This time-lapse video of the northern California ghost town of Bodie is, in a word, stunning. Created by Colin Rich with assistance from Mark Bernal, Town of Ghosts travels through a week’s worth of photography of this desolate place. In addition to the haunting beauty of the photos, I’m struck by the juxtaposition of watching hours spin around a place that is, quite literally, frozen in time.

Gold was discovered back in 1859 by William S Bodey and at its apex, the town had a population of 10,000 residents through the 1880’s. Bodie was replete with the makings of old west folklore; gunfighters, saloons, miners, gambling halls and prostitutes, a rough place through and through. But the town’s success didn’t last and faded from ‘glory’ prior to World War I and was finally down for the count during WWII once all mining operations were halted due to the war effort. It was effectively abandoned with many of the structures retaining the inhabitants belongings because the roads out were toll and weight based; many people simply decided to leave their belongings behind to avoid large fees so the ghost town was born.

Click here to read the rest of Colin’s story of this wild and forlornly beautiful place.

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Categories: History (Haunted and Otherwise)

Tags: 1880's, art, Bodie, California, Colin Rich, culture, Ghost town, halloween, Haunted history, haunting, photography, spooky, time-lapse, World War II