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Empire

Ghost town · Contra Costa County, California

Antioch quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1907, 1:62,500)
Antioch quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1907, 1:62,500) · U.S. Geological Survey, Historical Topographic Map Collection · Public domain

Empire is a ghost town in Contra Costa County, California. It is one of 13 former communities in Contra Costa County on the federal names register. That ranks the county 24th among the 58 California counties with a vanished settlement on record.

The U.S. Geological Survey lists Empire as a historical populated place on the Antioch North topographic quadrangle: the name is no longer in official use for a community, whether the settlement was abandoned, absorbed into a neighbouring town or renamed. The recorded location is 38.0035° N, 121.8150° W.

Key facts

USGS quadrangleAntioch North
Elevation45 ft
Nearest living townAntioch, CA
Distance to it2 miles
GNIS feature ID1682740
Coordinates38.00353, -121.81496

Open the location on a map

What's there now

Empire is no longer a community in its own right. The nearest living town is Antioch, CA (population 115,759), about 2 miles away in a straight line, and the site sits at roughly 45 feet above sea level. Much of the land around former townsites is private; check access before you visit.

Nearby places

Questions

Where is Empire?

Empire is in Contra Costa County, California, at 38.0035, -121.8150.

How many ghost towns are in Contra Costa County?

Contra Costa County, California has 13 ghost towns on record at Wayfarrow.

Sources and licences

Facts marked "approximately" carry an uncertain date in the source. Text on this page is generated from the sources above; no encyclopedia prose is copied. Last updated 2026-11-05.