The Main Street Murals turn downtown Barstow into a loose open-air gallery, with large wall paintings spread along the old Route 66 corridor. The project began in the late 1990s as a local effort to brighten the historic highway district and tell stories about railroads, desert travel, the Old National Trails Highway, and the town's role as a Mojave crossroads.
This is not a single museum-style attraction; it works best as a short walk or slow drive between other Barstow stops such as Casa del Desierto and the Mojave River Valley Museum. The murals give the main street a little more texture than the usual fuel-and-motel pass-through, especially for travellers following Route 66.