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Sagebrush Route Tour
The improvement of the state highway in 1925-26 made travel much easier, and motorists soon took to the roads. Traffic counters at the agricultural inspection station at Daggett kept a tally of cars passing through, and by the end of the decade the numbers were varying from 4,000 to a high of 6,650 automobiles per month.
As traffic increased, roadside businesses cropped up everywhere. Several were opened on Highway 66 between Oro Grande and Helendale beginning around 1931: La Delta, Potapov's, K. T. Smith's, the Sage Brush Inn, and others. These roadside businesses in northern Oro Grande and Helendale were important enough to be mentioned occasionally in a local newspaper column called "HI-WA News" (yes, that was their spelling for hi-way). The Victor Press wrote about events in the area under the heading, "Along the Sagebrush Route."
For those taking the tour, we begin at the underpass just north of the center of Oro Grande, where the odometer is set at zero. The direction is from south to north. While sightseeing, remember that some of these places are private homes, so please stay far enough away to allow the residents some privacy.
Oro Grande Underpass
Danny's Place
The Iron Hog
La Delta
End of the Trail
Elva's Malt Shop
Potapov's Service Station
Sage Brush Inn
White Orange Cafe & Motel
Watson's Richfield
Polly Gas
Helendale Store
Burden's Store & Post Office
Featuring Route 66
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It doesn't represent America, it is America!
