Once a hopping haven for road-weary travelers on Route 66, the town of Glenrio, Texas (and New Mexico) is now home only to ghosts of the Mother Road. The town has addresses in both states because it sits right on the border between the two. It includes the Glenrio Historic District, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2007. 

If you love creepy content, Only In Your State’s Vacant series – which partners with talented photographer Johnny Joo – explores a dozen other fascinating abandoned places just waiting to be discovered. 

Editor’s Note: Due to the nature of abandoned destinations, many of the places featured in this series are off-limits to visitors or have actually been demolished. We do not condone trespassing and other illegal activity but rather encourage readers to enjoy learning about these fascinating destinations.

Glenrio emerged in 1903 as a bustling railroad town initially named Rock Island. Renamed Glenrio in 1908, the new moniker combines Scottish and Spanish words for 'valley' and 'river' (oddly, it has neither). It began to experience some traffic by 1917 with the establishment of the Ozark Trail.

The town's big transformation happened in 1926, when Route 66 replaced the Ozark Trail in 1926. The iconic road began in Chicago and extended through Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, the Texas panhandle, New Mexico, and Arizona before ending in Santa Monica in Los Angeles County, California. The entire route covered 2,448 miles, transforming towns and connecting the nation over several generations of family road trips.

Glenrio is located at the furthest western reaches of the state's 178-mile stretch of the historic route. Over the years, a landscape occupied mostly by wheat fields and cattle gave rise to deco-style diners, service stations, and other modern buildings over the years, like the Brownlee Diner in 1950 and Little Juarez Café in 1952. Today, travelers explore the well-preserved remnants of Route 66 in Texas, including the Cadillac Ranch, the Pioneer West Museum, and the Devil's Rope Museum.

The town's location on the Texas-New Mexico border had an interesting impact on its economy in many ways. Since gas was cheaper on the Texas side, that's where you found the fuel stations. If you wanted an alcoholic drink, you had to cruise to the New Mexico side to spots like the State Line Bar. The Texas side was dry.

Like many small towns that thrived along state highways, Glenrio became a casualty of the interstate system in the 1970s. By 1973, Interstate 40 was complete and bypassed the town. After almost 50 years as a roadside destination worth a stop for a meal, fuel or comfortable stay, Glenrio saw its businesses dwindle. Eventually, there was nothing worth sticking around for, and Glenrio was left as it stands today.

Remains of buildings include a motel, its former Texas Longhorn Café, a diner, the post office, a Texaco service station, the old Route 66 roadbed, the former bed of the Rock Island Railroad, and a few homes. Having served their purpose for a particular point in time, the town and its abandoned buildings are a testament to how a local economy developed to serve specific needs and circumstances.

Have you traveled this stretch of the former Route 66 and visited the ghost town of Glenrio, Texas, and New Mexico? If you plan a journey on the most iconic of road-tripping roads, be sure to bookmark our Ultimate Road Trip Packing List for more than 60 essentials to make the trip even more fun, safe, and comfortable.

Special thanks to Cleveland-based photographer Johnny Joo of Odd World Studio for the photos used in this article. To discover more creepy and abandoned places, check out his website, Architectural Afterlife.