New York's Once-Thriving Adirondack Village Is Now An Eerie Ghost Town With A Presidential History

Tahawus, New York, used to be a prosperous mining spot in the Adirondacks, but the village was abandoned not once, but twice, in just over a century. In between its two golden ages, it also became an important historic site, when then-Vice President Theodore Roosevelt stopped there after President William McKinley was shot. Tahawus is now a fascinating, spooky ghost town.

This deserted village is in Newcomb, a town with pristine waters and stunning views. The small town, which is home to fewer than 500 people, is located in the Adirondack Park's High Peaks Region. The Upstate New York park covers 6 million acres, making it the biggest protected area on the mainland of the United States. The High Peaks Region, located on the northeast edge of the park, is home to the state's highest mountains.

The closest airport to Tahawus is fewer than 75 miles away in Saranac Lake, one of the most magical destinations in the Northeast for a romantic lakeside escape. Its small Adirondack Regional Airport (SLK) has daily flights to Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) and New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). For flights to other East Coast cities, you can check out Plattsburgh International Airport (PBG), which isn't much farther, just under 85 miles from Tahawus. You can stop in Westport, New York's "Gateway to the Adirondacks" on the shores of Lake Champlain, when you head south from Plattsburgh.

Two entrepreneurs found iron ore in this remote part of the Adirondacks in 1826. They established the McIntyre Adirondack Iron & Steel Company and built a village — called McIntyre, after one of the men — along the Upper Hudson River. The village was given a new name, Adirondac, around 1840. It expanded to include farms, mills, and even a bank. By 1854, the Saratoga Railroad Company was planning to extend the railroad into Adirondac, but building tracks through the mountains proved to be impossible at the time. Iron was too difficult to transport, so the mining company shut down in 1858. The village quickly became a ghost town for the first time.

18 years later, a hunting and fishing club took control of the town, and they worked to renovate it. Its name had changed again, this time to Tahawus, by the time Vice President Roosevelt arrived in 1901. He spent time at the Tahawus Club after learning that President William McKinley had been shot. When the President took a turn for the worse, Roosevelt departed on his "midnight ride" to Buffalo. McKinley died while Roosevelt was traveling, and Roosevelt became the United States' 26th President.

Tahawus' mines reopened, this time to excavate titanium dioxide for World War II, in 1941. The railroad was finally built, and the mines expanded. Tahawus was thriving again after the war. However, in 1962, the mining company moved to neighboring Newcomb. Tahawus' mines eventually closed for good in 1989, and it became a ghost town again.

After the mines closed, the private land was eerily quiet. Roofs and walls collapsed on houses, trees overtook yards, and moss got out of control. In 2003, the Open Space Institute (OSI) purchased nearly 10,000 acres of land in Tahawus. Most of that land was transferred to New York State in 2008. The center of the Tahawus Tract, 212 acres, was reserved for educational purposes.

The OSI's goal is to restore historic buildings and create interpretative trails in Tahawus. The MacNaughton Cottage, built in 1834, is the only remaining structure from the first mining era. It's also where Vice President Roosevelt began his "midnight ride" in 1901. The cottage has been meticulously restored, and it will act as part of the town's visitor center.

The Upper Works Trail starts near the MacNaughton Cottage. It follows the west bank of the Hudson River as it heads south to the ruins of the McIntyre Iron Furnace, a massive stone blast furnace that was completed in 1853. The 1-mile footpath was outfitted with bridges, stone steps, and informative signs. It also connects to other trails, including the East River Trail, the Mount Adams Fire Tower Trail, and the Indian Pass Trail. The East River Trail passes numerous lakes, the Mount Adams Fire Tower has incredible views, and the Indian Pass Trail goes all the way up to Lake Placid. It's now nature, instead of the mines, that thrives in this old ghost town.