updated 4/10/24
Daggett is an unincorporated town located off Interstate 40 on Route 66, to the east of Barstow, in central San Bernardino County. The town has a est. population [2022] 776. Daggett is well known for its Route 66 attractions: the Quaint Russian House, the Mugwumps Service Station, Kelley's Restaurant Sign and the California Agricultural Inspection Station. The "old" town has more classics: the Stone Hotel, Desert Market (Ryerson's General Store) and Fout's Garage with its historic marker. Nearby is the Calico Ghost Town. Daggett is located in the Mojave Desert and therefore has a "mild desert climate": its weather is with very dry and hot.
Demographics: overall crime grade is D; A crime occurs every 14 days 23 hours (on average) in Daggett. Daggett has a total of 759 people and of those residents there are 293 males and 257 females. The median age of the male population is 40.3 and the female population is 39.7.
The Mojave Trail was the first trade route linking California with Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. Gold rush miners and settlers used it to reach California. In the 1780s one crossed the Mojave Desert north of what is now Daggett, following the Mojave River. In 1882, the railroad reached the area and opened a transcontinental rail link. Father Garces used the trail during his mission to the Hopi Indians in Arizona in 1776 and Jedediah Smith was the first American to use it westwards, from Utah in 1826. By the late 1820s "The Old Spanish Trail" had been opened by Mexican traders in New Mexico and it linked with the Mojave Trail at Soda Lake.
After the area became part of the US, in 1857, settlers traveled to the area which irked the Paiute, Mojave and Chemehuevi natives and Fort Cady (1860) and Fort Mohave (1859) were established. [Need to pray there was reconciliation with the tribes and the governing areas.]
Silver was found in 1881. The Southern Pacific Railroad (SP) extended to Calico Junction in 1882, what is now the Calico Ghost Town, the following year it was renamed "Daggett" to avoid confusion. The town was named after California's Lt. governor (1883-87), John R. Daggett (1833 - 1919), who incidentally was the owner of the Bismark mine in Calico.
Borax was discovered and shipped to the new town. A mill was set up and remained in operation for 15 years then the mining ended. During 1883 the Atlantic & Pacific Railroad (A & P moved to nearby Needles. In 1903, another railroad extension made it a part of the Union Pacific RR). Once the mines, silver and railroad extensions moved, this led to a decline in prosperity. Barstow overtook Daggett due to its key location on the N.O.T. and the Arrowhead highway. Then, a fire swept through Daggett's commercial district in 1908. At that time the use of automobiles had grown considerably and the National Old Trails (N.O.T.) built a highway across the Mojave from Barstow to Needle as part of its road that linked Los Angeles and New York. Its course followed the tracks of the Santa Fe RR and passed through Daggett.
Just before being incorporated into the brand-new US Highway 66, in 1926, the road had a straighter course west of Newberry going through Minneola, passing Gale station and Dagget, which is shown as having a Post Office. It was also the terminus of the Arrowhead Trail to Salt Lake City. Nebo Station appeared before Barstow but no services provided.
By 1960, traffic through the town -as measured at the California Agricultural Inspection Station in Daggett- had reached 357,000; the road was overcrowded and unsafe. This led to its replacement by I-40 during the late 1960s. The Interstate bypassed the town and the whole of Route 66 from there to Needles was also bypassed.
“The Railroad Head Town. "a tree shaded little old town that was formerly the location of smelters which handled the ore brought down from the nearby mountains. Some of the old store buildings remain, but the town is now quiet. There are two trailer camps but no cabins. Cafés, garage and gas stations. -- Jack DeVere Rittenhouse from Guidebook to Highway 66"
Location of Dagget in SBC
Specific Prayer Points
Spiritual
Intercessors who live there feel encouraged & pray & see results
People share their faith with boldness
Chains broken from the bondage of drugs
Lives transformed by the Gospel preached
Bible studies especially for those working weekends or can't travel to nearby cities
City Government under Barstow: 3rd District of SBC
Crime issues: [2022] overall crime grade is C; violent C-; property crime C; other C-; A crime occurs every 15 days 20 hours (on average) in Daggett. Many crimes are committed in retail areas in blocks where few people live. Top crime issues are drug crimes 13; vandalism & burglary 9%
Points of Interest: Route 66, nearby Calico Ghost Town, Quaint Russian House, Mugwumps Service Station, Kelley's Restaurant Sign and California Agricultural Inspection Station; downtown the Stone Hotel, Desert Market (Ryerson's General Store) and Fout's Garage with its historic marker.
Churches [not exhaustive]
no churches in city proper
churches nearby are in Barstow, Yermo and Newberry Springs