ABOUT

Amboy is an unincorporated community in San Bernardino County, in California's Mojave Desert, west of Needles and east ofLudlow on historic Route 66. It is roughly 60 miles (97 km) northeast of Twentynine Palms.

History

Although Amboy was first settled in 1858, the town was not established until 1883. Lewis Kingman, a locating engineer for theAtlantic and Pacific Railroad, created the town as the first of a series of alphabetical railroad stations that were to be constructed across the Mojave Desert. In 1926, Amboy became a boom town after the opening of U.S. Route 66. In 1938, Roy's Motel and Café opened, which prospered due to its isolated location on the route. By 1940, Amboy's population had increased to 65. Its growth was tied not only to tourists, but also to the Santa Fe Railroad over which high-speed freight trains still run today between Kingman, Arizona and the BNSF Railway Barstow, California yard.