The Shamrock Court Motel in Sullivan, Missouri. It can be yours for $125,000. Lots of possibilities. Actually, now you're too late. Missouri's Roamin' Rich bought it.

Monday, May 30, 2016

15 Reasons Why Route 66 Is the World's Greatest Road Trip-- Part 2: Kitsch Museums

8.  You can smell burning rubber at the Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Illinois.

9.  You can cross the Colorado Boulevard Bridge in Pasadena, California.

10.  It flirts with the Grand Canyon.

11.  A brief detour takes you to Las Vegas.

12.  Kitsch museums abound.

13.  Getting lost is encouraged.

14.  There's a Cadillac graveyard.

15.  It passes through the Painted desert.

And I Could Go On and On.  --RoadDog

Thursday, May 26, 2016

15 Reasons Why Route 66 Is the World's Greatest Road Trip-- Part 1

From the May 9, 2016, Telegraph (UK) by Gavin Haines.

1.  It has a literary connection with Steinbeck "Grapes of Wrath," Kerouc "On the Road" and Hunter S. Thompson "Fear and Loathing."

2.  It starts in skyscrapers--  Chicago.

3.  It ends in the Pacific Ocean.

4.  There are ghost towns.

5.  You can stay in a wig-wam motel.

6.  You can eat "Dead Chicken" at the Snow Cap Drive-In in Seligman, Arizona.

7.  There are muffler men.

And...  --RoadDog

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

News From Along the Lincoln Highway: DeKalb County First Landscaped Section

From the May 25, 2016, MidWeek (DeKalb County, Illinois) "Looking Back."

1916, 100 years ago.

"DeKalb county enjoys the distinction of being the first county in the whole length of the Lincoln Highway from coast to coast in which systematic work  under competent authority is being done to beautify that great national road."

--RoadDog

News From Along Route 66, April 2016: So, Springfield, Missouri, Was Real Birthplace

APRIL 29--  Murals in Chelsea, Oklahoma, pedestrian tunnel to be revealed Saturday.  There was a time when crossing Route 66 required taking your life in your hands.  Better to go under it.

APRIL 30--  New research solidifies Springfield, Missouri as the birthplace of Route 66.  It's a good thing since they have their Birthplace of Route 66 Festival every year.

--RoadDog


Events From Along the Illinois Lincoln Highway for 2016-- Part 4

OCTOBER 31:  103rd Anniversary of the dedication of the Lincoln Highway for the American people in memory of Abraham Lincoln, fly your American flag, and tell your friends to fly theirs.

DECEMBER 9:  5:00 to 8:00 p.m.:  19th Annual Christmas in the Grove, downtown Franklin Grove.  Farming Heritage has its annual antique car raffle drawing at this event.

--RoadDog

Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Events Along the Illinois Lincoln Highway in 2016-- Part 3: Corn Fest in DeKalb

AUGUST 19-21:  Annual Lincoln Highway Heritage Festival in Rochelle.  Car show Saturday.

AUGUST 23:  Tuesday evening: Karl "Red Bird" Teller,, Annual Hobo Dinner, hobo stew, storytelling and songs, Chaplin Creek, Franklin Grove.  This annual event is turning into one of the top hobo events in the country.

AUGUST 28:  Geneva Concours d'Elegance, Geneva.

AUGUST 26-28:  Corn Fest, DeKalb, with Car Fest.  They block off Lincoln Highway through the miiddle of town.

Hit the Road, Jack.  --RoadDog

Events Along the Illinois Lincoln Highway for 2016-- Part 2: Dixon Petunia Festival

JUNE 30-JULY 4:  Dixon Petunia Festival

JULY 29:  7 p.m. and 9 p.m.: Fifth Friday Music in the H.I. Lincoln Building, Franklin Grove featuring the Irish-American band Switchback.

AUGUST 6&7:  Annual Summer Harvest Festival, Franklin Grove.

AUGUST 11-13:  Lincoln Highway Buy-Way Yard Sale.  Lincoln Highway West Virginia through Iowa, including Illinois.

Buy me a Lincoln.  --RoadDog

Monday, May 23, 2016

Events Along the Illinois Lincoln Highway for 2016-- Part 1

From the Land of Lincoln news  of the Illinois Lincoln Highway Association, Late Winter 2016.

APRIL 6:  Sycamore Public Library, Cece Otto, An American Songline: A Musical Journey Across the Lincoln Highway.

APRIL 30:  Will County Historical Center, presentation by Dr. Larry McClellan on Named Highways.

