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All Mexico Durango San Vicente de Chupaderos
AO Edited

San Vicente de Chupaderos

A small town that began as a western movie set.

Durango, Mexico

Added By
Mario Yair T.S.
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The town of San Vicente de Chupaderos started as a film set.   Mario Yair TS / Atlas Obscura User
Fake stores on the town’s “main street.”   Mario Yair TS / Atlas Obscura User
The “bank” is really just a facade.   Mario Yair TS / Atlas Obscura User
This gallows is a leftover set piece.   Mario Yair TS / Atlas Obscura User
The remains of the film set on the town’s main street.   Mario Yair TS / Atlas Obscura User
Parts of the town are remains of the western set.   Mario Yair TS / Atlas Obscura User
The “ghost town” of Chupaderos.   Mario Yair TS / Atlas Obscura User
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The town of Chupaderos, Mexico, doesn't exist. Or at least it didn't when it was created. Chupaderos was a fake town created in 1954 to film the American western, White Feather.

The town operated as a set until 1977. Robert Wagner, Tom Berenger, Daniela Romo, María Félix, John Travolta, Pedro Armendáriz, John Wayne, Audrey Hepburn, Jack Nicholson, Charlton Heston, and even Ringo Starr all performed there.

Among the facades are a hotel, a bank, a saloon, a church, and even a gallows in the middle of the street. A community grew up around the set, working as extras, porters, or assistants who made their homes there. When the westerns were forgotten, the set was abandoned, but the town took it upon itself to keep the place alive.

Eventually, the set took on a life of its own as a real town. There are real schools, shops, and churches. But downtown, the film set remains abandoned, like a ghost town.

Tourists visiting the Durango area generally seek out the "Paseo del Viejo Oeste," which emerged a decade later as a tiny theme park built on another set. 

Related Tags

Old West Film Locations Movie Sets
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Added By

Mario Yair TS

Published

May 30, 2025

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San Vicente de Chupaderos
Durango, 34301
Mexico
24.116814, -104.719979

Nearby Places

Catedral Basílica Menor de Durango (Durango Cathedral)

Durango, Mexico

miles away

Paseo Túnel Minería Durango (Durango Mining Tunnel Walk)

Durango, Mexico

miles away

Durango Walk of Fame

Durango, Mexico

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Durango

Durango

Mexico

Places 4

Nearby Places

Catedral Basílica Menor de Durango (Durango Cathedral)

Durango, Mexico

miles away

Paseo Túnel Minería Durango (Durango Mining Tunnel Walk)

Durango, Mexico

miles away

Durango Walk of Fame

Durango, Mexico

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Durango

Durango

Mexico

Places 4

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