Bodie: Ghost Stories From a Ghost Town

Bodie, California

Nestled in the vast California wilderness, hugging Nevada’s border sits a forgotten piece of heritage. Once a booming piece of land, the former mining town of Bodie is now a crumbling and tilted shell of its old self.

Bodie was founded in 1876 after gold was struck nearby and soon became a popular place for prospectors. The town grew rapidly to contain approximately 2,000 buildings and supporting up to 7,000 people by 1879. Bodie saw a steady decline from 1880 onwards, when miners were lured to other nearby boom areas. This decline continued until Bodie was first declared a ghost town in 1915.

During its lifetime Bodie was a rough and tumble area where murder was common place. The town featured many opium dens, a large red light district and crime reined supreme with countless brawls, shootings and holdups recorded. Today, the ruins of the town are open to tourists and historically listed, but so much energy from Bodie’s past remains being emphasized in the numerous tales of hauntings within the ghost town.

Ghost Stories From Bodie

There are many supernatural stories associated with the ghost town of Bodie. Perhaps the most prevalent is the tale of Bodie’s curse. Myths surrounding the abandoned town state that anyone who removes an item from Bodie, even something as small as a rock or nail, will be plagued with bad luck until that item is returned to Bodie. This claim is backed up by a book on display in Bodie’s visitor center, which contains a large collection of letters addressed to Bodie rangers. Each of these letters had an item taken from Bodie enclosed within it and an explanation from the senders’ who hoped that the return of the item would relieve them of the string of bad luck they’d seen since their visit.

One of Bodie’s largest homes is also one of its most haunted. The John S. Cain Residence is haunted by a tragic past and a woman scorned. John was a wealthy man and chose to invest in the help of a Chinese woman who was to assist maintaining the house and caring for his family. Rumor soon spread that this woman was having an affair with John, which lead to her losing her job, being outcast by the town’s people and sadly taking her own life. Since her death, the ghost of this woman has been said to occupy the property. Poltergeist activity has been reported, the woman’s apparition has been seen staring out of windows and adults who have stayed within the property have been physically attacked by an unseen presence.

This is not the only haunted property remaining within Bodie. The Gregory house is reportedly haunted by the spirit of an older, unknown female. She has been sighted all around the house, usually busy knitting. The old Mendocini house also has many paranormal stories linked to it. Years ago this was a family home and the disembodied laughter and sounds of children playing in the front yard is still commonly reported. The ranger who now lives in the house believes the spirits of these children remain and continue to play cheeky tricks, like pulling off his bed sheets when he is trying to go to sleep. The ghostly smells of homemade Italian cooking also randomly appear within the home.

Such a famous mining town wouldn’t be complete without a haunted mine. The actual mines are closed off to the general public due to safety concerns, yet they were never the safest of places even when in operation. Accidental deaths were common in this hazardous occupation and some think that lost spirits may still be trapped within the abandoned mines, where rangers have reported hearing voices and screams. There’s also said to be the entity of a white mule, which died on the job after having its back broken, within the mines.

Bodie’s past contains many deaths and so the town required a large cemetery within close vicinity. The Bodie Cemetery is not without its own ghost story. It is told that the spirit of young Evelyn Myers haunts the area around her angel shaped tombstone. She died under tragic circumstances at the age of three, when she was victim to a freak accident that saw her struck in the head with a pick axe. Her ghost has been seen by many children within the cemetery, who inform their parents of a little girl wanting to play with them.

Visiting Bodie

The ghost town Bodie is a fascinating visit for anyone interested in Californian history, particularly surrounding the Gold Rush era. Exploring the town itself is haunting and exciting for anyone into the paranormal.

Bodie is quite remote but makes a fun road trip. I recommend staying a night in nearby Bridgeport in the amazingly creepy Bodie Hotel, which was up-rooted and moved on the back of a wagon from Bodie in the 1800’s to make alternative accommodation for travelers. You should also be prepared to drive on an unsealed gravel road for a few kilometers and pay a small admission fee to enter the national park.

If you enjoyed this article and want to check out other haunted locations linked to the California Gold Rush, take a look at my blog about Placerville, aka Hang Town.

Thanks for reading!

xoxo