MAY 14:  Annual Lincoln Highway Car Show, Franklin Grove.

JUNE 13-17:  LHA Annual Conference, Gettysburg, Pa., followed by a road tour of the National Road to Vandalia, Illinois, looping back to the Lincoln Highway via Route 66 in Illinois.

--RoadDog

Split Log Drag-- Part 2: A Big Benefit For the Good Roads Movement

The split log drag used two parallel logs with the cut side of each facing front, separated three feet by rigid separators and pulled by a team of horses, or a truck.

Variations are still in use on baseball infields.

The first log would remove clods and the second would smooth the dirt road.  The logs were staggered so dirt would be pushed to the center to create a crown so water would run off.

This made it possible for farmers to improve roads in front of their property (as the DeKalb County article wanted them to do) and not have to wait for government graders.

D. Ward King got a patent for it in 1908, but didn't try to collect royalties on it.

--RoadDog

Friday, May 20, 2016

Split Log Drag-- Part 1: David Ward King

From Wikipedia.

I kind of had an idea what this process might be, but looked it up.

The King road drag (also known as the Missouri road drag and split log road drag) was an implement for grading dirt roads that revolutionized the maintenance of dirt roads in the early 1900s, the early days of automobiles.

It was invented by David Ward King, who had a farm in Maitland, Missouri.

More to Come.  --RoadDog

Looking Back to 1916: Road Construction Back Then, the Split Log Drag

From the April 13,.2016, MidWeek (DeKalb County, Illinois" "Looking Back."

**  "A split log drag, the salvation of dirt and gravel roads, should be in use on every such road during this particular time.  The roads are in condition to benefit by this treatment and it is the duty of everyone to do his share in this line.

"If you fix a road in front of your house your neighbors enjoy the improvement of the roads and the man over whose roads you wish to travel may profit by your example."

Fix Your Road Or I'll hate You.  --RoadDog

While On a Music Note, Going Back to 1971

Tomorrow, Chicago's WXRT, 93.1 FM, is going back to 1971 on Wendy Rice's Saturday Morning Flashback.

The show runs from 8 to noon, CDST on www,wrxt.com.

I'll be listening for some of the time.

A Great College Year.  RoadDog


Thursday, May 19, 2016

The Drive's Ten at Ten for Today: 1969

In the last post, I mentioned that Bob Stroud was going to go to 1969 for today's Ten at Ten.

These are the songs he played:

SHE CAME IN THROUGH THE BATHROOM WINDOW--  Joe Cocker
LOVELY TO SEE YOU AGAIN--  Moody Blues
OVERTURE/ IT'S A BOY--  Who

25 MILES--  Edwin Starr
SOMETHING--  Beatles
CRYSTAL BLUE PERSUASION--  Tommy James & the Shondells
PROUD MARY--  Creedence Clearwater Revival

THE BOXER--  Simon & Garfunkel
PRE-ROAD DOWN--  Crosby, Stills & Nash
DAZED AND CONFUSED--  Led Zeppelin

And, there will be a repeat show of it tonight at 10 p.m. CDST at www.wdrv.com.  

Bob Stroud always has a vote from listeners to pick the best.  If it is CCR, that is ALWAYS my vote.

Well Worth a Trip Back.  --RoadDog


Going Back to 1969 for Ten at Ten Today

Bob Stroud will be doing 1969 on his Ten at Ten radio show on WDRV, 97.1 FM in a few minutes, at 10 a.m., CSDT.  It streams at www.wdrv.com.  It will be replayed at 10 p.m. tonight.

Hey, 1969 was my high school graduation and first year at NIU.  Big year for me.

Tomorrow, Ten at Ten goes to 10 birthday-themes songs in celebration of WDRV's 15th anniversary of mighty good classic rock.

--RoadDog

It's So Funny, I Could Cry: Speed Bump Comic Strip for May 19, 2016

One single frame.

Two prehistoric cave men are standing, one by a stone wheel he evidently must have been riding.  The other is standing by about eight stone objects that could be described as traffic cones today.  They are arranged in two rows.

The one by the stone wheel says, "I don't know what your invention's called, but it's really irritating."

That really hit home after my latest drive to and from North Carolina with all that road construction.

Now, I don't have a problem with road construction signs and markers and such, but I do have a problem with all the dire warnings of dismemberment, $1 million dollar fines, life imprisonment, etc. warnings that now go along with them, especially when there is no road construction going on or workers present.

