The Associated Press has a nice article about Tulsa's historic Art Deco architecture, which recently made the cover of Preservation magazine. But here's something I didn't know. The historic Blue Dome gas station, on an old alignment of Route 66 in downtown, was inspired by an ancient church in Turkey. Route 66 fans have architectural … Continue reading The Blue Dome’s Turkish connection
Category: Businesses
Tourism numbers jump in northeastern Illinois
Will County, Ill., which includes the Route 66 town of Joliet as the county seat, saw a 9.4 percent increase in tourism spending, reports the Bolingbrook Sun. And the Mother Road gets a lot of the credit: Benson attributed the area's rising numbers to some staple attractions -- the city's two casinos and Chicagoland Speedway … Continue reading Tourism numbers jump in northeastern Illinois
A weekend ‘adventure’ for 4 Women on the Route
The Joplin (Mo.) Globe has a good story about the eventful weekend recently for 4 Women on the Route of Galena, Kan. The business had a devil of a time hauling around Tow Tater, the tow truck that become the inspiration to Tow Mater in the movie "Cars," to and from the Route 66 Festival … Continue reading A weekend ‘adventure’ for 4 Women on the Route
Notes from the road
There seems to be some activity at the long-abandoned old Route 66 town of Spencer, Mo. We heard from Gary Turner up the road at Gay Parita that someone has bought the town's handful of buildings and plans to revive it with a gift shop and maybe other things. When we drove by on Sunday … Continue reading Notes from the road
Montana, R.I.P.
Word came today that Montana, the beloved mascot of Rich Henry's Rabbit Ranch on Route 66 in Staunton, Ill., died overnight, likely from natural causes. Montana some months ago underwent abdominal surgery and was nearly seven years old, which is the upper limit of the typical life span of rabbits. Montana even had her own … Continue reading Montana, R.I.P.
4 Women on the Route gets a surprise
It was quite a weekend for the 4 Women on the Route of Galena, Kan. First, their restaurant and gift shop, in renovated gas station, was named New Business of the Year during the Will Rogers Awards Event on Saturday in Litchfield, Ill., at the Route 66 Festival. Next, during the annual Route 66 yahoogroup … Continue reading 4 Women on the Route gets a surprise
Swa Frantzen wins top Route 66 award
Swa Frantzen (shown above), an Internet pioneer in publicizing Route 66 with his Historic66.com site, won the top honor during the Will Rogers Awards Event on Saturday night during the Route 66 Festival in Litchfield, Ill. The New Business of the Year was 4 Women on the Route in Galena, Kan. Chicago Route 66 researcher … Continue reading Swa Frantzen wins top Route 66 award
The maker of Round Barn Root Beer
KFOR-TV in Oklahoma City did a feature about Huebert Brewing Co., which makes Round Barn Root Beer for POPS on Route 66 in Arcadia, Okla. The root beer is the top-seller at the business. The root beer is named after the historic Round Barn in Arcadia. (Hat tip: Rich Imrie.)
Checking in
This post comes from a clean, comfortable and inexpensive room at the Gardens Motel in Litchfield, Ill. We got into Litchfield not long after the sun began to dip low on the ripened wheat and sprouting horseradish fields. On the way, we found the concretes at Ted Drewes Frozen Custard in St. Louis are as … Continue reading Checking in
Treasure unearthed at the Rock Cafe
Dawn Welch, owner of the historic Rock Cafe on Route 66 in Stroud, gives a little TLC to a treasure she found buried under the rubble at the restaurant, which burned May 20. Sound quality on the video isn't great, but Cars fans will be excited to see what survived the fire: Friends of the … Continue reading Treasure unearthed at the Rock Cafe