{"id":3409,"date":"2025-11-18T13:55:50","date_gmt":"2025-11-18T13:55:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/?p=3409"},"modified":"2025-11-20T00:52:00","modified_gmt":"2025-11-20T00:52:00","slug":"route-66-anniversary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/route-66-anniversary\/","title":{"rendered":"Route 66 Anniversary"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In 1926, U.S. Route 66 was established as one of the original roads in the Unites States numbered highway system.  It ran from Chicago to Santa Monica, California, traversing 2,448 miles.  Much of the street was graded dirt or gravel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Map of Route 66 on motel fa\u00e7ade: Matthieuclouis\/Dreamstime.com.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

During the decade-long Depression that began in 1929, traffic along the thoroughfare helped to support restaurants, motels and other mom-and-pop businesses that catered to passing motorists.  By 1938, it became the first highway in the country to be completely paved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adding to the fame of this historic roadway was its starring role in the popular 1960s television series named for it.  The show followed two young men who were traveling in a classic Chevrolet Corvette.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Complementing that publicity was a chapter in John Steinbeck\u2019s 1939 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Grapes of Wrath.<\/em>  It has a chapter about Dust Bowl migrants traveling on the highway, which he nicknamed \u201cThe Mother Road.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

People following the path of Route 66 today find themselves immersed in tangible memories of its past.  More than 250 buildings, bridges and other sites are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  Each state along the way has its claims to fame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Delgadillo\u2019s Original Route 66 Gift Shop, Seligman, Arizona:. Brian Scantlebury\/Dreamstime.com.\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Cyrus Avery Centennial Plaza in Tulsa, Oklahoma is located at the end of the 11th<\/sup> Street bridge over which the route passed.  A massive sculpture  there, which is named \u201cEast Meets West,\u201d depicts members of a family traveling in a Model T Ford meeting a horse-drawn carriage heading in the opposite direction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In New Mexico, about 265 miles of historic Route 66 are drive-able.\u00a0 The highway enters the state across a vast prairie, then meanders through rocky outcrops and past adobe villages with churches that predate the road by about a century.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One stretch of the original road runs through  Amarillo, Texas.  About an hour drive further on, the aptly Midpoint Caf\u00e9, which is two years younger than the highway, greets visitors with its slogan: \u201cWhen you\u2019re here, you\u2019re halfway there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Cadillacs along Route 66, Amarillo, Texas: Sandra Foyt.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Another Amarillo landmark along Route 66 is a group of 10 Cadillac cars buried front-first in the ground.  The cars, tilted at an angle, are covered with multicolored graffiti that has been applied over the years.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Springfield, Illinois, portions of the road near Carpenter Park and Lake Springfield, and a 1.25 mile stretch of brick nearby, are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  Motorists may check out the Cozy Dog Drive In, Route 66 Drive In Theater, Mahan\u2019s Filling Station and the Sonrise Donuts Sign at Route 66 Motorheads & Ace Sign Company Museum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Eisler Brothers Old Riverton Store in Kansas opened in 1925 along what, a year later, would become \u2013 you guessed it — Route 66.  Along with groceries and produce, it offers a display of Route 66 memorabilia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Historic Route 66 sign: Helena Bilcova\/Dreamstime.com.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Communities across Oklahoma are marking the milestone birthday by installing Centennial Monuments along the historic highway.  These 16-foot-tall structures feature a glowing, double-sided Route 66 shield, the two-letter abbreviation for the state and the centennial years: 1926\u20132026. A display box on the pole identifies the specific location — whether a city, town or attraction — and includes a QR code linking to local stories, history, and visitor information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other mementos of The Mother Road await discovery at museums around the country.\u00a0 Collections focused on the route are housed in Clinton, Sapulpa and Elk City, Oklahoma.\u00a0 The Route 66 Hall of Fame & Museum in Pontiac, Illinois is the repository of thousands of relics from the glory days of the byway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Route 66 in Winslow, Arizona:\u00a0 Michael Gordon\/Dreamstime.com.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The National Museum of American History in Washington, DC has an impressive collection of artifacts and photographs related to the highway.  They include a restored car and truck similar to those that were on the thoroughfare in the 1930s, neon signs which were displayed at roadside businesses, and a portion of pavement rescued from Bridgeport, Oklahoma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A road pavement sample and scenic sculptures, neon signs along with sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places serve as reminders of The Mother Road.  Its one century birthday will be a perfect time to celebrate what in its time was an engineering marvel, and continues to hold an important place in the annals of the development and growth of the United States.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 1926, U.S. Route 66 was established as one of the original roads in the Unites States numbered highway system.\u00a0 It ran from Chicago to Santa Monica, California, traversing 2,448 miles.\u00a0 Much of the street was graded dirt or gravel.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":3410,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[1372,1386,1376,1377,1382,1388,1379,1381,19,849,1378,1384,1387,986,1380,1374,1375,1383],"class_list":["post-3409","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel-usa","tag-amarillo","tag-carpenter-park","tag-chevrolet","tag-corvette","tag-cyrus-avery-centennial-plaza","tag-eisler-brothers-old-riverton-store","tag-grapes-of-wrath","tag-historic-site","tag-home_page","tag-illinois","tag-john-steinbeck","tag-midpoint-cafe","tag-motorhead","tag-new-mexico","tag-pulitzer-prize","tag-route-66","tag-the-mother-road","tag-tulsa-oklahoma"],"yoast_head":"\nRoute 66 Anniversary - 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