Abandoned Towns
Aerial view of the forested hills around Glen Oaks, with AZ 89 winding through the Board Creek valley

Railroad and road town

Glen Oaks

A name on the Prescott–Wickenburg highway that appears on the 1947 map and is marked a site by 1969. The written record is nearly empty, so this page shows what the maps can tell and what's missing.

34°26′35″N 112°32′55″W · 5,495 ft

Aerial imagery: USGS The National Map (public domain).

Not verified

We found no written history of Glen Oaks and no dated report of what's left. By BLM's land-status map the GNIS point lies on Prescott National Forest land beside AZ 89, but small private parcels don't show at that scale. Pull off only where it's safe, and treat fences and posted signs as closed.

Overview

A name on the highway

Glen Oaks sat on what is now AZ 89, the Prescott–Wickenburg highway, about 12 miles south of downtown Prescott. The spot is a small valley where the road meets Board Creek, at about 5,500 feet in the wooded hills of the Prescott National Forest. Glen Oaks Spring is mapped just west of the highway.

We found almost no written history. Wikipedia and the federal place-name database list Glen Oaks as a populated place with a location and an elevation, and nothing more. An undated listing gives its remains as a few foundations and the village well. We found no post office, no population count and no founding date.

The USGS maps tell a short story. The 1903 sheet shows a road down the Board Creek valley and no settlement. The 1947 sheet names Glen Oaks on the highway. By 1969 the map calls it "Glen Oaks (Site)", and by 1981 the name is gone. So Glen Oaks was on the map by the 1940s and gone by the late 1960s. Who lived here, and why, is a gap we hope readers can help fill.

Timeline

What the maps show

Glen Oaks on the highway beside Board Creek, USGS Kirkland sheet, 1947
Glen Oaks on the highway beside Board Creek, USGS Kirkland sheet, 1947 · Map: U.S. Geological Survey, USGS catalog, Public domain
  1. The first USGS sheet of the area shows no settlement here, only the creek and the Skull Valley road to the west.
  2. The Congress sheet shows a road running down the Board Creek valley, inside the area marked Prescott Forest. Still no Glen Oaks.
  3. The Kirkland sheet names Glen Oaks, on the highway beside Board Creek.
  4. The Wilhoit sheet labels the spot "Glen Oaks (Site)", with no buildings drawn.
  5. The Bradshaw Mountains sheet drops the name. Corrals, a windmill and a mine are marked nearby.
  6. GNIS still lists Glen Oaks as a populated place. An undated listing names a few foundations and the village well as remains.

Site map

Where Glen Oaks stood

The current USGS topo map puts Glen Oaks on AZ 89 where Board Creek runs beside the road. Glen Oaks Spring and features labeled White Rock Water lie a short way west, and road 9407G drops toward Board Creek to the south. On the 1969 sheet in the historic maps below, the "(Site)" label sits beside the highway with a spring to each side and a mine to the southeast. The 1903 sheet shows the Catoctin and Quartz Mountain mines a few miles south, and the 1981 sheet marks the White Spar Mine there.

The aerial view shows no buildings. Dirt tracks branch off the highway on both sides of the creek. We haven't been able to confirm whether the foundations and well in an undated listing are still visible.

  • Foundations (reported, undated)
  • Village well (reported, undated)
  • Glen Oaks Spring
  • Dirt tracks off the highway
USGS topographic map of the Glen Oaks site on AZ 89 with Glen Oaks Spring and Board Creek
USGS The National Map, topo. Glen Oaks sits on AZ 89 at Board Creek, with Glen Oaks Spring just west.
Aerial view of the Glen Oaks site: a paved highway curving through wooded hills, with dirt tracks branching off
Aerial imagery, same area. AZ 89 curves through the valley; dirt tracks branch off on both sides. No buildings are visible.

Historic maps

Glen Oaks on USGS maps, 1887–1981

Crops from the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection, centered on the townsite. Each sheet shows what surveyors mapped that year; compare them with today's topo and aerial on this page.

USGS topographic map around Glen Oaks, 1887
Prescott sheet, 1887, 1:250,000 · U.S. Geological Survey, public domain · catalog record

Map & directions

Getting there

Prescott is the closest city, less than half an hour away on AZ 89. From Phoenix the routed approach runs up I-17 and AZ 69 to Prescott, then south on AZ 89. The site is on a winding mountain highway, so pick your pullout with care.

USGS topographic map between Prescott and Glen Oaks with the route down AZ 89 drawn on it

Base map: USGS The National Map (public domain). Routes: OSRM on © OpenStreetMap contributors data (ODbL), computed October 2026. Times assume dry roads.

From downtown Prescott11.8 miabout 26 min
  1. From downtown Prescott, take Goodwin Street a block and turn left on Montezuma Street (AZ 89).0.7 mi
  2. Bear right onto White Spar Road, still AZ 89, and head south out of town.2.2 mi
  3. Continue south on AZ 89, the Wickenburg–Prescott Highway, to the Glen Oaks site at Board Creek.9.0 mi
Google Maps directionsApple MapsOpenStreetMap

Road and safety notes

  • AZ 89 is paved the whole way. South of Prescott it winds through the mountains, so use a proper pullout rather than stopping on the shoulder.
  • Snow is possible here in winter. Check Arizona road conditions before you go.
  • Land status at the site is from BLM's small-scale map. Respect fences, gates and posted signs.
  • The dirt tracks off the highway aren't described in any source we found. Don't take a low car down them without checking first.

Photos

Have photos of Glen Oaks?

We haven’t added more photographs of Glen Oaks yet. If you’ve visited, share your photos and a field report below.

Visitor reports

Been to Glen Oaks?

Been there lately? Tell the next visitor what you found: whether you could get in, the state of the road and what's still standing. Photos are welcome. We read every report before it appears here.

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Nearby

Other sites near Glen Oaks

Straight-line distance from the townsite to other mapped sites in our Arizona index.

Sources

Sources and credits

  1. ghosttowns.com, "Glen Oaks": fact sheet fields (roads, legal description, climate, best time, remains).
  2. Wikipedia, "Glen Oaks, Arizona", retrieved October 2026: coordinates and elevation (GNIS).
  3. USGS Geographic Names Information System, feature 29339: feature class (populated place) and location, checked through The National Map's place-name service in October 2026.
  4. USGS historical topographic maps, Congress (1903), Kirkland (1947), Wilhoit (1969) and Bradshaw Mountains (1981): the site's first appearance, the "(Site)" label and nearby mines.
  5. Sharlot Hall Museum, "Hours & Admission", as of October 2026: hours, closed days and admission.
  6. USDA Forest Service, recreational drone use: FAA rules apply, and drones are banned in wilderness.
  7. Legal description: BLM PLSS survey grid. Land status: BLM surface management map, October 2026. Trails and tracks: USGS The National Map and OpenStreetMap. Routes: OSRM on OpenStreetMap data, October 2026. Not field-checked.

Photo and map credits

Record4 of 10
  • Coordinates
  • Site on USGS maps, 1947 and 1969
  • Historic maps, 1887–1981
  • Land status (national forest)
  • Founding date
  • Who lived here
  • When it emptied
  • What remains today
  • Photos of the site
  • Field report
Missing items are what we'll ask readers and local sources to fill.