You’ll find West Coast ghost towns like Paramount Ranch’s Western Town facades, Paria’s weathered movie sets in Kane County, and California Gold Country locations serving as ready-made TV backdrops. Alabama Hills’ granite formations and Cerro Gordo’s 8,500-foot mining ruins provide authentic period settings, while Inland Empire sites like Pioneertown offer permanent filming infrastructure. These locations reduce production costs through preserved 1880s streetscapes, abandoned industrial complexes, and original structures that require minimal modification. The distinction between genuine historic sites and Hollywood-built replicas reveals surprising complexities about what’s actually standing.
Key Takeaways
- Paramount Ranch hosted Western TV shows like *Tombstone Territory* and HBO’s *Westworld* before the 2018 Woolsey Fire destroyed most structures.
- Paria Ghost Town in Kane County served 1950s Western TV productions, earning the area the nickname “Little Hollywood” for frequent filming.
- Alabama Hills provided natural backdrops for 1950s-60s TV series including Hopalong Cassidy, Gene Autry, Bonanza, and Have Gun Will Travel.
- Pioneertown features an authentic 1880s Western streetscape specifically designed for film and television productions in California’s Inland Empire.
- California Gold Country towns like Bodie, Calico, and Randsburg preserve historic mining-era architecture used extensively for Western television filming.
Paramount Ranch: From Classic Westerns to Modern HBO Productions
When Paramount Pictures acquired 2,700 acres in the Santa Monica Mountains in 1927, they established more than just another filming site—they created a cinematic chameleon. You’ll find this Agoura Hills location transformed into Welsh villages, medieval England, and African savannahs under directors like Cecil B. DeMille.
The Western Town emerged in the early 1950s on 326 acres, featuring Academy Award-winning facades that hosted everything from *Tombstone Territory* to HBO’s *Westworld*. After Congress designated the area a National Recreation Area in 1980, the National Park Service applied restoration techniques using Robert Hertz’s input and vintage photographs. The iconic church built for *Westworld* allowed visitors to enter and explore the structure, despite its minimal interior remaining.
The 2018 Woolsey Fire demolished most structures, but historical preservation efforts continue. You’re free to explore the hiking trails while crews rebuild this adaptable backdrop where *Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman* once filmed.
Paria Ghost Town and Kane County’s “Little Hollywood” Legacy
You’ll find Paria’s transformation from failed Mormon settlement to filming location began in 1961, when the Rat Pack’s *Sergeants 3* brought Hollywood crews to this flood-ravaged site one mile west of the original townsite.
The imitation Old West town they constructed served productions through 1975’s *The Outlaw Josey Wales*, earning Kane County its “Little Hollywood” designation.
The original settlement, founded in 1870 about 5 miles upstream from the initial 1865 Rockhouse location, had been abandoned by 1929 after decades of devastating Paria River floods.
Today you can access these weathered remnants via a 4.7-mile dirt road off US 89, though the movie sets have largely burned or succumbed to the same erosive forces that drove settlers from the Paria River valley. The ghost town sits within Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, where the stark desert landscape continues to draw photographers and history enthusiasts.
Paria’s Hollywood Discovery History
Though Paria’s original settlers abandoned their flood-ravaged town by the early 1930s, Hollywood discovered the remote canyon’s cinematic potential within a decade. The 1930s brought film crews to photograph dramatic colorful outcrops surrounding the ruins.
By 1943, producers shot the first Western here—*Buffalo Bill*—capitalizing on the picturesque canyon vista backgrounds that’d eluded Peter Shirts’ original Mormon pioneers.
You’ll find the ghost town revival gained momentum through the 1950s as television westerns exploded in popularity. However, producers quickly recognized that Paria floods threatened expensive equipment and elaborate sets.
This logistical reality prompted the 1962 construction of a replica movie set one mile west for the Rat Pack’s *Sergeants 3*—Kane County’s largest western production, built beyond the river’s destructive reach. The set was abandoned, rebuilt twice, and vandalized over subsequent decades, though it continues to attract visitors exploring the area’s film legacy. The old town site’s activity increased with film production in the mid-20th century, enhancing tourist visits to the remote location. Nearby Kanab earned its “Little Hollywood” moniker as the region’s filming activity expanded, with the rugged landscape and convenient location making it a familiar hub within the Western film industry.
Kane County Film Remnants
Movie remnants you’ll find today include:
- Barn structure from 1976’s One Little Indian near Best Friends turnoff
- Crumbling foundations at Paria’s original 1870 settlement
- Stone monument marking Pareah Townsite via dirt parking lot
- Striated sandstone canyons framing former ambush sequences
Most sets disappeared decades ago, leaving multicolored badlands and weathered foundations where cameras once captured television’s frontier mythology. Natural disasters including floods and fire destroyed many film locations like Paria over the years. The constructed movie set built west of the original town for Sergeants 3 is often mistaken by visitors for the authentic historic settlement.
