Tin Can Alley
Ghost town · Harlan County, Kentucky

Tin Can Alley is a ghost town in Harlan County, Kentucky. It is the only former community in Harlan County recorded on the federal names register, out of 1,175 across Kentucky.
The U.S. Geological Survey lists Tin Can Alley as a historical populated place on the Harlan 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 36.8597° N, 83.2532° W.
Key facts
| USGS quadrangle | Harlan |
|---|---|
| Elevation | 1,260 ft |
| Nearest living town | Ages, KY |
| Distance to it | 0.6 miles |
| GNIS feature ID | 2565838 |
| Coordinates | 36.85967, -83.25322 |
What's there now
Tin Can Alley is no longer a community in its own right. The nearest living town is Ages, KY (population 302), about 0.6 miles away in a straight line, and the site sits at roughly 1,260 feet above sea level. Much of the land around former townsites is private; check access before you visit.
Nearby places
- Upper Laurel Forkghost town · Leslie County · 7.1 mi
- Leeghost town · Lee County · 10.3 mi
- Miltonghost town · Letcher County · 11.2 mi
- Bondurantghost town · Lee County · 11.9 mi
- Leona Minesghost town · Lee County · 12.8 mi
- Imperialghost town · Lee County · 12.9 mi
- Beech Forkghost town · Perry County · 16.4 mi
- Robbinsghost town · Lee County · 16.6 mi
- Mill Branchghost town · Lee County · 16.7 mi
- Bucklesghost town · Lee County · 16.7 mi
- Beehiveghost town · Perry County · 17.3 mi
- Johnsons Millghost town · Lee County · 18.2 mi
- USGS Geographic Names Information System (Domestic Names) — GNIS Domestic Names, feature record (public-domain)
- U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line and ACS — Census Gazetteer + ACS 5-year population (public-domain)
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.