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Llano, Tropico, and Willow Springs

Using Philip Varney's Southern California's Best Ghost Towns, we toured these three "ghost towns" in the Antelope Valley.

Llano del Rio was a socialist colony founded by Job Harriman in 1913.  The colony's population peeked at about 500 people who built a number of stone buildings including a very large barn.

Gold was discovered at Tropico Hill in 1882 by Ezra Hamilton.  The Tropico Mine operated until 1956.

Hamilton purchased Willow Springs to provide water for the Tropico mine, but in 1904 he built a resort on the property.  Although the resort closed in 1918, some of the buildings are still occupied.