California Gold Country’s Living Ghost Towns and Railroad Heritage
California’s Gold Country spans a 300-mile corridor along the Sierra Nevada foothills, where weathered mining camps and preserved boom towns now double as atmospheric filming locations for Western productions. You’ll find Bodie State Historic Park maintaining authentic arrested decay—no modern intrusions, just genuine Gold Rush structures along Highway 270.
Calico operates differently, transforming its silver strike legacy into a working theme park with a railroad and operational saloons. The restored site hosts ghost tours and stunt shows that recreate Wild West scenarios, particularly popular during Halloween season. Randsburg keeps roughly 70 residents among 1890s-era buildings, while Coloma marks where California’s gold fever began.
Ballarat’s adobe ruins scatter across Panamint Valley, accessible via dirt roads north of Trona. These sites preserve abandoned mines and wooden facades that production crews value for their unrestored authenticity. The remote location gained notoriety after the Manson Family left graffiti in 1968.
No commercial facilities exist at most locations—you’ll need self-sufficient planning for remote desert access.
Alabama Hills: Versatile Filming Territory for Blockbusters and Classic TV
Since 1920, Alabama Hills has anchored Eastern Sierra filming with granite boulders and golden volcanic rock arches that mimic landscapes from Northern India to alien planets. You’ll traverse Movie Road’s washboard surface to Lone Ranger Ambush Point, where classic TV transformed rugged terrain into frontier battlegrounds.
BLM-administered public land prohibits permanent structures, ensuring authentic wilderness remains accessible—no modern renovations cluttering your exploration.
Classic TV series dominated the 1950s peak with 26 prime-time westerns:
- *Hopalong Cassidy* filmed 30 episodes across these formations
- *The Gene Autry Show* utilized distinctive rock outcroppings
- *Bonanza* captured dramatic backdrops for frontier storytelling
- *Have Gun Will Travel* leveraged varied terrain
Urban legends persist about hidden props, though BLM mandates complete set removal post-production. The Lone Pine Film History Museum displays Dr. Schultz’s wagon and offers guided *Tremors* location tours across this versatile filming territory.
Cerro Gordo Mining Town’s Extensive Production History
You’ll find Cerro Gordo’s weathered smelter ruins and mine buildings perched at 8,500 feet in the Inyo Mountains.
Production crews have captured the authentic decay of California’s largest silver-lead operation from 1865 to 1949.
The town’s 30 miles of mining tunnels, restored American Hotel, and panoramic views of Owens Lake below create multiple staging zones for Western films requiring genuine 19th-century industrial backdrops.
Its remote elevation and preserved infrastructure—including original adobe structures and metal processing sites—provide filmmakers with varied terrain that shifts from mountaintop mining camps to desert valley approaches.
Multiple Production Base Locations
When Pablo Flores climbed to Buena Vista Peak’s summit in 1865, he established the primitive operations that would transform Cerro Gordo into one of the West’s most prolific silver-lead producers.
You’ll find this rugged terrain hosted multiple production bases spanning 30 miles of mine tunnels, extracting nearly $500 million in mineral wealth.
Key Production Sites:
- San Lucas mine processing 1112 tons of ore every 12 hours
- Union Mine with 300-foot vertical shaft house
- Eleven simultaneous operations shipping bullion to San Francisco by 1872
- Later zinc carbonate extraction facilities operating 1911-1919
Belshaw’s Yellow Road connected these scattered sites, enabling cultural preservation through documented infrastructure.
Today’s tourism promotion benefits from surviving smelter ruins, shaft houses, and the 1871 American Hotel—tangible evidence of operations that supplied Los Angeles with its early silver economy.
Mining Town Film History
Though Cerro Gordo‘s rugged elevation of 8,500 feet presents significant logistical challenges, the ghost town’s authentic mining infrastructure attracts production crews seeking genuine Old West aesthetics.
You’ll find original smelting facilities, shaft entrances, and weathered buildings dating to 1866 that create unmatched period authenticity.
The Yellow Road, carved through rock in 1868 to facilitate silver trade down the mountain, provides dramatic terrain for chase sequences and wagon scenes.
Mining legislation storylines gain credibility when filmed against genuine ore processing structures and the Union Mine complex.
Production teams value the 336-acre property’s operational mining equipment, vintage general store, and minimal modern intrusions.
The site’s century-long abandonment preserved architectural details that constructed sets can’t replicate, delivering viewers believable frontier mining camp atmosphere without digital enhancement.
