Business seeks to help preserve Route 66 sites

A Minnesota-based artist recently launched Explore and Preserve, an apparel and gift website that aims to give part of its profits to endangered Route 66 sites, including the Meramec River Bridge in Missouri. The historic Meramec River Bridge near Eureka, Missouri, requires more than a half-million dollars by the end of the year or the Missouri Department of Transportation tears … Continue reading Business seeks to help preserve Route 66 sites

La Paloma marks 50th anniversary

La Paloma restaurant along Route 66 in La Verne, California, is marking its 50th year this week. But according to the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, the Mexican restaurant's roots go back even further, to the 1920s: That’s when the property was an orange grove. Farmhands would pull up to the grove manager’s home for breakfast … Continue reading La Paloma marks 50th anniversary

Chicago plans Route 66 birthday party Saturday

On Saturday, Chicago will host a 90th-birthday party for Route 66 near the eastern terminus of the Mother Road. According to Time Out Chicago, the Illinois Office of Tourism will throw up a pop-up birthday party for Route 66 on Jackson Boulevard in downtown Chicago, near Michigan Avenue, where the historic highway begins. The nearby Bow Truss coffee shop … Continue reading Chicago plans Route 66 birthday party Saturday

Pokemon Go can boost Route 66 businesses

You may have noticed a bunch of young people walking along the sidewalk, watching the screens of their smartphones intently. It's likely they were playing an augmented reality game, Pokemon Go, that Apple and Android recently released to their smartphone systems. It's caught on like wildfire. The Orlando Business Journal provided this nutshell description of the game: … Continue reading Pokemon Go can boost Route 66 businesses

Gay Parita memorial garden nearly finished

Barbara Turner's memorial garden for her late parents is nearly finished several months after she took over the Gay Parita gas-station site west of Halltown, Missouri. Barbara Turner announced her intentions to build the garden that would contain her parents' cremains shortly after taking over the property in April. During the early 2000s, Gary Turner … Continue reading Gay Parita memorial garden nearly finished

Man skateboarding Route 66 for foundation

Australian celebrity athlete Damien Rider seeks to skateboard the 2,300 miles of Route 66 to raise money for his Rider Foundation that combats child abuse and post-traumatic stress syndrome. He began his journey with a skateboarding partner June 27 in Chicago and likely will be in Oklahoma soon. A survivor of child abuse and PTSD himself, Rider set … Continue reading Man skateboarding Route 66 for foundation

Figures at Barstow mural vandalized

Wooden cutouts placed in front of one of the newest murals along Route 66 in Barstow, California, were vandalized last week. According to the Desert Dispatch newspaper: The mural is painted on the eastside portion of the Barstow Office Supply building owned by Fred and Sandy Baca, located at 613 E. Main St. It features … Continue reading Figures at Barstow mural vandalized

A sample of a treasure trove of photos

This new video features a collection of photos taken during the early 1980s by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation along NW 39th Street from Oklahoma City to the suburb of Bethany, before U.S. 66 become decommissioned. According to Rachel Mosman, a photo archivist at the Oklahoma Historical Society, the photos were animated by J.A. Pryse into a video. https://youtu.be/mvcUHhXO9ts In … Continue reading A sample of a treasure trove of photos

Pony Bridge added to Endangered Places list

Preservation Oklahoma recently placed the famous Pony Bridge near Bridgeport, Oklahoma, on its 2016 list of Oklahoma's Most Endangered Historic Places. The endangered-places listing was announced in April in Tulsa. The State Historic Preservation Office published the list in its current issue of the Preservation Oklahoma News. This is how Preservation Oklahoma listed the bridge, which also is … Continue reading Pony Bridge added to Endangered Places list

Carlyle Motel in Oklahoma City soon will disappear

The historic Carlyle Motel along old Route 66 in west Oklahoma City has closed, and it seems it soon will make way for a used-car lot. A reader alerted me by email this week the motel's "driveway is now blocked, by a large truck that has a sign reading 'Cash for Cars.'" The current situation has existed … Continue reading Carlyle Motel in Oklahoma City soon will disappear