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Once a thriving mining town, then a virtual ghost town when Route 66 was bypassed, Oatman has been reborn in recent years as a popular tourist destination for its Old West flavor. Many of its historic buildings still stand, including the Oatman Hotel, where Clark Gable and Carole Lombard spent a night of their honeymoon, and where the lobby is covered by thousands of dollar bills that tourists have attached to the walls and ceilings. There are stagecoach rides, cowboy shootouts and gift shops galore. But above all there are the burros, descendants of animals released in the hills by miners. They function today as the semi-official stop lights, wandering the narrow streets and poking their heads into car windows looking for handouts. Local residents care for them -- although they are free to wander as they wish.
If you go:
Main Street is also known as Oatman-Topock Highway, County Highway 10, and of course Old Route 66. The streets are bustling with activity all year except during the summer, when people tend to stay away because the heat is so severe. But if you do venture into town around the Fourth of July, you may witness festivities that include frying eggs on the sidewalks. It's advisable, especially in a large vehicle, to approach Oatman from the west, because the hills to the east are steep and the road narrow and winding.
Links:
Main Street
Oatman, Arizona 86433 USA
oatman@oatmangoldroad.org
Mailing address:
Oatman Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 423
Oatman, AZ 86433 USA
Phone Numbers:
Oatman Chamber of Commerce
+1 (928) 768-6222
+1 (928) 768-6222
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