We’ve known for a while that the lighting ceremony for the new Route 66 Neon Park at George M. Reed Roadside Park in St. Robert, Missouri, is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Friday.
But a news release from the Pulaski County Tourism Bureau provides more details about the orphaned signs from Route 66 businesses in Missouri that will be displayed at the park.
- AlPac Motel sign, east of Pacific
- Alura Motel, later known as the Lin-Air Motel, near St. Louis
- D & G Liquor sign in St. Robert
- Modern Cabins sign in St. Robert
- Motel St. Louis sign in St. Louis
- Scully’s Restaurant & Motel sign in St. Clair
- Skyline Garage Auto Service in St. Robert
- Stanley Cour Tel in St. Louis
- Tri-State Bonding sign in Carthage
All signs, collected and refurbished by private collectors, were once used to advertise along Route 66 in Missouri, stretching from St. Louis to Joplin.
Along with the signs, the park will feature storyboards to provide visitors with the backstory of each sign. The signs were donated to Route 66 Neon Park by entities and individuals, including Friends of the Mother Road, Inc., Missouri State Parks, the Chmura family, Kenneth and Susan Bassett and the Route 66 Association of Missouri.
Discussions and efforts to establish the Neon Park began in 2014 with a meeting between Beth Wiles, executive director of the Pulaski County Tourism Bureau, and the Route 66 Association of Missouri’s Neon Heritage Preservation Committee.
Fundraising efforts commenced in 2015, during which the Pulaski County Preservation Organization acquired nine neon signs and raised more than $12,000.
In October 2020, the City of Saint Robert took over development, making the vision a reality.
(Courtesy image of the Route 66 Roadside Park under construction in St. Robert, Missouri)