--RoadPhotoEnForcedDog

News From Along Route 66, April 2016: Munger-Moss 70th Birthday

APRIL 19--  The Munger-Moss Motel in Lebanon, Missouri, will mark its 70th birthday Saturday, April 23.  It also marks the 45th year Bob and Ramona Lehman have owned it.

The celebration will go from 5 to 10 p.m..  Earlier in the day, about 13 miles to the east, there will be a rally at the closed Gasconade bridge, built in 1924, but now being threatened with being torn down.

We were there for both activities.

APRIL 20--  The cars on the Route station in Galena, Kansas has been put up for sale, but will remain open for a few more weeks.

Here's hoping somebody buys it who will keep it going.  It is a neat place, and, of course, the original "Tow Mater."

APRIL 24--  Hundreds show up for the Gasconade Bridge Rally in Hazelgreen, Missouri.  We were among those folks.

--RoadDog

Tuesday, May 17, 2016

News From Along Lincoln Highway, May 20-16: A Car Show and a Bridge Festival

MAY 15--  From the May 15, 2016, Tama (Iowa) Herald/Toledo Chronicle "Find old favorites and brand new events at the 32nd annual Tama Lincoln Highway Bridge Festival" by John Speer.

It will be held May 20-21 and will feature a carnival, bands and food as well as other activities.

MAY 15--  From the May 15, 2016, SaukValley.com (Illinois)  "Hot rods warm up chilly day in Franklin Grove."

It was a really chilly Saturday on the 14th (thanks to the annual Round Lake, Illinois, Spring Carnival) but that didn't stop classic vehicles and spectators for making it out to the fifth annual Lincoln Highway Car Show put on by the Friends of the Parks to raise money for the village's Atlasta Park whose current bathroom facility is non-compliant with handicap accessibility.

Vehicles parked along Main Street, the original; Lincoln Highway, adjacent to the H.I. Lincoln Building which serves at the national headquarters of the Lincoln Highway Association.

there were cars, trucks, motorcycles, hot rods, a 50-50 drawing, prizes and food vendors.  Awards were given in various categories.

--RoadDog

News From Along Route 66, April 2016: Gay Parita Reopens

APRIL 14--  Braidwood, Illinois, resident Chris Farley wants a preservation ordinance for the town along the Route 66 corridor.  The Polk-A-Dot Drive-In is probably the best known site in town, but there are also others.

APRIL 15--  Gary Turner's daughter has reopened his Gay Parita stations.  it was closed for the past 15 months after his death at age 70.  She quit her long-time job in Charleston, S.C., to move back.  And, we're so thankful.

APRIL 17--  Midewin Tallgrass Prairie is now the leading bison town in Illinois.  It is located near Joliet in the former Joliet Arsenal.  There is another large buffalo preserve near Franklin Grove, Illinois, near the Lincoln Highway.

--RoadDog

Monday, May 16, 2016

News From Along Route 66, may 2016: Normal, Illinois, to Vote Tonight on Buying and Renovating Sprague Service Station

From the May 15, 2016, Bloomington (Illinois) Pantagraph  "Normal to vote on buying, renovating Route 66 historic site" by Derek Beigh.

The Sprague service station at 305 Pine Street is already on the NRHP and might become a tourist center owned and operated by Normal if the city council approves it Monday night.

"This will be one more reason for people to pull off I-55 and take Route 66 through our community," said City Manager Mark Peterson.  negotiations have been under way for a year with owner Terri Ryburn, who bought it in 2006 hoping to turn it into a B&B, tea room, gift shop and restaurant.  Despite grants and moneys, she was unable to do much with it.

The city council is considering a $458.000 investment, including $229,000 for the purchase and $200,000 to improve it as well as $172,000 to buy and renovate an adjourning parking lot.  It will be paid for by Normal's capital and general funds.

The city plans on having a gift shop on the first floor.  Terry Ryburn would get out of her $229,000 mortgage, receive $29,000 and have a ten-year option to operate the gift shop.  She will continue to live on the second floor, paying $120 a year.

It Is So Nice to See Bloomington-Normal Finally Becoming Aware of Their Route 66 Heritage After Many, Many Years of Almost Complete Neglect.  --RoadDog


News From Along Route 66, April 2016: Launching Pad Fails to Sell, Ambler-Becker 90th Birthday Party

APRIL 11--  The launching Pad Drive-In in Wilmington, Illinois failed to sell at auction.  the reserve price was not met.  Tina and Joel Brownlee of Wilmington submitted the high bid at $177,500.  They grew up in Wilmington and seem to be really interested in reopening the place.  Of course, this is where the famous Gemini Giant statue is.

