The Arizonan's Guide to Arizona

Ghost Highways and Railways

Introduction

An exploration of Arizona's abandoned transportation corridors and the communities they once served

The morning sun casts long shadows across weathered asphalt and rusted rails half-buried in the desert floor. Here, in the vast expanses of Arizona, lie the remnants of once-vital transportation arteries that connected isolated communities to the wider world. These ghost highways and railways—abandoned, bypassed, or simply forgotten—tell the story of Arizona’s boom-and-bust cycles, of technological evolution, and of how the movement of people and goods has shaped the state’s development.

From the earliest indigenous trading paths and Spanish colonial routes to the grand railways and highways of the 20th century, Arizona’s landscape is etched with layers of transportation history. Each new technology—stagecoach, steam locomotive, automobile—created its own network, often building upon or alongside its predecessors before eventually being superseded itself.

Where Pioneer Pathways Faded

Discover Ghost Highways and Railways

Featured Ghost Transportation Routes

Railway Ghosts

The Saginaw and Manistee Lumber Company Railroad – A logging railroad that traversed the ponderosa pine forests of northern Arizona
The Morenci Southern Railroad – An engineering marvel that conquered seemingly impossible terrain to serve copper mines
The Arizona Eastern/Southern Pacific – Globe Branch – A vital link for Arizona’s copper industry that shaped communities across the Gila and Salt River valleys
The Verde Valley Railroad – A mineral lifeline connecting Jerome’s rich copper deposits to the outside world
The Tucson, Cornelia and Gila Bend Railroad – A 44-mile standard gauge line that served western Arizona’s mineral wealth
The El Paso and Southwestern Railroad – A corporate railroad built to serve one of America’s most powerful mining interests

Highway Ghosts

U.S. Route 66 – Arizona’s most famous ghost highway and the “Mother Road” of American highway lore
U.S. Route 80 – The “Broadway of America” that connected the Atlantic to the Pacific through southern Arizona
U.S. Route 70 – A vital artery connecting the Southwest with points east, now largely bypassed
U.S. Route 60 – Once a major highway through central Arizona, now partially abandoned or absorbed into other roads
The Borderland Route – A pioneering highway that connected isolated mining communities along Arizona’s southern corridor
The Dixie Overland Highway – America’s first year-round transcontinental route from the Atlantic to the Pacific

Pioneer Trails

The National Old Trails Road – A pioneering cross-country highway that helped transform Arizona from isolated territory into a connected state
The Mojave Road/Fort Mojave-Fort Whipple Road – A military route that became one of Arizona Territory’s first significant transportation corridors
The Butterfield Overland Mail Route – America’s first regular transcontinental mail and passenger service

Why These Routes Matter

These ghost transportation corridors are more than just abandoned infrastructure—they’re tangible connections to Arizona’s pioneering past. They reveal how transportation technology has repeatedly reshaped human geography, determining which communities would thrive and which would fade away. They show how even the most essential infrastructure eventually becomes historical artifact as technologies and travel patterns evolve.

By exploring these forgotten pathways, we gain perspective on our own transportation networks and the inevitable transitions they too will undergo. The ghost highways and railways of Arizona remind us that all infrastructure, no matter how vital it once seemed, exists within historical currents that eventually render it obsolete.

Using This Resource

Each article provides detailed information on a specific ghost transportation route, including:

Historical context and the route’s significance to Arizona’s development
What physical evidence remains visible today
Communities created, transformed, or abandoned because of the route
Personal stories of those who built, operated, and traveled these pathways
Maps and directions for those who wish to explore these routes firsthand
Guidelines for visiting respectfully and safely

Whether you’re a history enthusiast, a photographer seeking unique landscapes, or simply curious about Arizona’s transportation heritage, these articles offer both practical information and evocative storytelling that brings these silent corridors back to life.

Did You Know?