A visit to the Round Barn

This is a report about the Round Barn in Arcadia, Okla., from Brent Weber, a reporter from a KOKH-TV in Oklahoma City. This is a regular feature by Weber, called "Postcard from B-Web." It's a good segment. I didn't know about the funeral that was held a few months ago in the barn.

Book review: “Bunion Derby”

From the When It Rains, It Pours Department: After years of very few volumes about the famed 1928 "Bunion Derby" footrace across America, two remarkably comprehensive books are released three months apart. The first was "C.C. Pyle's Amazing Foot Race" by Geoff Williams. The second is "Bunion Derby" (256 pages, University of New Mexico Press, … Continue reading Book review: “Bunion Derby”

A look at the Gay Parita station

KOLR-TV in Springfield, Mo., has a story about Gary Turner's re-creation of the Gay Parita gas station on old Route 66 west of Springfield in a settlement called Paris Springs. Here are more photos of Gay Parita. There's a video link with the story. But buried in the story is this item that's not on … Continue reading A look at the Gay Parita station

Where memories live

April Wilkerson of the Shawnee (Okla.) News-Star paid a visit to the Route 66 Interpretive Center in Chandler, Okla., which is in the town's historic armory building. Check it out. And check out the interpretive center's Web site, too. It's been overhauled in a major way.

Saratoga Lanes named to National Register

Barely a block south of the Manchester Avenue alignment of Route 66 in the St. Louis area is Saratoga Lanes, an upstairs, eight-lane bowling alley that's been there since 1916. Yep, it predates the Mother Road. On Jan. 29, the Saratoga Lanes building was named to the National Register of Historic Places. Saratoga Lanes is … Continue reading Saratoga Lanes named to National Register

Ghost Road

Here is a segment of "Return to the Road" documentary, a look at modern-day Route 66 starring Martin Milner before he became ill a few years ago. Using the near-deserted Rock Cut segment and the quiet village of Devils Elbow in Missouri, this segment looks at the more contemplative stretches of a once-bustling Mother Road. … Continue reading Ghost Road

Rialto wants state-owned stretch of Route 66

The city of Rialto, Calif., wants to take over a three-mile stretch of Foothill Boulevard, aka Route 66, that's owned by the California Department of Transportation, reports the Inland Press-Enterprise. The city assumes that Caltrans has bigger fish to fry -- notably the maintenance of a new stretch of Highway 210 -- than worrying about … Continue reading Rialto wants state-owned stretch of Route 66

Planning begins for Carthage Route 66 museum

Brad Belk of the Joplin Museum Complex is planning the creation of what will be the Jasper County Route 66 Transportation Museum, which will be on the first floor of the Jasper County Courthouse in Carthage, Mo., reports the Carthage Press. “The consulting contract was approved and we’ll be in the preliminary design phase until … Continue reading Planning begins for Carthage Route 66 museum

Book review: “San Bernardino”

The sprawl in the Los Angeles metro area is so extensive that one is tempted to describe San Bernardino, Calif., as simply one of its many suburbs. It may surprise some that San Bernardino was founded in 1810 and was incorporated just three years after the City of Angels. With more than 200,000 people, San … Continue reading Book review: “San Bernardino”

Dog’s grave marker moved to Route 66 museum

A grave marker for Brownie, a dog at the Victorville, Calif., railroad depot that greeted soldiers coming home from World War II, will be moved to the California Route 66 Museum, reports the Victorville Daily Press. The marker is being moved because Forrest Park, where it sits, is being torn down. Brownie apparently was a … Continue reading Dog’s grave marker moved to Route 66 museum