Essex is a small unincorporated

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 town in San Bernardino County, California

San Bernardino County, California

San Bernardino County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 2,035,210, up from 1,709,434 as of the 2000 census...

. Essex lies on Old National Trails Highway - part of the old Route 66

U.S. Route 66

U.S. Route 66 was a highway within the U.S. Highway System. One of the original U.S. highways, Route 66 was established on November 11, 1926 -- with road signs erected the following year...

 - just south of Interstate 40

Interstate 40

Interstate 40 is the third-longest major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90 and I-80. Its western end is at Interstate 15 in Barstow, California; its eastern end is at a concurrency of U.S. Route 117 and North Carolina Highway 132 in Wilmington, North Carolina...

 in the Mojave Desert

Mojave Desert

The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...

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Essex, a former oasis

Oasis

In geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...

 along historic Route 66 in California, was allegedly founded when a motorist suffered a flat tire only to discover there were no garages for miles.

In Essex's heyday, there were a number of important buildings utilized by motorists and local patrons, including:

• Bell's Towing
• The Wayside Cafe
• Essex Post Office
• Essex Elementary School

Essex was notable along Route 66 for providing free water to travelers, thanks to a well installed by the Automobile Club of Southern California

Automobile Club of Southern California

The Automobile Club of Southern California is the Southern California affiliate of the American Automobile Association federation of motor clubs...

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