FEATURE
. . . . . . . . On Route 66
the genesis of his Route 66 work. The group was tasked with establishing a federal highway system to make state-to-state travel easier. One of the first routes to be proposed ran from Virginia Beach, VA to Los Angeles, CA. From Springfield, MO, the road would stretch west across southern Kansas, Colorado, Utah and Nevada before turning south to L.A. However, Avery successfully argued a far better route to avoid mountainous terrain should tack south through Tulsa (his hometown) and Oklahoma City (the state capital) and continue west through the Texas Panhandle, New Mexico, Arizona, and finally to southern California ending in Santa Monica. Furthermore, he successfully lobbied to have the road go east from Springfield to St. Louis, and Chicago, IL. Federal highway officials decided to assign even numbers for roadways running east to west and odd numbers for those running north and south. Avery and others thought the Chicago-to-L.A. route should be designated as Route 60. But those in Kentucky and Virginia were stridently opposed. They wanted the number 60 for a route from Newport News, VA west to Springfield, MO. Kentucky officials offered to sign off on the Chicago-L.A. highway if Avery and his cohorts would accept the number 62. But Avery and his fellow Okies along with those in Illinois and Missouri didn’t care for
that number. They later learned the number 66 was still available. On November 11, 1926 during a meeting of federal and state highway officials in North Carolina, Route 66 was born.
Buck Atom's Cosmic Curios can be found on the east side of downtown, on the north side of E. 11th St./Route 66, at the corner of S. Quincy Ave. Buck faces east. Store hours are Monday-Saturday, 10-8, & Sunday 11-5.
During its lifetime, “America’s Main Street” (which often served as Main Street for many communities) showcased some of the most beautiful scenery in America. Along the 2,400 miles drivers could also find full-service gas stations, general stores, and neon-lit motels along with wonderful diners, driveins, and dives. Weary and hungry travelers could stop for satisfying cheeseburgers, hot dogs, corn dogs, fried chicken, chicken fried steak, barbeque, steaks, Frito pies, and pizza; malts, shakes, sodas
JUNE 2019 | b Monthly
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