Also known as the ‘Main Street of America’ and the ‘Mother Road’, the internationally famous Route 66 was commissioned in 1926 as one of America’s original highways. It was 2,448 miles long and went between Chicago, Illinois, and Santa Monica, California. Promoted as the most direct and panoramic route between the two cities, the road became very popular with motorists. Soon, merchants began opening motels, restaurants and gas stations along it – including the world’s first McDonald’s, in San Bernardino, California, in 1937.
AMERICAN DREAMS
The road passes through eight US states. These are, traveling from east to west: Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California. Throughout the 1900s, the number of cars on US roads increased dramatically, from a few thousand to hundreds of millions. Goods could be transported all the way across the country. People drove from poorer parts of the States looking for work and a better life. Merchants on Route 66 thrived7. U.S. Highway 66 contributed to the highest economic growth in United States history, and the cross-country road became symbolic of a new pioneering spirit.
STOP!
Not everyone was happy to enjoy the scenery, however. Motorists’ demand for more direct routes between cities resulted in the historic road’s decline. By the early 1980s, five new high speed, interstate highways had replaced the old Route 66, which was finally decommissioned in 1985.
A SLOW DRIVE
But the romance of the road for both Americans and international visitors has remained strong. The Federal Government began to invest in reopening sections of Route 66 in recognition of its historical, social and touristic value. Today, approximately 85 per cent of Route 66 is once again accessible, offering an unforgettable journey through America.
A NOSTALGIC JOURNEY
Today, you can drive along most of Route 66 and visit its historic sites, which include some of its original restaurants and gas stations. You can experience the road at the height of its popularity at one of the highway’s most popular attractions: the California Route 66 Museum. The museum is located in Victorville, California, about 90 miles from Downtown Los Angeles on the former site of a popular café and a bar. It has an enormous collection of Route 66 memorabilia, including black and white photographs, original road signs, and a 1917 Model T Ford. Lucius Tyson is on its board of directors and volunteers there as a tour guide. When Speak Up visited the museum, we began by asking Tyson what intrigues Americans about Route 66.
Lucius Tyson (American accent): There’s a nationwide resurgence about Route 66 because of the nostalgia and the history. Americans, we are losing a lot of history because we’re a throwaway society. If we don’t want it or it’s out of use, we’ll tear it down and rebuild it with something else. Now they’re finding out our history is becoming important to us.
SMALL-TOWN USA
Tyson went on to talk about why the road has international appeal.
Lucius Tyson: Different people have different aspirations for the road. From Europe, they see the old American movies about Route 66 and what happened along the famous cities along Route 66. Americans, we’re trying to recover some of the history that was lost when the superhighways were built, about the small-town living and the small-town general store.
AMERICANA PRESERVED
Tyson feels a strong connection to the museum. He thinks that it’s important for younger Americans to be aware of their country’s past.
Lucius Tyson: It’s enjoyable to be here. I have history at my fingertips and I try to pass it along to anybody who’s willing to listen. The main reason to come here is because you can see a good amount of Americana that is preserved, and we hope to pass along to the younger generation, whenever they’re ready to accept it. We don’t throw away things here, we try collect it and rotate the exhibits as often as possible, so that people can get the best knowledge and the best vision of what life was like back in the early days. That is one reason I think people should come here, just to look around and see what us older folks have lived through.
GET YOUR KICKS
The road also gained artistic significance: the author John Steinbeck is said to have conceived of The Grapes of Wrath on a 1937 drive from Chicago west on Route 66. Will Rogers, a famous personality of the late 1920s and early 1930s, traveled from Oklahoma to California on the road to achieve his fame. When he died in a plane crash in 1935, the road was unofficially renamed the Will Rogers Highway. Route 66 is also the name and theme of an R&B song written in 1946 by Bobby Troup, and famously covered by Chuck Berry (inset photo), the Rolling Stones and Depeche Mode, among other artists.