Centralia

Centralia is the name of several places in North America. The best-known are Centralia, Washington, and Centralia, Pennsylvania, both of which became notable for underground coal mine fires that began in the 1960s and continued for decades. In both towns, fires caused ground instability and hazardous gases, prompting evacuations and, in many areas, abandonment of houses and businesses.

Centralia, Washington is a small, hillside community in Lewis County. An underground coal seam fire ignited in 1962, spreading beneath the town and triggering subsidence and unsafe air quality. By the late 20th century most residents had left, and today only a handful remain. The area has attracted visitors for the Graffiti Highway, a closed section of road covered in graffiti before being closed to traffic.

Centralia, Pennsylvania is a borough in the coal region where, similarly, an underground fire started in 1962 and persisted for many decades. Extensive evacuations reduced the population, and much of the town center has been abandoned or repurposed. The fire zone remains a defining feature of the community’s history.

Beyond these, Centralia is also the name of several smaller communities in Illinois, Missouri and other states. These places are generally rural and largely residential or agricultural, with no ongoing fires of comparable scale.