The Museum Club in Flagstaff, Arizona: Route 66's Most Legendary Honky-Tonk

The Museum Club in Flagstaff, Arizona: Route 66’s Most Legendary Honky-Tonk

Few stops on Arizona’s Route 66 carry as much character, history, and atmosphere as The Museum Club in Flagstaff. Known locally as “The Zoo,” this remarkable 1931 log cabin has served as a taxidermy museum, trading post, roadhouse, recording studio, country music dance hall, and one of the most beloved nightlife destinations on the entire Mother Road — sometimes all at once. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and recognized by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, The Museum Club is more than a bar. It’s a living monument to Route 66’s wild, eccentric, and deeply American soul.

Where is The Museum Club?

The Museum Club is located at 3404 E Historic Route 66, Flagstaff, AZ 86004 — approximately 2.5 miles east of downtown Flagstaff along the original Route 66 alignment. What was once considered the edge of town when Dean Eldredge built his log cabin here in 1931 is now comfortably within the modern city. The building is impossible to miss: a massive structure built from enormous ponderosa pine logs, anchored by a neon guitar sign at the roadside that has become one of the most iconic images on Route 66 in Arizona.

The History of The Museum Club

Dean Eldredge and the Birth of “The Zoo” (1931)

The story of The Museum Club begins with a taxidermist named Dean Eldredge, whose lifelong passion for collecting natural curiosities found its ultimate expression in 1931. Eldredge had been building his taxidermy business since 1918, and when he acquired a piece of federal land three miles east of downtown Flagstaff on Route 66, he set out to create something extraordinary.

He hired unemployed lumberjacks — plentiful during the Depression — to cut massive ponderosa pines and haul them to the site. From these, they constructed what Eldredge declared to be “the biggest log cabin in Arizona.” The remarkable building is supported internally by several full-sized tree trunks, and its entrance is framed by an arch formed from the natural crook of a large tree. Inside, Eldredge displayed his lifetime collection: stuffed animals, six-legged sheep, Winchester rifles, Native American artifacts, two-headed calves, and more than 30,000 other curiosities. Operating simultaneously as a museum, taxidermist shop, and trading post, the property attracted scores of Route 66 travelers during its five years of operation.

Local law enforcement, dealing with the boisterous crowd the roadhouse attracted, began calling the place “The Zoo” — a nickname that has stuck to the building ever since.

From Museum to Nightclub (1936–1963)

When Eldredge died of cancer in 1936, most of his extraordinary collection was sold and the building was purchased by a Flagstaff saddle maker named Doc Williams. Recognizing the prime Route 66 location, Williams converted the space into a nightclub. Over the following decades, the building changed hands several times and served various functions — including, at various points, a recording studio — before falling into a somewhat rough reputation by the 1950s. The nickname “The Zoo” acquired a second meaning: not just for the wildlife on the walls, but for the rowdy crowd within.

Don and Thorna Scott: The Golden Era (1963–1998)

The Museum Club’s defining era began in 1963 when Don and Thorna Scott purchased the property and transformed it into a country music dance hall. Under their stewardship, The Museum Club became one of the premier live music venues in northern Arizona, drawing performers and crowds from across the region. The Scotts poured their personalities into the place, and it became as much a community institution as a business. They operated it for decades, and the building absorbed their presence so thoroughly that many believe the couple has never truly left — a belief reinforced by decades of reported supernatural encounters.

Thorna Scott died at the club in 1975, and Don passed away in 1983. According to staff and regular patrons, their spirits are still very much in residence. Reported occurrences include creaking floorboards when the building is empty, flickering lights, mysteriously ignited hearths, and disarrayed bar shelves. The Museum Club is considered one of Flagstaff’s most haunted locations, and the ghost stories have become an integral part of its identity.

Recent History and Current Status

Current owners Joe and Shanyn Lange, along with their son Brandon Tullis, took over in 2005 and continued the tradition of live country music and community entertainment. The Museum Club has hosted hundreds of performers over the decades and remains a cultural touchstone for Flagstaff.

