Seligman, AZ: The Route 66 Town That Saved the Road

Seligman is a small railroad town in northern Yavapai County, Arizona, just off Interstate 40 between Flagstaff and Kingman. After I-40 bypassed it in 1978, local business owners organized there in 1987 and won state recognition of the old highway as Historic Route 66. Today the town marks the east end of the longest drivable stretch of the old road left in the country.

For California stretches of the same highway, see our desert and Route 66 day trips.

Seligman and the Route 66 corridor at a glance

Where is Seligman, Arizona?

The National Park Service describes Seligman's historic district as the commercial hub of northern Yavapai County. The town sits beside I-40. Per the Arizona Department of Transportation, Exit 121 leads to the west side of town and Exit 123 to the east side.

Getting there from the High Desert is simple: I-15 north to Barstow, then I-40 east. You reach Kingman first and keep going east to Seligman. Many drivers stay on I-40 to Seligman, then take Route 66 back west to Kingman. Our Kingman community guide covers that end of the trip.

How did Seligman start as a railroad town?

The railroad came first. Northern Arizona University's Cline Library notes that the town began as Prescott Junction, where the Santa Fe main line connected with a branch line to Prescott.

The level terrain made it a good place for a switching yard. Passenger trains have not stopped there since 1984. The library adds that the railroad's Harvey House hotel in town, the Havasu House, operated from 1905 to 1954.

The National Park Service says land surveyor James A. Lamport filed a claim in 1895 beside the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad tracks. He platted the town as a grid of 300-foot square blocks along the rail line.

How did Route 66 shape the town?

In the first decade of the 1900s, the Old Trails Highway ran through town beside the tracks. That corridor carried Route 66 from 1926 to 1933. A 1933 realignment shifted the highway onto Chino Street, removing its zigzags, per the NPS district page. Chino Street is still the main street.

The park service says Seligman's peak years came after World War II, when Southwest travel took off. The district joined the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. The 1926 route starts at Lamport Street and East Railroad Avenue, so you can walk both versions of the road.

How did Seligman help save Route 66?

I-40 opened past Seligman in 1978, and the NPS notes that the town's businesses fell off sharply after that. Cars that once rolled down Chino Street now stayed on the freeway.

On February 18, 1987, a group of 15 people met at a restaurant in Seligman and founded the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona. Angel Delgadillo, a barber who grew up along the highway, led the group, and its aim was to keep the old road alive.

The effort paid off. ADOT reports that the association lobbied successfully in 1987 for a historic designation of Route 66 in Arizona. The state tourism office says Arizona recognized the Seligman-to-Kingman stretch as Historic Route 66 that year. Seligman has promoted itself as the Birthplace of Historic Route 66 ever since.

More recognition came later. The NPS Route 66 in Arizona overview says the road was an Arizona Scenic Byway by 1994 and an All-American Road by 2009. The same page notes that the nation's last Route 66 segment to be bypassed was at Williams, east of Seligman, in 1984.

That NPS overview also lists local projects aided by its Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program on this stretch, including the Hualapai Fueling Station in Peach Springs and the Frontier Motel in Truxton.

Did Seligman inspire the movie Cars?

The Arizona Office of Tourism says the 2006 Pixar film's story "was inspired by tales from Angel Delgadillo's own memories of the town." The same page links the name of the film's town, Radiator Springs, to nearby Peach Springs.

Director John Lasseter framed it more widely. In a 2006 Route 66 News interview, he described the movie town as a made-up blend of favorite people and places along the entire route. An NPR report from the film's release traced the idea to a two-month family road trip. So Seligman was one influence among many, not the single model.

What is the drive from Seligman to Kingman like?

The state tourism office calls Seligman the start of the longest remaining stretch of Route 66 in the country, which runs 160 miles west to Topock on the Colorado River.

ADOT's account of the association's yearly Fun Run lists these stops on the way west from Seligman:

1. Grand Canyon Caverns
2. Peach Springs
3. Truxton
4. Valentine
5. Hackberry
6. Kingman

Past Kingman, the old road climbs to Oatman and drops to Topock; see our Oatman Route 66 guide. The NPS notes that the Bureau of Land Management manages a 42-mile Backcountry Byway between Kingman and Topock.

Grand Canyon Caverns

The Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona's caverns page places the attraction about 25.5 miles west of Seligman and 12.1 miles east of Peach Springs. It describes a dry limestone cave about 210 feet underground, with standard, ADA-accessible and longer explorer tours. A 2026 NewsChannel 10 report gives the address as Mile Marker 115 on Route 66.

Tours stopped in 2022 after an elevator failure. The site reopened in June 2025, and AZFamily reported at the time that the Havasupai Tribe owns it. Hours and prices change, so check with the operator before you plan your day around a tour.

Peach Springs and the Hualapai Reservation

Peach Springs is on the Hualapai Indian Reservation. The National Park Service identifies the town, on Highway 66, as the Hualapai Tribe's headquarters and says the reservation, set aside in 1883, covers just under 1 million acres. The Tribe governs its land through its own Tribal Council, police department and courts, according to the Hualapai Tribe's official website.

The same NPS page (last updated 2019) notes that the Tribe charges fees to enter reservation lands and that some areas are closed to the general public. Tribal law applies here. Stay on Route 66 and in public business areas, and contact the Tribe's offices at 941 Hualapai Way before you travel off the highway.

Hackberry

Hackberry is a small former stop east of Kingman and the last town on the Fun Run list before Kingman. The road here crosses open ranch country, so fuel up in Seligman or Kingman and carry water.

What should you know before you go in November 2026?

2026 marks Route 66's centennial. The Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona's events page lists the Route 66 UltraRun, a 140-mile run from Seligman to Kingman and Topock, on November 13 to 16, 2026. Expect runners and support vehicles along the shoulder those days.

A few practical notes:

• Services are far apart between Seligman and Kingman. Start with a full tank.
• Arizona does not observe daylight saving time. From November to March, Arizona clocks run one hour ahead of California.
• Event dates can change. Check the association's page the week you travel.

For closer outings, see our High Desert hotspots guide.

How Pleasant Hill can help

Pleasant Hill Real Estate Group has an Arizona office at 3740 N Willow Rd in Kingman, at the west end of this Route 66 drive. If a Route 66 trip has you curious about the area, search homes, get a free home valuation, or reach out to Lana Stephens, our Kingman agent. You can also contact us anytime.

General information, not legal, tax or lending advice. Rules, fees and rates change; confirm with the agency linked above or ask us. Pleasant Hill Real Estate Group · CA DRE Corp. #01997374 · AZ Entity Lic. #LC694532000 · Equal Housing Opportunity.