A new Route 66 marker was recently unveiled on Madison Street in Brooklyn, Illinois, after the historic Black community had been bypassed and neglected on Route 66 maps for many years.
Brooklyn (aka Lovejoy) sits on Illinois Highway 3 between East St. Louis and Madison in the metro-east area of St. Louis. Illinois 3 was an alignment of Route 66 from 1929 to 1937, though that fact often was ignored. The village dates to 1829.
KSDK-TV reported:
For the village, it represents the first step toward a long-awaited comeback for America’s first Black-incorporated town.
“Every good thing needs a foundation, so the Route 66, the unveiling, the unghosting, that’s the foundation that we’ve been waiting for here on Madison Street,” says Mayor Trenton Atkins.
For nearly a century, Brooklyn, located just across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, watched as major infrastructure and highways were literally built around them. The design allowed the rest of the world to completely bypass the community, effectively erasing its rich history from the physical maps of the United States.
“We are here to celebrate righting a longtime wrong because Brooklyn has been on Route 66 since its founding and has not been recognized,” said Bonnie McDonald, Landmarks Illinois president and CEO. “Today is about celebrating the community and making sure the community is recognized.”
The dedication ceremony occurred inside Quinn Chapel, the oldest Black church in the Midwest and a safe space for those escaping slavery through the Underground Railroad.
Here’s the video from the station:
The village is also due to receive a new community center and skating rink.
Three years ago, Brooklyn was added to Landmarks Illinois’ annual Most Endangered Places list.
(Image from KSDK video of the unveiling of a Route 66 sign for Brooklyn, Illinois)