Oatman, Arizona

The town of Oatman, Arizona was born in 1906.  It was a booming gold mining town up until 1942 when Congress declared that gold mining was no longer essential to the war effort.  The town dried up after that.

Now Oatman see’s over 500,000 tourist a year.  On top of being an old ghost town, Oatman is known for the burros.  Burros were originally used to help the miners transport the gold out of the mines. 

Once Oatman stopped mining gold, the burros were left behind.  Now they run free in the town and the few people that still live there in Oatman take care of them.  They are wild burros, however, they are friendly enough that you can feed them carrots.  Of course the local shops could sell you carrots to feed them.

The people of Oatman are also involved in the history of there town.  They dress in period clothing and walk the streets.  There are gun fights in the middle of the street.  The buildings of Oatman are nicely preserved.  They take pride in keeping Oatman as original as possible.  And they do a good job of it.

Anyway, we had a great time in Oatman.  The burros were outrageous. The people were very nice.   And you can tell they have fun doing what they do.  If you find yourself in the Oatman area, this is a must see stop.