# Amboy (California, USA), Hist. Route 66 -- 2012 -- 1

- By: Dietmar Rabich
- Date: Taken on 24 July 2012, 10:27
- Classification: Photograph
- Museum: [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Amboy_(California,_USA),_Hist._Route_66_--_2012_--_1.jpg)
- Rights: [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)
- Picture: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Amboy_%28California%2C_USA%29%2C_Hist._Route_66_--_2012_--_1.jpg/1920px-Amboy_%28California%2C_USA%29%2C_Hist._Route_66_--_2012_--_1.jpg
- Who can see it: Kids profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

Historic Route 66 near Amboy, California, USA The historic Route 66, also known as the “Mother Road”, was officially established in 1926 as one of the first highways in the United States. It connected Chicago, Illinois, with Santa Monica, California, and stretched for approximately 3,940 kilometers. Amboy, a small town in California, played a special role along Route 66 as a rest and supply station in the Mojave Desert. As early as the 1930s, Amboy became a popular stop for travelers and truck drivers. The famous Roy’s Motel and Café, which opened in 1938, became a landmark of the town and Route 66 as a whole. In the 1950s and 1960s, Route 66 experienced its heyday as road traffic and tourism increased significantly. Amboy benefited from this as an important stopover, but with the construction of the Interstate Highway System, particularly Interstate 40, Route 66 was increasingly bypassed from the 1970s onwards. This led to the economic decline of many towns along the route, including Amboy. In 1985, Route 66 was officially removed from the US highway system.