After leaving Winslow and heading West on Route 66, travelers soon reach Meteor City, an old tourist attraction that drew travelers for years. Despite the name, Meteor City was never a town; it was a trading post. In addition to the many items that it sold, it was, and still is, a great photo opportunity with its geodesic dome and the world’s largest dream catcher.

Joe Sharber established the first business at the site in 1938: a Texaco gas station. The place was named for the nearby Barringer Meteor Crater. Three years later, in 1941, Jack Newsum bought the property and added a store that sold souvenirs and groceries.

At some point, the gas station closed. In 1979, a dome replaced the rectangular building that housed the store. Unfortunately, the dome burned in 1990 and was replaced by the current structure. After years of operation, the owners tried to sell the business. However, when they had no buyers, they left the property to nature, animals, and, unfortunately, vandals in 2012. The building and its iconic dream catcher remained abandoned and deteriorating each day in the desert sun for the next several years. Hope for the site faded when the Meteor City Trading Post was placed on a ‘to-be-demolished’ list.

But before it could be torn down, Joann and Michael Brown saved the once-popular site; they spent their childhoods in California and regularly traveled Route 66. After looking at property in Arizona, New Mexico, or Texas, they bought the property in 2016 and, since then, have been working to clear the debris and restore the dome and its outbuildings, with hopes of reopening soon. You can track their progress via their official Facebook Page HERE.

Meteor Crater

The road to the Meteor Crater is just West of Meteor City, some six miles South of I-40. The crater was formed approximately 50,000 years ago when an iron mass weighing over 60,000 tons entered the Earth’s atmosphere, forming a crater about 4,000 feet wide and 570 feet deep.

During the heyday of Route 66, a man named D.M. Barringer built an observatory just off the Mother Road so travelers passing through the area could see the crater without traveling an additional six or so miles to the site. For just 25 cents, travelers could stand on the observation tower and see the crater through a telescope.

Today, the observatory is now only stone ruins; however, a visitor center and guided tours are available at the crater.

Continuing your journey, you will soon see the exit of Two Guns. There are two ghost towns here – Two Guns and Canyon Diablo, one almost on top of the other. Located on the far side of the canyon, Canyon Diablo was described during its heyday as follows: “Tombstone, Virginia City, and Abilene could not hold a candle to this end-of-the-rail depravity.” Two Guns, built after Canyon Diablo was already long dead, thrived during the peak years of Route 66 popularity.

Today, both towns sit silently, looking upon the canyon below. Located on private property, the site is sometimes inaccessible, with gates closed and photo opportunities available only from the frontage road. At other times, the gate is open, seemingly inviting a visit.

©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated October 2026.

Also See:

Arizona Route 66

Arizona Main Page

Arizona Route 66 Photo Gallery

Route 66 Main Page

Sources:

Flagstaff Business News
Hinkley, Jim; Route 66 Encyclopedia, Voyageur Press, 2012
Route Magazine