APRIL 12--  New sculptures are going to be installed along Route 66 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

APRIL 12--  The Ambler-Becker Texaco station in Dwight, Illinois is to hold an early 90th birthday party for Route 66 from 1-4 p.m., April 21.

It was built in 1933.  Basil "Tubby" Ambler owned it from 1938-1966.  Philip Beckler owned it until 1999.  then it went many years in a state of decline but now has been restored and serves as a visitors center for Dwight.  (We were able to attend it on our way to the Munger-Moss anniversary.)

--RoadDog

News From Along Route 66, April 2016: Bicycling and the Boots

APRIL 10--  Book Review:  "Bicycling Guide to Route 66" by Bob Robinson.  200 pages on what to see and do by a man who evidently rode the whole thing.

I would definitely like to see there one day be a regular organized Route 66 for  bicyclists.  Illinois is already doing a lot with bike paths.

APRIL 11--  The neon around the edges of the Boots Court Motel in Carthage, Missouri, has been relighted.  Ron "Tattoo Man" Jones paid for the restoration of the Boots Court neon sign a few years ago.

The motel was built in 1938 by Arthur Boots at 107 S. garrison Avenue, considered the "Crossroads of America" because Route 66 and US-71 intersect here.

Clark Gable stayed several times in Room 6.

The Boots Court became the Boots Motel in the 1950s.  It closed in the early 2000s after years of decline.  The current owners bought it in 2011 and have done a great job restoring it.

High On My List of Places I Want to Stay.  --RoadDog

Friday, May 13, 2016

News from Along Route 66, April 2016: Death of Merle Haggard

APRIL 3--  Meramec Caverns in Stanton, Missouri, may be closed until mid-summer because of toxic fumes that have been detected.

APRIL 6--  Country singer Merle Haggard died.  One of my all-time favorite performers.  I'll never forget hearing "Okie from Muskogee" on a radio station from Muskogee when we were driving Route 66 in Oklahoma.

His family left Oklahoma in 1935 and moved to California.  Sort of Joadish if you ask me.

APRIL 8--  The City of Lincoln in Illinois approved funds for The Mill restoration, using $12,000 in motel tax funds.  They plan to have it opened as a museum.  The Mill opened in 1929 and closed in 1996.  It is great to see this place rise from its very deteriorated shape when we first saw it.

APRIL 9--  The Marathon Oil station in Miami, Oklahoma, sold at auction for $18,000.

--RoadDog

News From Along Route 66, April 2016: Tulsa's "Outsiders" House

APRIL 2--  Rapper Danny O'Connor of the group House of Pain has purchased the house in north Tulsa, Oklahoma, used in Francis Coppala's 1983 movie "The Outsiders.  The movie was based on S.E. Hinton's book of the same name.

The movie featured a lot of young talent including Matt Dillon, Rob Lowe, Patrick Swayze, Tom Crusie and Emilio Estevez.

The house is located at 731 N. St. Louis Street, about 1/2 mile north of the Second Street alignment of Route 66.

A Bit of History.  --RoadDog

News From Along Route 66, April 2016: Bloomington-Normal Start to Realize their Route 66 heritage

From the April 1, 2016, Bloomington (Illinois) Pantograph "Downtown draw:  Route 66 visitors center draws tourism."

Downtown Bloomington has become a destination for thousands of Route 66 travelers in the first year of operation of the Cruisin' With Lincoln on 66 Visitors Center.

"These are visitors who have been bypassing our community for years," said Beth Whisman, executive director of the McLean County Museum of History.

They held a one-year celebration from noon to 4 p.m. on April 25.

It opened April 25, 2015 and so far 16,000 have visited.  Of the 3,211 who signed the register, 311 were international and 933 from out of state.

An Illinois Wesleyan University study showed the new center generated $322,000-$445,000 in visitor spending in the community.

I Am So happy That These Two Towns Have At Long Last Come to realize Their Route 66 Heritage Is Valuable.  RoadDog

Thursday, May 12, 2016

Looking Back 100 Years Ago: Special Emphasis on the Lincoln Highway Seedling Mile in DeKalb County, Illinois

From the May 11, 2016, MidWeek, "Looking Back."

1916, 100 Years Ago.

"The Lincoln Highway seedling mile in DeKalb County is in line for a great deal of attention from all parts of the country through the recent announcement that it is to be the first mile of the entire Lincoln Highway to be planted and made more beautiful through designs especially submitted by a professional landscape gardener.

