Bagdad, California
- Ghost town
- In Bagdad, California
- On Route 66
Bagdad is a vanished railroad town on Route 66 in the Mojave Desert, about 8 miles west of Amboy in San Bernardino County, California. It is best known for two things: the longest run without rain ever recorded in the United States, 767 days from 1912 to 1914, and its name, borrowed by the 1987 film Bagdad Cafe. The last buildings were torn down in 1991, and a lone tree now marks the spot.
What is Bagdad?
Bagdad is a ghost town with almost nothing left standing. The railroad still runs past, and the old highway, now called National Trails Highway, passes right by the site. The one landmark is a single tree with a small sign asking travelers to leave it alone, because it is the last living trace of the town. A small cemetery lies out in the desert nearby.
It is often mixed up with the Bagdad Cafe, the real diner from the movie. That cafe stands in Newberry Springs, about 50 miles farther west on Route 66, and it has its own page on this site.
History of Bagdad
The Santa Fe Railway founded Bagdad in 1883 as a water stop for steam engines on its new line between Barstow and Needles. The name comes from the city of Baghdad, spelled without the h. Rain gauges here recorded no measurable rain from October 3, 1912, to November 8, 1914, a dry streak still cited as the national record.
Route 66 brought a cafe, a service station and a motel. Bagdad had peaked long before the interstate, and Interstate 40 bypassed the old road in 1973. In 1991 the last structures, including the schoolhouse, were razed. By the time the film Bagdad Cafe appeared in 1987, the town's own cafe was long gone, so the crew filmed at the Sidewinder Cafe in Newberry Springs, which later took the Bagdad Cafe name.
Visiting Bagdad: tips
Bagdad sits right on the old road, so it is a quick photo stop for the tree and the open desert. There are no services. Get fuel and water in Amboy at Roy's, about 8 miles east, and pair the stop with Amboy Crater, about 5.5 miles away, and the empty site of Siberia, about 7 miles west. This stretch has closed after flash floods before, so check county road conditions, and leave the tree and any relics as you find them.
Practical info
- Address
- California
Sources: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Wikidata · official site — may be outdated. Suggest a fix
On the map
Full mapBagdad with the 6 closest stops. Tap a marker for details.
Tap a dot to see that stop here.
Stops near Bagdad
All of California
5.5 mi from Bagdad
7.0 mi from Bagdad
7.2 mi from Bagdad
7.6 mi from Bagdad
7.7 mi from Bagdad
16.7 mi from Bagdad
Questions about Bagdad
Where is the real Bagdad Cafe?
The Bagdad Cafe from the 1987 film is in Newberry Springs, California, on Route 66 east of Barstow. It was the Sidewinder Cafe when the movie was shot and later took the film's name. The town of Bagdad, about 50 miles east, gave the story its setting, but its own roadside cafe had disappeared long before.
What is left of Bagdad, California?
Very little. The last buildings, including the schoolhouse, were torn down in 1991. A lone tree with a small sign marks the town site, a small cemetery lies nearby, and freight trains still pass on the railroad that founded the town in 1883.
Is Bagdad, California on Route 66?
Yes. The town grew up beside the Santa Fe tracks, and Route 66 ran through it on the desert stretch between Amboy and Ludlow. The old road, now National Trails Highway, still passes the site. Interstate 40, opened in 1973, runs several miles to the north.
Own or run Bagdad? Send us a photo or a correction.