LEGENDARY ROUTE 66

Facts & Trivia of the Mother Road

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On the corner of Route 66 and First Street in Tucumcari, New Mexico is a Texaco Station that is the only service station to have operated continuously through the Route 66 era to the present.

Kansas has the shortest section of the Mother Road with only 13 miles. However, three historic Route 66 towns are located on this short segment including Baxter Springs, Galena and Riverton.

As a publicity stunt in 1928, promoters of Route 66 held a coast to coast foot race that included all 2448 miles of the Mother Road and then some. The race kept right on going far beyond Chicago all the way to New York City.

In 1984 Route 66 was officially decommissioned as a federal highway. However, daily use of the road had been gradually replaced in earlier years by the Interstates. The road was decommissioned due to public demand for better transportation as the old road deteriorated after World War II.

Oops, not open at this spot just west of

Depew, Oklahoma. Bridge out later down

the way. May, 2004, Kathy Weiser.

85% of the road is still drivable.

During all of its life, Route 66 continued to evolve, leaving many abandoned stretches of concrete, still waiting to be found by the more adventurous traveler. 

Cyrus Stevens Avery from Tulsa, Oklahoma can be called the father of Route 66. Mr.  Avery lived in Tulsa. Conveniently, the new highway ran right past his own filling station and restaurant.

Elvis Presley used to like staying at the Best Western Trade Winds Motel in Clinton, Oklahoma.

Lou Mitchell’s Café has been providing breakfast for those beginning the long journey on Route 66 since the beginning. Opened in 1923 at 565 W. Jackson, breakfast is still served all day at Lou Mitchell’s in Chicago.

Most of the road was replaced by five interstate highways, including I-55, I-44, I-40, I-15 and I-10, but still a surprisingly high amount of old road is waiting to be found by the more adventurous traveler.

When is a corn dog not a corn dog? When you're at the Cozy Dog Drive along Route 66 in Springfield, Illinois. This first fast food of the road was introduced by Ed Waldmire at the 1946 Illinois State Fair. In 1950, he opened the Cozy Dog Drive Inn. This Mother Road icon still stands today at 2935 So. Sixth Street in Springfield, Illinois, but when go try their "Cozy Dog," don't call it a corn dog, or you might be met with little more than a steely eyed stare.

You cannot count on the road to be marked with road signs. Though some states and organizations have posted signs, these often disappear with souvenir hunters. Others are simply never posted.

Driving the route from west to east is historically wrong, and a lot harder, as all available documentation goes the “right” way.

John Steinbeck in his novel, Grapes of Wrath, published in 1939, was the first to refer to Route 66 as “Mother Road.”

Old Route 66 originally began in Chicago at Michigan Avenue and Jackson Boulevard. After the 1933 World’s Fair, the terminus of the road was moved to Lake Shore Drive at the entrance to Grant Park.

George Maharis and Martin Milner were the stars of the CBS television series Route 66 which debuted on October 7, 1960. In the show, the stars drove brand new baby-blue Corvettes, though the audience wouldn’t know that because the show was in black and white. The show continued for 116 episodes, finally ending on March 13, 1964. Ironically, the show was filmed on locations all around the USA, but rarely near the real Route 66.

Cyrus Avery, the father of Route 66, was the first to refer to Route 66 as “The Main Street of America” in 1927.

The last original Route 66 road sign was taken down in Chicago on January 17, 1977.

KiMo Theater in Albuquerque, New Mexico,

1950s Postcard

The famous KiMo Theater along the Mother Road in Albuquerque, New Mexico is said to be haunted by the ghost of a six year old boy by the name of Bobby Darnall who was killed at the theater in 1951 from a boiler explosion. According to legend the impish spirit causes the performers problems by tripping them and creating a ruckus during performances. To appease the spirit, the cast leaves doughnuts backstage, which are gone the next morning.

The oldest hotel on Route 66 is the Eagle Hotel in Wilmington, Illinois. Though sitting empty today, the 1836 hotel that once serviced stagecoach travelers, has plans of restoration.

The first McDonald’s restaurant was located in San Bernardino, California in 1945 on the Mother Road. The site is currently home to the McDonald's Route 66 Museum.

Adrian, Texas is said to be the “geo-mathematical” center of Route 66. However, many argue that this claim is actually in Vega, Texas. They're probably both right depending upon which alignment a traveler might have taken.

Oklahoma has more miles of the original Route 66 than any other state. 

First McDonalds Restaurant in San Bernardino, California in 1945. Photo courtesy McDonalds/Route 66 Museum.

Arizona has the longest stretch of the historic highway still in use today.

Quapaw, Oklahoma, the first town on the Mother Road in Oklahoma, is famous for “spooklights”, bouncing bright balls of white fire that have been reported as far back as the 1700s.

The Chain of Rocks Bridge in St. Louis was used in the filming of the 1981 movie “Escape From New York.” The bridge was repaved for John Carpenter’s film and appears at the end of the movie when Kurt Russell rescues Donald Pleasance from certain doom. Though closed to vehicle traffic today, the Chain of Rocks Bridge is remains open as the world’s longest pedestrian and bicycle bridge.

Tucumcari's Tee Pee Curios is the last curio store on Route 66 between Albuquerque and Amarillo.

Updated October, 2007

Hill Top Motel in Kingman, Arizona,

December, 2004, Kathy Weiser

From the Rocky Mountain General Store

Route 66 Books - Legends of America and the Rocky Mountain General Store has collected a number of Route 66 Books for our Mother Road enthusiasts. As great as Route 66 is, if you aren't armed with a few good tools on your journey, you'll miss great attractions, eateries, places to stay, and wind up on the wrong path. To see this varied collection that includes "how-to" books, travel guides, photograph books, attractions, and more, click HERE!