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Tarkey Tail

Ghost town · Burke County, North Carolina

Morganton South quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1956, 1:24,000)
Morganton South quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1956, 1:24,000) · U.S. Geological Survey, Historical Topographic Map Collection · Public domain

Tarkey Tail is a ghost town in Burke County, North Carolina. It is one of 8 former communities in Burke County on the federal names register. That ranks the county 13th among the 48 North Carolina counties with a vanished settlement on record.

The U.S. Geological Survey lists Tarkey Tail as a historical populated place on the Morganton South 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 35.7301° N, 81.7351° W.

Key facts

USGS quadrangleMorganton South
Elevation1,042 ft
Nearest living townMorganton, NC
Distance to it2.1 miles
GNIS feature ID1001490
Coordinates35.73013, -81.73510

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What's there now

Tarkey Tail is no longer a community in its own right. The nearest living town is Morganton, NC (population 17,541), about 2.1 miles away in a straight line, and the site sits at roughly 1,042 feet above sea level. Much of the land around former townsites is private; check access before you visit.

Nearby places

Questions

Where is Tarkey Tail?

Tarkey Tail is in Burke County, North Carolina, at 35.7301, -81.7351.

How many ghost towns are in Burke County?

Burke County, North Carolina has 8 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.