Twin Arrows is a

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...

located in the central part of Arizona on

U.S. Route 66 U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) was one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The h ...

(US 66) in

Coconino County Coconino County is a county in the north-central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. Its population was 145,101 at the 2020 census. The county seat is Flagstaff. The county takes its name from ''Cohonino'', a name applied to the Havasupai p ...

between the city of Flagstaff and the town of

Winslow Winslow may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Winslow, Buckinghamshire, England, a market town and civil parish * Winslow Rural District, Buckinghamshire, a rural district from 1894 to 1974 United States and Canada * Rural Municipality of Winslow ...

Brief history

The area in which Twin Arrows is located was inhabited by the

Hopi The Hopi are a Native American ethnic group who primarily live on the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona, United States. As of the 2010 census, there are 19,338 Hopi in the country. The Hopi Tribe is a sovereign nation within the Unite ...

and

Navajo The Navajo (; British English: Navaho; nv, Diné or ') are a Native American people of the Southwestern United States. With more than 399,494 enrolled tribal members , the Navajo Nation is the largest federally recognized tribe in the United ...

tribes. The Navajo fought against the Apaches in the area. The first settlers of European descent to arrive in the area were the Spanish conquistadores. The area became part of

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

when Mexico gained its independence from Spain. The United States fought against Mexico in what is known as the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

. The war ended officially when the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed and forced onto the remnant Mexican government. It specified its major consequence, the Mexican Cession of the northern territories of Alta California and Santa Fe de Nuevo México to the United States. Two Guns-Route 66-1926

Wagon routes between Flagstaff and Winslow were surveyed in the 1880s. The Atlantic and Pacific Railroad choose to build the railroad along it. The railway passed to the north of the modern alignment of the National Old Trails which would in 1926 become US 66. US 66 served as a major path for those who migrated west during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. The road supported the economies of the communities through which it passed.Bureau of Public Roads; American Association of State Highway OfficialsTwin Arrows To Winona, Arizona
/ref>Ghost Towns of Arizona and Surrounding States
/ref>
/ref> Traffic began to flow through the Twin Arrows area because Route 66 was aligned along the National Old Trails Road. A business named the Canyon Padre Trading Post, named for the gorge that cuts nearby, was established in the late 1940s in Twin Arrows. Business was slow for the store and diner until the owners changed its name to "Twin Arrows Trading Post," inspired by the nearby town of Two Guns, and added a service station. Two giant arrows which were placed on the property were easily recognized by traveling motorists and the business began to flourish. In early 2022, one of the two arrows broke at the base; it remains on the ground next to its surviving partner.Weird Arizona
/ref>Twin Arrows Trading Post
/ref>
/ref>

Decline

The Twin Arrows Trading Post began to fail with the construction of the Interstate 40 (I-40), because motorists no longer had to take US 66. Business for the Twin Arrows Trading Post began to decline and it was not long before the store/diner/service station/gift shop passed through the hands of various owners. This continued until 1995, when it was finally closed and abandoned. The land where Twin Arrows is located is in the Navajo and Hopi reservations but, contrary to popular conception, is not owned by the Hopi tribe. The Hopi owns the buildings but the land belongs to the state of Arizona. In 2013, the Twin Arrows Navajo Gaming Casino opened to the north of the trading post site. The twin arrows sculpture, which is pictured, is featured on the album art of the musical album "Man Mountain" by Blue States. Due to high winds, one of the arrows appears to have fallen and been removed some time between February 15 and 22 2022. The foot plate and wooden footing still stand but the second arrow is no longer there.

Images

References

External links

Win Buttes
– Ghost Town of the Month at azghosttowns.com {{Coconino County, Arizona Buildings and structures in Navajo County, Arizona History of Navajo County, Arizona Ghost towns in Arizona

Brief history

Decline

Images

See also

References

Further reading

External links