Route 66 in Washington D.C.
A
By John Beyer
PIECE OF ROUTE 66 HISTORY IS LOCATED 697 MILES southeast from where this iconic roadway began back in 1926 in downtown Chicago. “But I thought the Mother Road went from Chicago to Santa Monica?” little Jimmy may ask. Well, that is correct but when my lovely wife, Laureen, and I flew to Washington D.C. recently, we were thrilled to see a beautiful exhibit about Route 66 at the National Museum of American History. “Are you thrilled?” Laureen asked. “Thrilled to be thrilled.” It is not a large exhibit, but all the information a person visiting this Smithsonian Museum is there to garner a taste of how important Route 66 was for early travelers across the United States. Stretching an impressive 2,448 miles through Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New to enjoy and understand the history of this wonderful highway that stretches for so many miles. Mexico, Arizona, and finally arriving in California. The Smithsonian’s were something that was top on our list as It took six years to build this road, from 1926 until 1932, but it we landed at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Actually, making sure our bags arrived on the same plane as we did, getting to our hotel and having an adult libation were my top priorities. But on our first full day in the city planned by George Washington, we hoofed it to some of the most famous museums in the world. The Smithsonian’s. I had never traveled to our nation’s capital and wanted to see what it had to offer. After nine days, I learned there was a lot this large berg had to show a visitor - and nine days were not enough. On that first full day we headed out early to a place which was on both of our radars. The Route 66 experience at the National Museum of American History. The exhibit is crowded with memorabilia commemorating this masterpiece of a highway. There are some of the original vehicles on display which drove across Route 66. Along with those displays there are sculptures of men and women standing or sitting in those very same vehicles was not fully paved until 12 years later in 1938. Cyrus Avery, a businessman in Tulsa, Oklahoma stated, “I challenge anyone to show a road of equal length that traverses more scenery, more agricultural wealth, and more mineral wealth than does U.S. 66.” Avery founded the U.S. 66 Highway Association and first called Route 66 the ‘Main Street of America.’ I have traveled quite a bit along Route 66 getting research for this or that story and I never tire of driving the long stretches of usually empty roadway. Passing through towns that are still here like Newberry Springs, Ludlow, Seligman, Winslow, and towns that are simply ghosts of what they once were, Bagdad, Siberia, Two Guns, and many more that dot the long stretches of roadway. Each time I stop, it’s hard not to imagine hearing the voices, the laughter, the tears, that once could be heard in these once vibrant spots. It’s not a quick trip taking the byways, but that is the reason 8
August 2023
PULSE PUBLICATIONS