Inland Empire Ghost Towns and Their Film-Ready Infrastructure
The Inland Empire’s ghost towns stand as purpose-built production assets scattered across the High Desert between Riverside and San Bernardino counties. You’ll find infrastructure ranging from ancient ruins-style architecture to urban decay aesthetics across these preserved locations.
Pioneertown delivers authentic 1880s Western streetscapes where residents coexist with film crews. Eagle Mountain provides abandoned industrial complexes against desert terrain. Amboy’s Route 66 heritage offers versatile setups along historic corridors.
Film-Ready Infrastructure Advantages:
- Preserved structures eliminate extensive set construction costs
- Remote desert locations provide sound isolation and lighting control
- Accessible roads accommodate equipment trucks and crew vehicles
- Minimal permitting restrictions compared to populated areas
These sites function as working production facilities where you’re not just visiting history—you’re utilizing architecture designed for cameras. The terrain dictates your shooting parameters while delivering genuine weathered textures impossible to replicate on soundstages.
Temporary Set Modifications and Architectural Preservation Practices
Production crews balance location authenticity against filming requirements through strategic modifications that ghost towns either absorb permanently or shed after cameras depart.
You’ll find Paramount Ranch’s Westworld church exemplifies this approach—constructed in 2016, its steeple was removed post-filming to prevent architectural integrity compromises across future productions.
Carnivale’s 1930s transformation demonstrated reversible cosmetic alterations, though some features remained integrated.
Set safety concerns allow certain additions to stay: Golden’s Gunsmoke grave markers and Paria’s John Carter farm equipment now blend into landscapes.
Meanwhile, South Pass City’s 24 preserved structures maintain strict period authenticity with 30 room exhibits.
Pioneertown operates as a permanent living set since 1946, proving modification and preservation can coexist when crews respect original frameworks while meeting production demands.
Separating Filming Facts From Hollywood Folklore
- Bodie’s 10,000-person peak documented in 1879, not Hollywood’s inflated millions.
- Rhyolite’s bottle house appeared in 20+ films while maintaining architectural integrity.
- Grafton’s 1969 “Butch Cassidy” shoot preserved actual adobe ruins without staged facades.
- White Oaks’ Billy the Kid connection factual through 1881 Lincoln County records.
Film tourism now draws 100,000+ annual visitors to these sites, yet California’s 346 ghost towns and Nevada’s 106 remain largely undiscovered.
You’re free to explore authentic decay at 8,735-foot Bodie or Rhyolite’s Southwest ruins—locations where cameras captured real Western remnants rather than constructed mythology.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Much Does It Cost to Film at These Ghost Town Locations?
Ironically, these weathered ghost towns won’t ghost your budget—you’ll find no filming permits or location fees documented. Most sites operate as public parks or abandoned properties where you’re free to explore dusty streets without financial barriers.
Can Tourists Visit These Filming Locations When Productions Aren’t Actively Shooting?
You’ll find tourist access widely available at these historic sites between productions. Historical preservation efforts keep locations like Eagle Mountain, Paria, and Bannack open for exploration, letting you roam weathered streets and abandoned structures freely across rugged Western terrain.
What Safety Precautions Are Required When Filming in Abandoned Mining Towns?
You’ll need hazard assessments before entering unstable structures, FFP3 masks for asbestos and mold, sturdy boots for debris-laden terrain, and visitor signage warning crews about shaft openings. Never explore alone—crumbling floors and toxic air demand constant vigilance.
Do Production Companies Need Special Insurance to Film at Ghost Towns?
Yes, you’ll need specialized film insurance with liability coverage for ghost town shoots. Insurance requirements protect against property damage at historic sites, crew injuries on unstable terrain, and equipment loss in remote desert locations where standard policies won’t suffice.
How Long Does the Permit Approval Process Typically Take?
Your permit application approval timeline varies dramatically by jurisdiction—you’ll wait 3 business days for standard San Bernardino permits, while regional parks demand 4 weeks. BLM’s minimal-impact locations process faster than State Parks’ lengthy requirements.
References
- https://californiathroughmylens.com/paramount-ranch-old-movie-town/
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZmA_VF6cm8
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VR-t5w9wSeU
- https://roadtrippers.com/magazine/kanab-utah-little-hollywood/
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9hcl3zpS4I
- https://iefilmpermits.com/library/ghost-towns/
- https://www.usawelcome.net/news/explore-ghost-towns-west-usa.htm
- https://waves.edwardthomasco.com/santa-monica-paramount-ranch/
- https://paleofuture.com/blog/2018/11/10/paramount-ranch-location-for-hbos-westworld-and-countless-movies-burns-to-the-ground
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Movie_ranch
