Deep in the Adirondack Mountains, hidden beneath layers of mist and fiery fall foliage, lies one of New York’s eeriest forgotten places: Tahawus — a long-abandoned mining town frozen in time.
Once a bustling 19th-century settlement, today it stands eerily silent — a scattering of ruins, rusted relics, and ghostly foundations swallowed by the forest.
As autumn creeps in and Halloween approaches, there’s no better time to explore this haunting piece of New York history.
A ghost town with a haunting past
Tahawus’ story begins in 1826, when iron ore was discovered along the banks of the Upper Hudson River.
A mining community soon sprang to life, complete with homes, mills, furnaces, and even its own bank.
But like so many Adirondack boomtowns, the good times didn’t last long.
By 1858, the village was abandoned — the first of two times it would be left to decay.
It was briefly revived under a new name, Tahawus, in the early 1900s when mining resumed, but by 1962, the final residents packed up and the wilderness began to reclaim what remained.
Today, the ghost town sits preserved within the Adirondack Park — its lonely remnants telling stories of prosperity, loss, and the relentless pull of nature.
While most of Tahawus’ original buildings have been demolished for safety reasons, a few striking relics still stand — including the 1854 McIntyre Blast Furnace and the MacNaughton Cottage, where Theodore Roosevelt famously received word that President McKinley had been assassinated, catapulting him into the presidency.
Wanderers through the area describe a surreal quiet — a silence broken only by the crunch of leaves and the wind whispering through rusted machinery.
On a foggy fall morning, it feels almost cinematic — a place where time has stopped and ghosts might still linger.
Tahawus during the Halloween season
Though there are no official Halloween events held in Tahawus itself — it’s far too remote and preserved for that — the autumn atmosphere is chillingly perfect for a spooky day trip.
The surrounding Adirondack wilderness blazes with red and gold leaves, and early frosts add a spectral shimmer to the landscape.
Nearby towns like Lake Placid, Saranac Lake, and Newcomb host haunted walks, fall festivals, and Halloween movie nights, giving visitors a way to pair real-world ghost stories with small-town Halloween charm.
📍 Location: Near the Mt. Marcy trailhead in the southern Adirondacks, just outside Newcomb, NY
🚗 Getting there: Roughly a 5-hour drive from New York City, or accessible by train to Port Henry and then a scenic drive inland
🍂 Best time to visit: Late September through October, when fall colors are at their peak
🎃 Nearby Halloween fun: Haunted tours in Saranac Lake, small-town Halloween parades in Inlet, and cozy fall festivals in Newcomb