Roy's Motel and Café was a landmark on the famous Route 66 in Amboy, California, until Interstate 40 was built in 1973. Roy's became an icon for a lonely desert gas stop because of multiple appearances in several movies.
At one time, Amboy had it all: airport, garage, cafe, school, church, graveyard, even a volcanic crater. Today it is a ghost town--only the post office still operates today--reminding tourists traveling Route 66 of what it once used to be.
Amboy was originally a mining site and saw increased activity when the railroad came through and made the settlement a stop.
Just east of Amboy is one of the few shade trees you will find in this part of the desert, and it has been turned into a shoe tree by Route 66 visitors.Currently the town of Amboy is owned by Albert Okura, who also owns the Juan Pollo restaurant chain, who will try to preserve Amboy in a 1950's look. This is not Mr. Okura's first project as a preservationist. He also owns the very first McDonald's restaurant in San Bernardino and operates it as a museum.
