Wayfarrow

Alka

Ghost town · Dickenson County, Virginia

Clintwood quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1913, 1:62,500)
Clintwood quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1913, 1:62,500) · U.S. Geological Survey, Historical Topographic Map Collection · Public domain

Alka is a ghost town in Dickenson County, Virginia. It is one of 6 former communities in Dickenson County on the federal names register. That ranks the county 11th among the 90 Virginia counties with a vanished settlement on record.

The U.S. Geological Survey lists Alka as a historical populated place on the Caney Ridge 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 37.0312° N, 82.4740° W.

Key facts

USGS quadrangleCaney Ridge
Elevation1,842 ft
Nearest living townCoeburn, VA
Distance to it5.9 miles
GNIS feature ID1497362
Coordinates37.03122, -82.47404

Open the location on a map

What's there now

Alka is no longer a community in its own right. The nearest living town is Coeburn, VA (population 1,606), about 5.9 miles away in a straight line, and the site sits at roughly 1,842 feet above sea level. Much of the land around former townsites is private; check access before you visit.

Nearby places

Questions

Where is Alka?

Alka is in Dickenson County, Virginia, at 37.0312, -82.4740.

How many ghost towns are in Dickenson County?

Dickenson County, Virginia has 6 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.