Vulture City, human settlement in Arizona, United States

Vulture City is a ghost town in Arizona built around the abandoned Vulture Mine. Its 1884 Assay Office still stands: a long, single-storey building of rough grey and brown rubble masonry, with four rectangular openings in a row, a corrugated metal roof and a small sign reading "ASSAY OFFICE" above a boarded doorway. A barbed-wire fence runs in front.

Henry Wickenburg discovered gold in the area in 1863, leading to the town's founding; the mine became Arizona's richest gold deposit. The town thrived in the late 1800s with up to 5,000 residents but operated sporadically from the 1890s onward and closed permanently in 1942 during World War II.

The name Vulture City comes from the Vulture Mine, named after the vultures that circled above the gold deposits. The ruins reflect the rough life of the gold rush era, with simple structures showing how miners and their families lived together in the desert.

The site is located about 12 miles southwest of Wickenburg and is accessible via Highway 60 heading west, then south on Vulture Mine Road. Visitors are advised to wear sturdy shoes and bring plenty of water, as the area is extremely hot and dry.

Eighteen men were hanged on an ironwood tree beside the ruins of Henry Wickenburg's house, according to the record of Vulture City. The tree is a specific spot to look for among the ruins, not a general symbol. Wickenburg himself, the mine's discoverer, served as the town's first postmaster when the post office opened on October 4, 1880.