Welcome to Kingman: An overhead neon-lit banner sign over Route 66 welcomes visitors to the city of Kingman. Ariz. The welcome sign is framed with two Route 66 shields on each end of the banner. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Hilltop Motel: The Hilltop Motel sits in its original location on Route 66 in Kingman, Ariz. The motel has been renovated, but the rooms were redesigned into apartments. The original sign has also been renovated and shines nightly with the bright neon lights very popular during the busiest years of the route. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
By GARY WARREN
Photographer
Formerly of Los Alamos
When traversing across northern Arizona on our current trip, I began to realize how much this part of the state offers for travelers on Route 66. Route 66 enters Arizona (from the east) just west of Gallup, N.M. and crosses the northern portion of the state before exiting Arizona near Needles, Calif. The longest continuous stretch of the original route is about 170 miles in length, beginning just west of Ash Fork, Ariz. to the California state line.
Several small towns and villages offer attractions such as Winslow with the “Standin’ On the Corner” feature resulting from the famous Eagles hit “Take It Easy”. Flagstaff is the largest of the Arizona cities along the route, and it also has several landmarks and features along the “Mother Road” as it crosses from one end to the other through the center of town.
One town that flies “under the radar” but has some interesting sites and features along Route 66 is Kingman, Ariz. Kingman was built by the railroad industry and continues to be a very busy track with freight trains passing through town about four times per hour. The train station has daily Amtrak service as well as housing a model railroad museum.
During WW II, Kingman Army Airfield was very active during the war, but the airport was turned over to Mohave County for civilian use after the end of WW II.
Kingman is the county seat of Mohave County in northwestern Arizona. The original Mohave County Courthouse (1915) is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. There are many other historic sites in the city that are included in the national register as well.
The Arizona Route 66 Museum is located in the same facility as the Kingman Visitors Center with several nice exhibits featuring the famous roadway. A first class visitors center and gift shop are downstairs and the Route 66 Museum is upstairs. Also in the facility is an Electric Vehicle Museum featuring electric vehicles from decades ago up to the current models we see on the road today.
Other Route 66 era sites include older gas stations, hotels, motels, diners and other places of business that dotted the route as it passed through the city. Many of the sites have been restored and/or repurposed to fit modern day travelers. The “main street” in downtown is Beale Street, which is a block off of Route 66 but retains many of the buildings and features from decades ago when the route was a major thoroughfare through the city.
Kingman is surrounded by desert mountains and sits at an elevation of about 3,500 feet. The higher elevation allows for a milder climate than much of Arizona. While the area doesn’t see the cold and snow of the Flagstaff and Williams area, it also does not see the heat found in Phoenix and other areas of the state.
I believe one reason that Kingman “flies under the radar” and may not receive the attention of other areas along Route 66 in Arizona is that many travelers pass through the area on the way to sites in southern California, which is just a few miles west of Kingman, or Las Vegas, which is about two hours north of Kingman.
We love the Kingman area and try to stop there every time we travel to the West Coast. We find it a more relaxed and friendly atmosphere than the cities farther to the west in California. We also like the location as Kingman is close to many interesting sites in northern Arizona and the southern California desert.
Kingman will never “fly under our radar” for us, as we will always make it a stop along the journey as we roam the southwest and western U.S.
Editor’s note: Longtime Los Alamos photographer Gary Warren and his wife Marilyn are traveling around the country, and he shares his photographs, which appear in the “Posts from the Road” series published in the Sunday edition of the Los Alamos Daily Post.
Kingman Drive-Through: A neon-lit drive-through Route 66 shield stands near the Kingman Visitors Center and Arizona Route 66 Museum. The shield was added to the center in 2021 and is a very popular attraction. When passing by the sign, there is almost always a car under the sign with travelers taking photographs of their car at the sign. Many evenings cars wait in line to drive around and through the shield. Seen across the street is the famous Mr. D’s Route 66 Diner, which is probably the most popular restaurant along the route in Kingman. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Freight Train: A freight train passes by the Kingman Railroad Depot. About four trains per hour pass through the area moving in both directions. This is a very popular and busy East/West train route. Daily Amtrak trains also pass by the station where riders can board or disembark in Kingman. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Heart of Route 66: A newly added neon sign along Route 66 in Kingman reads ‘Kingman Heart of Historic Route 66’. The bright neon lights shine on the ground around the sign, lighting the space in red. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Vintage Gas Station: A 1960s vintage gas station has recently been restored and stands proudly alongside Route 66 in Kingman, Ariz. A 1960s era Volkswagen Beetle sits at the pump ready for service to accentuate the scene. Kingman has spruced up the Route 66 sites and added new sites such as this restored gas station just in time for the Route 66 Centennial Celebrations and travelers throughout 2026. It is difficult for me to think of 1960s era stations as vintage!! Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Museum Entrance: The Visitors Center and Arizona Route 66 Museum are housed in a beautifully restored Powerhouse. The welcome center and gift shop are on the main floor and the Route 66 Museum is on the second floor. Also in the facility is an Electric Vehicle Museum. The center and museum are always busy with visitors planning their next adventure. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com