Amboy School and Ghost Town – Route 66

There is something about abandoned buildings that makes your hair stand up on end. Whether it be a form of desperation from the structure to your subconscious for attention once more, or the spirits coyly beckoning you to come inside. Without hesitation, you heed the call and must get a glimpse. Amboy School and Ghost Town was like that for us.

We went inside “Roys Motel and Café” to inquire. This charming little café first opened in 1938 and was expanded after WWII. Manny Jr. was there to help us and gave us permission to go inside the school and explore. That really made our day. We have driven past this place many times and have always wanted to see inside.

The visit to amboy school

Gravel crackling underfoot can be heard radiating out into the vast emptiness around. Only basketball courts and a few jungle gyms dot the barren playground.

Directly ahead of us a small and weather-beaten building stands eerily silent. The low winter sun gives the surroundings a more ghostly feel.

Our first steps inside the floor creaks and groans and you can feel a weight in the air. Old class lessons, worn ceiling tiles and memories lay shattered along the floor.

Amboy school slide show

A crow calls out in the distance, and the sound of flapping wings comes flooding through the vacant hallways, adding to the mood.

You start to wonder while looking through each room, what has become of the students and teachers now. They once had a life and routine in this small town, but it’s begun to fade away, much like the pages strewn on the floor.

The history – Amboy School and Ghost Town

The original Amboy school was a small two-room building built in 1903 and was initially located by the railroad tracks. It is believed to have been moved to its current location in the late fifties and early sixties.

We haven’t found a lot of information about this school, all we know is, it closed in 1999 when the last of students moved away. Now the town of Amboy has a population of four.

AMBOY GHOST TOWN

Roy’s seems to be the only place that has a faint pulse.

Amboy was established initially in the 1850s by salt miners as a mining camp. Thirty-three years later a railroad came roaring in, and Amboy became a boomtown.

Serving as a respite for Route 66 travellers Amboy had three service stations. Three motor courts, four garages, two cafes, a church and a school.

Looking around today though, other buildings, like the church, have a suspended animation feel. St Raymond’s Catholic was dedicated on March 8, 1951, it seated approximately 100 individuals and due to lack of patrons closed on August 3 1970.

THE DEATH BLOW

In 1973 the owners of Roy’s, who also owned the town, moved away leaving the once-thriving Amboy a mere memory in the rearview.

This becomes a reoccurring theme on the road. Extensive freeways may make the journey quicker, but it causes places like Amboy to burn out. By bypassing them, their primary market of fuel, food and small-town charm falls in place of the large chains. It is further cementing their fate.

Ghost town slide show

GHOST TOWN FOR SALE 

Amboy ended up for sale on eBay in 2003. It is now owned by Albert Okura, who bought the town in 2005. He aims to put new life into Amboy. The service station “Roy’s”, is now open selling gas, some food and merchandise.

Mr Okura, the owner of the food chain Juan Pollo, is so passionate about Route 66, he even purchased the site of the original McDonald’s in San Bernadino and transformed it into a free museum.

Also used as a movie location for a few Hollywood movies, including The Hitcher (1986) and Kalifonia (1993) and more recently, the fantasy-thriller, Southbound (2015). Several music videos have also used Roy’s and the town of Amboy.

OUR EXPERIENCE

Once we finished having a good mooch through the school, we went back to Roy’s to thank Manny Jr. His father Manny Sr. came in, and we had a lovely chat about Route 66, what will happen to Amboy, what they would like to do and about the hotel and cabins on the property.

They even allowed us to have a look around the private fenced-off hotel area behind the store.

That is what is so beautiful about small towns. The ability to slow down, talk to friendly locals about their home and get their knowledge. You may also see things you usually don’t get the opportunity to because you’re in too much of a rush.

IN A NUTSHELL

• Located on Route 66
• Free to look around
• Respect ‘POSTED’ signs – most of the buildings are on private property
• Leave no trace – Pack it in, pack it out
• Pop into Roy’s for a cup of coffee or some merchandise and support the community

Amboy school and ghost town LOCATION MAP

• While visiting Roy’s and Amboy Ghost Town, check out Amboy Crater. It’s just a couple of miles down the road.