Abandoned Record
About Birchville
Birchville, or Smith Ranch, now a ghost town, was located in what is now Hudspeth County, Texas, United States. Birchville was a settlement on the San Antonio-El Paso Road in what was El Paso County.
This is a site record: what public sources say about Birchville, 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 Birchville is
Historic maps
7 historic USGS maps cover Birchville
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.
- 1894 Fort Hancock sheet, 1:125,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1943 Fort Hancock sheet, 1:62,500 · GeoTIFF download
- 1954 Van Horn sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1958 Van Horn sheet, 1:250,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1972 Acala sheet, 1:24,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1972 Fort Hancock NW sheet, 1:24,000 · GeoTIFF download
- 1985 Sierra Blanca sheet, 1:100,000 · 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 Birchville
Straight-line distance to other mapped sites in our Texas index.
- Acala4.7 mi SE · Hudspeth
- Finlay21.4 mi E · Hudspeth
- Lasca30.6 mi E · Hudspeth
- Fort Quitman31.2 mi SE · Hudspeth
- Etholen33.6 mi E · Hudspeth
Sources
Sources
- Wikipedia, "Birchville, Texas": coordinates and summary.
- Wikidata Q16254802.
- USGS GNIS 2034616.
- USGS 3D Elevation Program, elevation at the coordinates.
- USGS The National Map and Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain).