NOTE: The date of the work day has been changed from Friday, Nov. 11, to Saturday, Nov. 12, in an effort to gain more participation. The new owners of the Boots Motel in Carthage, Mo., have set Saturday, Nov. 12, as a volunteer day to help clean and read the Route 66 landmark for winter. … Continue reading Boots Motel volunteer day set to mark Route 66’s birthday
Category: Preservation
A tour of the Campbell Hotel
Recently, the owners of the Campbell Hotel along Route 66 in Tulsa offered me and Emily (aka Redforkhippie) a tour of the historic building. Last week, we took them up on their offer. We had toured the hotel in May during the Tulsa's annual Designer Showcase. However, that was when the hotel was dolled up … Continue reading A tour of the Campbell Hotel
Santa Fe motel will be converted into low-income housing
The historic Stage Coach Motor Inn along Cerrillos Road (aka Route 66) in Santa Fe, N.M., soon will be converted into a lower-income housing complex, according to the Albuquerque Journal. The Housing Trust of Santa Fe will begin renovating the motel in January. Plans call for revamping the inn’s three buildings into 15 studios apartments … Continue reading Santa Fe motel will be converted into low-income housing
Tucumcari’s newest repainting effort … and more
This past weekend, volunteers in Tucumcari, N.M., started their latest repainting effort on an abandoned gas station in town. The station, shown above, will be the seventh gas station in Tucumcari that's been repainted in a nostalgic color scheme on the Route 66 corridor. This station will be repainted to resemble a Magnolia station; area … Continue reading Tucumcari’s newest repainting effort … and more
Lights on at the Luna Cafe
A vintage neon sign -- plus architectural neon -- of the historic Luna Cafe on Route 66 in Mitchell, Ill., were relighted Saturday night during a ceremony attended by about 200 people. Jim Thole of the Route 66 Association of Missouri's Neon Preservation Committee reported that the neon was turned on at 6:44 p.m. Saturday, with … Continue reading Lights on at the Luna Cafe
Roller rink reopens in Sapulpa
When we last checked with the closed Starlite Skate Rink on old Route 66 near Sapulpa, Okla., about 18 months ago, it was being converted into a church. Now the Sapulpa Daily Herald says the roller-skating facility is going back to its old ways. It's been rechristened as the Route 66 Roller Dome, and its … Continue reading Roller rink reopens in Sapulpa
Chandler Baseball Camp named to National Register of Historic Places
Chandler Baseball Camp in Chandler, Okla., renowned for decades for its baseball-only camps run by Bo and Tom Belcher, was listed to the National Register of Historic Places effective Oct. 12, according to an email today from the National Park Service. The complex, at 2000 W. Park Road in Chandler less than a mile north … Continue reading Chandler Baseball Camp named to National Register of Historic Places
First Pontiac race car will be displayed at Pontiac museum
The Pontiac-Oakland Museum & Resource Center, open only for a few months in Pontiac, Ill., soon will have the first-ever Pontiac race car on display at the museum. According to a news release today from Pontiac Tourism: The car is the earliest known Pontiac race car, successfully competing for the first time in August 1926, Pontiac's introduction … Continue reading First Pontiac race car will be displayed at Pontiac museum
A short history of Soulsby Station
Here's a video about Soulsby Service Station, which has sit on a corner of old Route 66 in Mount Olive, Ill., since 1926. https://youtu.be/yP4qtCjhivw According to the description of the video, it was for a class project. It turned out pretty well.
Route 66 makes a financial impact on Illinois towns
The Chicago Tribune tonight has posted a remarkable article about how Route 66 has financially impacted the towns along it. (The story's print edition will be on newsstands Saturday.) The report contains eye-popping data: While many small towns across the country are struggling to keep their downtowns afloat, Pontiac and a string of other Illinois … Continue reading Route 66 makes a financial impact on Illinois towns