Mojave River Valley Museum
- Museum
- In Barstow, California
- 0.7 mi from Route 66
The Mojave River Valley Museum is a small local history museum in Barstow, CA, founded by residents in 1964 and run with the help of its members and donations. Its displays follow the valley from its first peoples and the 1776 arrival of the Spanish missionary Francisco Garcés through pioneers, miners and the railroad to the space age. It sits less than a mile from Main Street, Barstow's stretch of Route 66.
What is Mojave River Valley Museum?
The museum fills a little over 4,000 square feet at the corner of Barstow Road and Virginia Way. The exhibits are local: displays on the Native peoples of the desert, the emigrants who followed the Old Spanish Trail, mining, the railroad that made Barstow, and the space program.
Behind the displays is a research archive with local newspapers going back to 1911, a large collection of historic photographs, books and maps, including copies of 1855 land survey maps that show the Old Spanish Trail. A bookstore and gift shop sell regional history books.
History of Mojave River Valley Museum
A group of Barstow residents started the museum in 1964 to save the area's documents and artifacts, and it became a nonprofit corporation in 1973. Its present building was paid for and built with donated money, time and labor, and it still runs on its members, who can also join its field trips.
Visiting Mojave River Valley Museum: tips
The Desert Discovery Center is about 0.2 mile away, and the Barstow Harvey House, home of the Route 66 Mother Road Museum, and the Western America Railroad Museum are each about 1.2 miles away, so the three make an easy museum stop in Barstow. Fuel is about 0.2 mile off and food about 0.3 mile.
Practical info
- Website
- mojaverivervalleymuseum.org
- Hours
- We have no opening hours for this stop yet — check the official site.
- On site & nearby
Sources: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Wikidata · official site — may be outdated. Suggest a fix
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Stops near Mojave River Valley Museum
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Questions about Mojave River Valley Museum
Where is the Mojave River Valley Museum?
In Barstow, California, at the corner of Barstow Road and Virginia Way, less than a mile from Main Street, the old Route 66 through town. The Desert Discovery Center is a short walk away.
What is in the Mojave River Valley Museum?
Exhibits that trace the Mojave River valley's past, from its early peoples and Spanish explorers to miners, the railroad and the space age, plus an archive of local newspapers back to 1911, historic photographs, books and maps.
Is the Mojave River Valley Museum on Route 66?
Not right on it, but close: it is less than a mile from Barstow's Main Street, which was Route 66. It pairs well with the Route 66 Mother Road Museum in the Barstow Harvey House, about 1.2 miles away.
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