Oatman is in western Arizona, located in the Black Mountains along Historic Route 66.  It is a true Old West mining town with Elephant’s Tooth, a quartz formation, reaching high above the town.

In 1904, the town of Oatman had enough residents to establish a Post Office.  The name proposed was Fremont, but its official name became Vivian because of the town’s proximity to the Vivian Mining Company.  Between 1904 and 1907, the mine yielded over $3 million.  The location then fell upon hard times until the Tom Reed Mine was discovered in 1910. 

The name of the Post Office was changed to Oatman in 1909.  It is said Oatman was named for the family who was massacred in that area in 1851.  Of Royce Oatman, his wife Mary, and their 7 children, all were killed by Yavapai Indians except for one son (Lorenzo, age 15) and 2 daughters (Olive, age 13, and Mary Ann, age 7).  The 3 children were taken captive and sold as slaves to Mohave Indians.  Lorenzo escaped, later to locate and help rescue his sister, Olive, in 1856, and Mary Ann died in captivity.

The Old Oatman Hotel was built in 1921.  It is believed to be the only 2-story adobe building in Mohave County and is listed on the National Register of Historic Buildings.  In 1939, Clark Gable and Carol Lombard spent their honeymoon night there after getting married in Kingman.

The mines around Oatman began closing by 1930, but as luck would have it, Route 66 was built and because it ran through the center of town, Oatman’s economy began once again to flourish.  Many families traveled along Route 66 through Oatman in the 30’s, 40’s, and early 50’s.  It was the last stop in Arizona before heading into the hot Mohave Desert in California.  In 1952, Route 66 was closed, and the new traffic flow was redirected to the south.  Oatman survived by choosing not to become a ghost town; instead it became a destination where approximately 400,000 tourists visit each year to get a sample of the Old West.  Oatman has live gunfights, saloons, entertainment, and specialty shops.  It has also been the site of several movies, “How the West was Won” and “Universal Soldier”.

A special treat to this unique mining town is the burros that roam the streets in search of handouts.  They are the descendants of prospector burros set free years ago.