns. ghosttowns.com. Retrieved May 11, 2009.

[10] "Bull Shoals Dam". www.ozarkhistory.com. Archived from the original on April 24, 2003. Retrieved 2023-02-26.

[Sunken_Cities-11] "Once a Californian Boom Town, Now a Sunken City at the Bottom of a Lake". 29 March 2017.

[12] "This San Bernardino Mountains community was swallowed by a lake". 11 December 2019.

[13] "Jacksonville to be Flooded Under New Don Pedro Dam". Bay Area Television Archive, San Francisco State University. Retrieved 2023-03-07.

[14] "Lost Beneath Lake Berryessa". 16 December 2019.

[15] Lapp, Rudolph (1977). Blacks in Gold Rush California. New Haven Books.

[16] "Is There Really a Town Called Jerusalem and a Graveyard Under Candlewood Lake?". 24 June 2019.

[17] "The Lost Village of Valley Forge". 29 August 2024.

[18] "The 'Racial Cleansing' That Drove 1,100 Black Residents Out Of Forsyth County, Ga". National Public Radio. 2016-10-15. Retrieved 2023-02-25.

[19] "Petersburg". New Georgia Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2023-02-26.

[20] Cassie, Ron (March 4, 2019). ""Rumor or Fact? A Town Under Loch Raven Reservoir"". Baltimore Magazine. Retrieved November 6, 2019.

[21] Brinson, Carol (16 April 2020). "Most people have no idea that these towns under Lake Norman even exist". WSIC News. Archived from the original on May 5, 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2025.

[22] Tennessee Valley Authority, The Fontana Project: A Comprehensive Report on the Planning, Design, Construction, and Initial Operations of the Fontana Project, Technical Report No. 12 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1950), pp. 1-13, 43-45, 453.

[23] "The Tragic Story Behind the Village That Was Flooded to Make Way for New Jersey's Round Valley Reservoir".

[24] Enhancing Wildlife Habitat: Demonstration Sites in Pennsylvania. PennState, College of Agricultural Sciences, Cooperative Extension. 1997. p. 39. accesses are at the Aitch Boat Launch...

[Times_News_(Pennsylvania)_-_04_May_2014_-_Big_Creek_Valley_before_Beltzville_Lake-25] "Big Creek Valley before Beltzville Lake". Times News. Pencor Services, Inc. May 4, 2013. Retrieved 28 April 2014.

[26] "Ghost Town, Hoodlebug & West Penn Trails: Regional Trail Guide" (PDF). visitindianacountypa.org. Retrieved 2023-02-25.

[27] "Instanter-The Town Lost to Flood Control | Visit PA Great Outdoors". visitpago.com. Retrieved 2023-02-25.

[28] Wentz, Jennifer. "Underwater ghost town: Codorus State Park celebrates 50 years". The Evening Sun. Retrieved 2023-02-25.

[29] "A bridge to the 19th century". old.post-gazette.com. Archived from the original on December 1, 2015. Retrieved 2023-02-25.

[30] Kissel, Kelly P. (1991-12-15). "Fading Lake Reveals 'Allegheny Atlantis' : History: Former residents come from miles around to see old haunts thought gone forever". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-02-25.

[31] Morgan, Michele (7 Oct 1993). "Under Blue Waters Lake Nockamixon's Depths Contain Remnants of Tohickon Village". mcall.com. The Morning Call. Retrieved 4 May 2021.

[32] Schools, in The History of Johnson County, Mountain City Elementary School website, accessed March 21, 2008

[33] Lawrence, Katie (2022-07-09). "Most People Have No Idea This Underwater City In Texas Even Exists". OnlyInYourState. Retrieved 2023-03-07.

[34] "Ghost towns scattered across Alaska map | Geophysical Institute". www.gi.alaska.edu. Retrieved 2023-05-09.

[gi.alaska.edu-35] "Ghost towns scattered across Alaska map | Geophysical Institute". www.gi.alaska.edu. Retrieved 2023-05-09.

[36] "Before there was Grayling, there was Holikachuk | Delta Wind". Retrieved 2025-02-01.

[37] "Ben Lomond Landing, Mississippi". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.

[38] "Ben Lomond Landing, Mississippi" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved March 2, 2019.

[39] Hall, Russell S.; Nowell, Princella W.; Childress, Stacy (2000). Washington County, Mississippi. Arcadia. p. 7. ISBN 9780738506555.

[40] U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Port Anderson (historical)

[41] "Port Anderson, Mississippi" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved October 3, 2019.

[42] Crider, Bill (July 11, 1954). "Mississippi River Uncovering Community it Buried Years Ago". St. Joseph News-Press.

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List of towns drowned by dam construction

List of towns drowned by erosion or flooding

Alabama

Alaska

Arizona

Arkansas

Maryland

Mississippi

Oregon

Utah

See also

References

External links