In late 2021, The Museum Club closed its doors temporarily after its operator departed, raising community concern about the landmark’s future. The National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Arizona Preservation Foundation both highlighted the building’s significance, and a social media groundswell demonstrated how deeply Flagstaff residents and Route 66 travelers care about the Zoo’s survival. The property was subsequently listed for sale at $2.3 million. Visitors should check current operating status before planning their trip, as the club’s future is an ongoing community conversation.

The Building: An Architectural Wonder

Even before you step inside, The Museum Club announces itself as something unusual. The massive log exterior — constructed from full-sized ponderosa pines — is unlike almost anything else on Route 66. The building spans approximately 4,777 square feet and retains the raw, elemental quality of its Depression-era construction. The entrance archway, formed from the natural curve of a large tree trunk, is one of the most photographed architectural details on the entire Arizona stretch of Route 66.

Inside, the interior has been shaped by nearly a century of use without losing its original character. Wooden booths line the walls, rich red curtains flank the stage, and taxidermy mounts — including a stuffed mountain lion, elk, deer, and bison — peer down from the rafters. The bar area is warm and unpretentious, the dance floor substantial, and the whole space radiates the kind of lived-in authenticity that no amount of renovation could replicate.

What to Experience at The Museum Club

Live Country Music

At its heart, The Museum Club is a honky-tonk, and live country music has been its lifeblood since the 1960s. The venue typically hosts two to three live acts weekly in addition to open mic nights and karaoke. The dance floor fills with two-steppers on weekend nights, and the acoustic quality of the log interior gives performances a warm, intimate resonance. The menu items have historically carried the names of country music legends — a small but delightful touch that reinforces the venue’s identity.

The Ghost Experience

For visitors drawn to the supernatural, The Museum Club delivers. The reported presence of Don and Thorna Scott — creaking floorboards, flickering lights, shelves that rearrange themselves — has been documented by staff, patrons, and paranormal investigators over many years. Whether or not you believe in ghosts, the stories add a compelling layer to a visit that already feels slightly outside of time.

The Building and Neon Sign

The roadside neon guitar sign is one of Route 66’s most iconic images and a mandatory photo stop even if the club isn’t open. The log architecture of the building is extraordinary in daylight and atmospheric at night. Walking around the exterior gives a real sense of the scale of Eldredge’s vision and the quality of the Depression-era construction.

The Museum Club and Route 66

The Museum Club sits squarely on the historic Route 66 alignment through Flagstaff — the same road that brought the Dust Bowl migrants west in the 1930s, carried soldiers and supplies during World War II, and launched a generation of American road-trippers in the postwar boom. In many ways, the club’s history mirrors the highway’s own arc: a wild, boisterous early period; a golden era of community and commerce; a period of uncertainty; and an ongoing, passionate effort at preservation. Along with the Flagstaff Historic Downtown District, it represents the best of what Route 66 built in northern Arizona.

For Route 66 travelers driving Arizona’s Mother Road, The Museum Club is a natural anchor point in Flagstaff. The city sits roughly at the midpoint of Arizona’s Route 66 corridor, making it an ideal base for day trips to Two Guns, Twin Arrows, the Painted Desert, and Meteor Crater to the east, and Williams and Ash Fork to the west.

Tips for Visiting The Museum Club

Check current operating hours and status online or by phone before visiting — the club has had periods of closure in recent years.
The neon guitar sign and log exterior are worth photographing even if the club is closed — they are Route 66 icons in their own right.
If the club is open, arrive early on live music nights to secure a good seat — the dance floor fills quickly on weekends.
The ghost stories are part of the experience — ask staff about reported hauntings if you’re curious.
Pair your visit with a walk through the Flagstaff Historic Downtown District just a few miles west along Route 66.
Automatic transmission is recommended for vehicles if you plan to continue west on the old Route 66 toward Williams via the original mountain alignments.

Final Thoughts on The Museum Club

The Museum Club is one of those Route 66 experiences that stays with you. It’s not polished or commercial — it’s real, layered, slightly unpredictable, and profoundly connected to the history of the highway. Whether you come for the live music, the ghost stories, the architectural spectacle, or simply to stand in a place where Route 66 history has been happening for nearly a century, The Museum Club delivers. It is, without question, one of the most authentically Route 66 establishments on all of Arizona’s stretch of the Mother Road.