Record
About Bly
Bly is an extinct town in southwest Howell County, in the Ozarks of southern Missouri. The location is on Bennetts Bayou, approximately 3.5 miles southeast of Caulfield.
This is a site record: what public sources say about Bly, 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 Bly is

Historic maps
10 historic USGS maps cover Bly
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.
- 1944 Cureall sheet, 1:62,500 · GeoTIFF download
- 1945 Harrison sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1946 Cureall sheet, 1:62,500 · GeoTIFF download
- 1949 Harrison sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1954 Harrison sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1958 Harrison sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1964 Harrison sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1968 Caulfield sheet, 1:24,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1985 Ava sheet, 1:100,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1985 Harrison sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
Directions
Getting there
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 Bly
Straight-line distance to other mapped sites in our Missouri index.
Sources
Sources
- Wikipedia, "Bly, Missouri": coordinates and summary.
- Wikidata Q27995185.
- USGS 3D Elevation Program, elevation at the coordinates.
- USGS The National Map and Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain).