An abandoned or ghost town (not to be confused with Ghost Signs) may contain visible remnants of buildings and infrastructure such as roads. There were a lot of abandoned Illinois towns due to the railroads and mining industry, and some towns picked up everything and moved a few miles to where railroad tracks were being laid. Once area mines dried up, so did the town.
Some towns in the American Bottoms flooded, most flooding numerous times from the Mississippi River. These communities moved or built a new town on the bluffs of the Mississippi River. But, as the above photograph suggests, many towns were turned back into their natural state or into farmland.
19th CENTURY POPULATION TERMS
CITY (300K - >1M)
COUNTY (100K - 300K)
TOWN (10K - 100K)
TOWNSHIP (1K - 10K)
VILLAGE (200 - 10K)
HAMLET (<200)
SETTLEMENT (<100 Occup.)
ROADHOUSE / INN (<50 Occup.)
SALOON / TAVERN (<20 Occup.)
TO MAKE THE "LOST TOWNS OF ILLINOIS" LIST,
THE AREA MUST BE VACATED.
