Clay Ville is a ghost town located in Cartwright Township, Illinois. Clay Ville served an important role in the heyday as it was the stop over for travelers to Springfield. The town is currently in total ruin serving as an historic site having been abandoned for decades now. 

Establishment 

In the early 1800s, recreation buildings were unheard of in major developing towns and cities. An investor willing to change history, John Broadwell, constructed the Broadwell Tavern. This Tavern would lure people from far and beyond for its services. This simple building would lead to the development of a town (Clay Ville) just at the road that was used by many.  The region offered a good spot for travelers to rest and refresh before going on with their adventures in Springfield.  Soon major development would be seen in the small community by the roadside. This was brought about by numerous customers to the newly established saloon in Springfield. Broadwell Tavern was still the culprit to the increased number of travelers after being given license to sell alcohol. Just like that, ClayVille town was established and named in honor of Henry Clay, a local political leader.  

Decline of the town

The railroad leading to Illinois state halted their stopovers at ClayVille at the beginning of 1860, this means that it would pass directly through the town. Many who relied on travelers from the said train went out of business leading to a decline in the population as most of them left to seek jobs elsewhere. In an effort to bring back life to the town, a stagecoach was introduced in 1900 but this too did not work out as expected. 

Most of the enterprises were sold to local investors, who ultimately realized that they had made a loss rather than a profit on the deal. By the fall of 1901, the town was completely deserted and had become a countryside. Locals from Dome were thought to still live in the area, however it is now assumed that they have all died.

Reconstruction of the town

Months after it was deserted, a community from the nearby Sangamon County bought all the relevant structures in the townsite with the effort of turning the whole area into an open-air museum. They were able to preserve some and the museum opened from 1901 to 1902 after running for a whole year at loss instead of profits. This again would see the town of Clay Ville deserted a second time. Today, Pleasant plains are in full charge of the townsite. They acquired it in 2009 and fought for it to be declared a historic site. The site operates annual spring activities, summer music meetings, festivals and car cruise-ins.