Barstow, California, is home to the Route 66 Mother Road Museum in a former Harvey House.
The museum is located in the Casa del Desierto, a historic Harvey House complex at Barstow's railway station. Its exhibits interpret Route 66, desert travel, local transportation, and the communities that developed along the highway in the Mojave Desert.
Barstow is often confused with Needles because both are important California desert stops on historic Route 66. Victorville and San Bernardino also have strong Route 66 connections, but the Mother Road Museum itself is in Barstow.
The building's earlier Harvey House history adds railroad context to the museum. Harvey Houses were restaurants and hotels established along the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, predating the highway era that later made Barstow famous to motorists.