"This seedling mile of the Lincoln Highway should become the prototype of many other miles now dull and monotonous  but worthy of better care and more orderly treatment."

It Doesn't Appear That There Is Much of the Lincoln Highway Landscaping Along the Route 66 Seedling Mile in Malta, lllinois.  --RoadDog

News From Along Route 66, March 2016: Death of Frances Edwards of the Pig Hip

MARCH 31ST, 2016: Frances Edwards, wife of Route 66 icon Ernie Edwards, owner of the Pig Hip Restaurant in Broadwell, Illinois, died March 1, 2016, at age 94.  She was married to Ernie for about 30 years until the Pig Hip closed in 1991.  She had become a waitress there in 1962.

She continued to greet visitors at the Pig Hip Museum until it burned down in 2007, but could be seen at their home behind the Pig Hip.

Ernie Edwards was one of the first individuals inducted into the Illinois Route 66 Hall of Fame.  Ernie died in 2012 at the age of 94.  She was buried next to Ernie on March 4th, at New Union Cemetery in Lincoln, Illinois.

And, she put up with Ernie.

A Great Woman We Met on Numerous Occasions.  --RoadDog

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Sitting here At the Munger-Moss Motel-- Part 19: Rejpoining the Illinois Route 66 Association

APRIL 24TH, TUESDAY

**  After lunch and the Arcade Museum in Atlanta, Illinois, we got back on I-55 and took it to Chenoa and got back on 66 and took it to Pontiac.

**  Took a drive around the downtown, past that beautiful courthouse and really neat Bob and Ringo's Bar.

**  Then we went to the Illinois Route 66 Hall of Fame and Museum.  A church tour group was going in when we arrived.  I had also been thinking about rejoining the Illinois Route 66 Association again as I had let my membership expire, so paid my $25.  Looked at Bob Waldmire's van, which is inside.  We'd seen it on several occasions when he was alive.

**  Then we went outside and saw Bob Waldmire's converted school bus, his home sweet home, which is parked outside.

**  Drove to Dwight, then back on Illinois Hwy. 47 and home.

Sure Was Good to be Back on the Old Road Again.  --RoadDog

News From Along Route 66, March 2016: A New Museum and a New Tourist Center for the Road

MARCH 27--  Route 66 Tourist Center opens in Edwardsville, Illinois.  It will be in Afterwards Books, a store that was a tourist inn for Route 66 travelers back in its day at 454 E. Vandalia Street (Route 66 through town).  They are closed Sundays and Mondays.

It was originally built as a single family home by a wealthy resident and became a tourist inn in the early 1920s.  A decade later, tourist cabins were added and some still exist behind the house.

Let's see, two of my favorite things in one place--  a bookstore and Route 66 thing.  Wondering if I'll visit the next time through?

MARCH 30--  Soft-opening planned for June 1, for the Heart of Route 66 Auto Museum in Sapulpa, Oklahoma..  The museum features 10,000-square-feet of interactive displays and vintage autos.  The neatest thin is the 66-feet-tall gas pump outside.

You can never have too many places such as that and that huge gas pump will certainly attract folks...like me.

Books and 66.  --RoadDog

News From Along Route 66, March 2016: Sidewalk Highway Work

Articles taken from the Route 66 News site.  These are ones of special interest to me.  But the site has many more Route 66 news items, pictures and more text.

APRIL 22--  Ottaway County, Oklahoma,  seeks $450,000 grant for Sidewalk Highway.  These will be federal transportation alternative money.  Sparse traffic on it (and a lot of 66ers) but it has fallen into disrepair after nearly a century of use.

The nine-foot wide width was paved in 1922 and was the path of Route 66 from 1926 to 1937.  The reason it was so narrow was that the county could pave a longer stretch.

Let's hope they get it.  It's a treat to drive it.

The Ol' Ribbon Road.  --RoadWalkDog


Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Wilber's Barbecuse, Goldsboro, N.C.-- A Trip to the 'Cue Place of All 'Cue Places

From "The Best Tar Heel Barbecue" by Jim Early.

On May 5, I made my every visit pilgrimage to that favorite 'cue place I have been going to for a long time, Wilber's.

A plate of barbecue comes with the barbecue, of course, and you also get cole slaw, potato salad and hush puppies.  I am not a big fan of their potato salad, so ordered my usual double cole slaw.  Of course, to me, the proper way to eat bbq is an equal amount of 'cue and cole slaw on each forkful.

The price is now $9.95 for a plate, less if you get a tray which has less 'cue and only one side of cole slaw.

