Abandoned Towns

Ghost town record · Shasta County, California

Horsetown

Historical place in Shasta County, United States.

Record

About Horsetown

Horsetown was a major historical mining town on the Clear Creek in Reading, California, United States in Shasta County. The town was founded as a tent mining town in 1851 after Major Pierson Barton Reading found gold just east of where the town was founded.

This is a site record: what public sources say about Horsetown, gathered in one place. We haven't written a full guide yet, so history, current access and photos are still to come. Treat the status as unknown until a guide confirms it.

Map

Where Horsetown is

USGS topographic map around Horsetown
USGS topographic map, The National Map (public domain). The pin marks the coordinates in the record; old townsites are often a little off.

Historic maps

11 historic USGS maps cover Horsetown

Topographic sheets from the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain), oldest first. Older sheets often show the camp, mines and roads while the place was alive. The downloads are large map scans; USGS topoView shows them in the browser.

Directions

Getting there

Google Maps directionsApple MapsOpenStreetMap

Before you go

  • Many ghost town sites are on private land, active mining claims or tribal land. Check land status and ask permission.
  • Roads to old townsites are often unmaintained dirt. Map apps may route over closed or impassable tracks.
  • Removing artifacts from public land is illegal under federal and most state laws.

Nearby

Other sites near Horsetown

Straight-line distance to other mapped sites in our California index.

Sources

Sources

  1. Wikipedia, "Horsetown, California": coordinates and summary.
  2. Wikidata Q123125551.
  3. USGS 3D Elevation Program, elevation at the coordinates.
  4. USGS The National Map and Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain).