🌿 This episode is proudly sponsored by Eden’s Table — a Christ-centered herbalism curriculum for K-5 homeschool families. One plant a week, woven through Bible, science, history, art, and Latin.
Happy Birthday, Route 66
In “Happy Birthday, Route 66,” Episode #263, Meredith Curtis celebrates America’s favorite vacation road. First came the Model T, and then came road trips. Route 66 became the road to adventure and family togetherness in 1926. Decommissioned in 1985 due to the Interstate, it has been restored as a US Scenic Highway. From the big city of Chicago through the desert to the ocean, come along on America’s Iconic Road Trip.
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Show Notes
It’s 1965. Betty and Joe load their sleeping kids in the family station wagon. Rover, the family dog, quietly gets in through the tailgate. It’s an hour to Chicago, where they’ll hop on Route 66, America’s favorite vacation road.
Fast forward to 2026, when Betty and Joe’s granddaughter Beth and her husband John, …
History
Cyrus Avery, businessman, oilman, rancher, and highway commissioner, is called the Father of Route 66. Route 66 was created by combining existing local and state roads into a continuous cross-country route. Fully paved by 1938. Motels, diners, and gas stations sprang along its path.
Route 66 was decommissioned in 1985, but today preserved as “Historic Route 66” and National Scenic Byway.
The Places & Sites
Illinois
Chicago is the official starting point of Route 66.
Joliet, IL. The Joliet Area Historical Museum and Old Joliet State Prison.
Bloomington, IL. Illinois Hall of Fame and Museum, world’s largest Route 66 Sign Mural, Pontiac Oakland Auto Museum.
Granite City, IL. Mississippi River Chain of Rocks Bridge, themed cafes and gas stations, colorful murals, outdoor sculptures, gardens, and art galleries.
Missouri
St. Louis, MO. Gateway Arch, the place pioneers began their westward treks.
Meramec Caverns is one stop in Missouri’s Cave Country.
Lebanon, MO. Ozark Mountains with nonstop scenic views and iconic diners and gas stations.
Springfield, MO, and nearby towns offer a candy factory, a replica of the Hubble Space Telescope, the Route 66 Car Museum, Crystal Cave, and museums.
Joplin, MO. Route 66 Mural Park.
Kansas
Kansas is the shortest stretch on Route 66, about 12 miles.
Galena is an old mining town that boomed in the early 1900s. The Viaduct Bridge, 3 characters from the movie Cars – Luigi, Sheriff Police Car, and Tow Mater, large murals of Coke, Pepsi, and Mountain Dew, & “Greetings from Galena,” mining museum.
Oklahoma
Tulsa, OK. Open-air museum, Route 66 Historic Village. Southwest Avery Plaza Route 66 Neon Sign Park, Mother Road Market, Route 66-themed miniature golf,. Buck Atom’s Cosmic Curios, towering “Muffler Man,”
Pops 66 Soda Ranch greets you with a giant illuminated soda bottle sign in Arcadia.
Oklahoma City, OK. Cowboy museums, multisensory experiences, colorful murals, Cattleman’s Steakhouse, Stockyards City, guided canal cruise.
Texas
Amarillo, TX. Great western food at vintage eateries, historic buildings, and art. Cadillac Ranch: 10 Cadillacs are buried hood down into the ground. Grab a can of spray paint and add your artistic best.
Palo Duro Canyon State Park, TX. Second-largest canyon in the USA. Hike, explore, horseback ride, or mountain bike. Rustic cabins.
New Mexico
Tucumcari, NM’s famous Blue Swallow Motel has hosted travelers since 1939. New Mexico Route 66 Museum and Route 66 Monument.
Albuquerque, NM. 66 Diner, The KiMo Theatre.
Arizona
Window Rock Navajo Tribal Park, Navajo Nation, AZ. Window Rock is not actually on Route 66. Memorial Park honors the Navajo Code Talkers and Navajo Marines. Breathtaking Monument Valley is also in the Navajo Window is actually 4 ½ hours away, close to Flagstaff.
Petrified Forest National Park, AZ. Trees that have fossilized with rings of reds, oranges, and purples.
Painted Desert, AZ, is a beautiful desert/mesa landscape that is absorbs light at sunrise and sunset to take on rich, vibrant colors. Painted Desert Inn and 1932 Studebaker abandoned in the desert.
Meteor Crater Natural Landmark, AZ. Crash site (55 ft deep, mile wide) where a meteor landed on Earth. NASA astronauts trained for the moon landing there.
Holbrook, AZ. Wigwam Motel.
Jack Rabbit Trading Post, Joseph City, AZ.
Winslow, AZ. Old Trails Museum. Gigantic Route 66 sign stamped into the asphalt. World’s smallest church, 9/11 Remembrance Garden, La Posada, hotel.
Flagstaff, AZ. Route 66 sign stamped into the asphalt, giant Muffler Man, Galaxy Diner, San Francisco Mountains. Detour: Grand Canyon.
California
Needles, CA. Just inside the border. Wagon Wheel Restaurant.
Mojave National Preserve. Desert with volcanic cinder cones, sand dunes, desert tortoises, and Joshua trees. Kelso Depot, restored train station/museum on the LA-Las Vegas Union Pacific Railroad line.
San Bernardino, CA. First McDonald’s. First Original McDonald’s Museum, Wigwam motel, Bono’s Giant Orange.
Santa Monica, CA. Pacific Ocean, famous pier, brass plaque that marks the official end of Route 66. Congratulations! You made it!
Planning a Trip on Route 66?
I’ve barely scratched the surface, but there are plenty of websites and blogs devoted to Route 66. Be sure to browse and research. God bless you!
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