Route 66, dotted with mom and pop businesses, neon signs, and eclectic roadside attractions tells the story of America’s historic more West. The creation of this 2,448-mile “super highway” in 1926 linked together small communities across eight states providing a new-found freedom to early travelers.
In 1939, John Steinbeck proclaimed Route 66 as the “Mother Road” in his classic novel, The Grapes of Wrath, which depicted life during the Great Depression. When the movie was made just a year later, it immortalized Route 66 in the American consciousness. Then, on the heels of the Great Depression, came the Dust Bowl of the Midwest where 200,000 people traveled Route 66, the road to opportunity, migrating to California in search of a new life.
As World War Ⅱbroke out, troops, equipment, and products were transported across Route 66 to California, and when the war ended in 1945, the Mother Road brought home thousands of serviceman. For these returning serviceman and their families, Route 66 became more than just a highway, it was a link to America’s wonders experienced through family road trips.
The lure of the Route has been immortalized in the hit song, “Get Your Kicks on Route 66” written by Bobby Troupe and performed by the Nat King Cole Trio, the Rolling Stones, and many others, and by the television series, Route 66, which brought the Mother Road into homes all over America in the 1960s.