Bodie, a former gold rush town in California's Sierra Nevada mountains, is now a ghost town preserved in a state of 'managed decline'. Visitors are warned of an infamous curse said to bring misfortune to anyone who removes an object from the site.
From boomtown to ghost town
Bodie's story began in 1859 when prospectors, including William S. Bodey, discovered a large amount of gold near the Nevada border. Bodey died in a blizzard that November and never saw the town that would bear his name. A misspelt sign meant the wrong version of his surname was used thereafter.
The town remained a small mining camp until 1876, when the Standard Company uncovered an even larger deposit of gold-bearing ore. Prospectors flooded in, and by 1879 the population had reached between 7,000 and 10,000, with around 2,000 buildings. At its peak, as many as 65 saloons lined 'Main Street', where murders, gunfights, drunken brawls and stagecoach robberies were said to be common.
Decline and disaster
From the 1880s, miners left for richer opportunities elsewhere, while fires, harsh winters and falling profits hastened Bodie's decline, along with its notoriety for violence and crime. A major blaze destroyed much of the business district in 1932, and the last mine closed in 1942 after the US government ordered non-essential gold mines to shut during the Second World War.
Over the years, the town has become shrouded in mystery, with countless tales of hauntings and ghostly encounters. One local legend claims residents sheltering inside Bodie's wooden Methodist church saw Bodey's ghost walking through the flames. His spirit supposedly warned: "Do not touch what is mine."
The curse and its consequences
Bodie became a state historic park in 1962 and is now preserved in a state of 'arrested decay', meaning its remaining buildings are protected but not restored. Inside, tables remain covered with dusty plates, shelves hold abandoned goods, and furniture sits where former residents supposedly left it.
According to the so-called 'Bodie Curse', anyone who removes an object will experience terrible misfortune until it is returned. Park staff have received stolen rocks, bottles and nails accompanied by apologetic letters blaming them for illnesses, lost jobs and car crashes. One visitor reportedly wrote: "You can have these godforsaken rocks back. I’ve never had so much rotten luck in my life."
A park interpreter said the curse was apparently promoted by a ranger to discourage theft, with one visitor even said to have removed an entire piano.
