Lenore and John Weiss- Route 66 Preservationists

The July 16th Kankakee, Illinois Daily Journal had an article about Wilmington residents Lenore and John Weiss went to Pontiac, Il, recently and have touched up the old Illinois Highway 4 shield on one of the end posts of an old bridge in town. It was getting might faded.

The Weisses have been traveling 66 since 1989 and been leaders in Route 66 preservation since 1994.

About ten years ago, while driving an old alignment on the north side of Pontiac, Lenore caught a glimpse of a faint outline of Illinois with the number4 centered in it. This was the old Illinois State Highway 4 which was mostly done away with when Route 66 was built.

Unfortunately, structural problems to the old 1920s bridge necessitated its replacement a few years ago, but the city kept the end posts, including the one with the Il-4 on it. They also rebuilt the railings to resemble the original ones.

The Weisses have recently updated their guidebook "Historic Route 66 of Illinois" which is now in its 6th printing. This is the Route 66 source you want to use while traveling the old road in Illinois. On our first trip along the road in the spring of 2002, we bought a copy of it at the Cozy Dog in Springfield, and it greatly improved our trip the rest of the way.

They are also still involved with preservation projects like the old Log Cabin in Pontiac, the Mill in Lincoln, and a 1936 gas station in Bloomington. This past weekend, the Route 66 Association of Illinois worked at the wonderfully restored 1920s Standard station in Odell. Several months ago, a lady from Toronto, on a five hour layover at O'Hare, rented a car and drove the nearly one hundred miles to see it.

They also give tours of the Illinois section of the road. You can go to their website www.il66authority.com
They also just recently authored the book "Traveling the...Historic Three" about a 110 mile triangular tour you can make and go on not only Route 66, but also the Lincoln Highway and Dixie Highway, two roads that predate Route 66.

Route 66 is Made up of Many People Like the Weisses. --RoadDog