Oatman, AZ is the remains of an old mining town, now a tourist town located on historic Route 66. The old buildings have been turned into shops.
The Oatman Hotel is the home of a mischevious ghost named "Oatie." Oatie was from Ireland and died behind the hotel in 1930 and has been here ever since, often heard playing his bagpipe. This is not Oatie, but the lunch entertainment in the dining room. You can see some of the thousands of autographed $1 bills left by tourists.Clark Gable and Carole Lombard also spent their wedding night here in 1939 and are said to haunt the hotel.
But the biggest attraction today in Oatman is the wild burros, descendants of the Burros that miners turned loose when the mine closed and they left town. 
You can feed carrots to all the burros except the babies, who have stickers on their foreheads warning that they could choke on the carrots.
The burros can get rather pushy, and this one learned how to open the door to this shop. The owner told me she also learned how to operate the peanut machine inside.
Several times a day they have an old West gun fight in the street. Before the fight, they asked if anyone wants to be in a "Cowboy Sandwich." They didn't have to ask me twice -- I ran up and was the first sandwich.
The gunfight started when one of the outlaws tried to rob the ATM, but couldn't get any response.
So they went into the bank, and came out with a bag of gold.
An exciting battle then took place, and even the burros got involved.
The tourist shops had some cute things -- I really liked this two-way sign.
On the way back to Bullhead City, we found this old car. I think more lead was expended on shooting it up than the car was worth!
I love gunfights! Did you know there is a staged Gunfighters gathering in Yuma each year? I think it is the third weekend of January at the Old Prison. Groups of these theatrical gunfighters stage their shows and compete for prizes. It is great fun to watch.
ReplyDeleteI had an aunt named Oatie!! I bet she never knew there was town named for her! By the looks of it she would have really enjoyed to visit--The burros are so sweet looking what fun--and those cowboys look pretty good!!
ReplyDeleteHey Diana, you look cute in your cowboy sandwich, I loved the pics and the bit of history lesson there, very interesting..I loved the two way picture also lol...thanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteLove those cowboys!! That 2-way sign is really cool. Goes for the guys also.
ReplyDeleteYum, Cowboy Sandwich!!
ReplyDeleteI never knew about Oatie. Next time I go, I'll have to listen for the bagpipes.
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