--RoadDog


Monday, May 9, 2016

Sitting Here at the Munger-Moss Motel-- Part 18: A Horseshoe and a Pie at the Palms Grill Cafe, a New Museum in Atlanta

APRIL 26, TUESDAY

**  We split a ham horseshoe sandwich, a Central Illinois treat, at the Palms Grill Cafe in Atlanta.   If you don't know what a horseshoe is, it is a meat on a toasted piece of bread covered with gravy, cheese and fries.  Absolutely not good for you, but boy is it good.

**  Their portions are so generous that both of us had some left over.

**  The Palms Grill Cafe is known for their pies and we split a chocolate pie.  It was huge.  I highly recommend you save room if you go there for dessert.

**  Before we left Atlanta, I walked over to a new place to me called the Arcade Museum.  Many are in operating condition.  There were pinball machines as well as a lot of early video games, including several of my old favorites like Pac-Man, Asteroids and Space Invaders.  I was tempted to play, but knew we had to get on the road home.

--RoadDog

Sunday, May 8, 2016

Sitting Here At the Munger-Moss Motel-- Part 17: Those Wonderful Springfield Stoplights

APRIL 26, TUESDAY

**  Continental breakfast in the lobby, then over to Wal-Mart, across the road.  I love going to landscaping nurseries this early in spring.  It means winter is over.  Later, I went to Mel-O-Cream, a real Springfield treat, for a donut and coffee.

**  Drove Route 66 out of Springfield and caught nearly every one of their many, many, many stoplights red.  Sure made my day.

**  Got on I-55 north of Sherman and stayed on it to Atlanta.  We had never gotten off at the Atlanta exit from I-55, and it was a bit confusing and strange looking for a bit.  We were able to find main street without much difficulty (small town, you know).

**  We went to the  Palms Grill Cafe.  Atlanta is a town that really pushes its Route 66 heritage and this is a big example of it.  The place was a mainstay of the town for decades before closing.  It has been renovated to look as it did in the 1940s.  a real trip back into time.

--RoadDog

Friday, May 6, 2016

Sitting Here At the Munger-Moss-- Part 16: The Curve and the Loss

APRIL 25, MONDAY

**  Next stop was at the Curve Inn across Route 66 from the Route 66 Hotel.  This bar has been there since the 1930s and is a real roadhouse.  They also have a really nice biergarten now.  People were starting to come in for the Blackhawks-Blues game.

**  I had their wings, which is the Monday special and a great deal at 25 cents each.

**  We then went back to the Route 66 Hotel and to the Filling Station bar where we saw the Blues-Hawks game.  Sadly, we lost and are out of the Stanley Cup playoffs.  Congratulation St. Louis.  We'll be pulling for them now.

--RoadDog

Hursey's Barbecue, Burlington & Graham, N.C.-- Part 2: (A Mix of Eastern/Lexington 'Cue Sauce)

The business itself began in a meager building in their backyard and a recipe given to him by Sylvester's father.  Production in those days consisted of one hog a week  Legend has it that Sylvester won a competitor's barbecue sauce in a poker game and he combined it with his sauce which led to the present day Hursey's.

That sauce used on their chopped barbecue is a combination between Eastern North Carolina vinegar-base sauce and Lexington-style (sugar, tomato-added) dip.

Only the family knows the exact ingredients of their very secret sauce.

The barbecue is shipped to all 50 states and even foreign countries.

Some very satisfied customers are former presidents Lyndon B. Johnson, Ronald Reagan and George Bush Sr..

--RoadDog

Thursday, May 5, 2016

Hursey's Barbecue, Burlington & Graham, N.C.-- Part 1: The "Character" Gets It Started

From "The Best Tar Heel Barbecue: From Manteo to Murphy" by Jim Early.

On my way to Goldsboro, N.C., this past Saturday, April 30, I stopped for lunch at Hursey's Barbecue in Graham, N.C..  This was the second time I had been there.  I had also stopped by the Hursey's in Burlington, on a Sunday, but it was closed.

Both are about a mile off I-40.

Charles Hursey started the present Hursey's Barbecue in 1960, and as of the book's printing in 2002, was still on the scene, but most management today is by his two sons, Chuck and Chris, assisted by Mom Ellen and their sister Carey.

Charles Hursey's grandfather started the family into their barbecue quest.  Charles picked it up from his father, Sylvester, who is described as somewhat of a "character."  The story has it that the business started during a backyard party with some drinking and coincidental great hog cooking.

--RoadDog


Sitting Here At the Munger-Moss Motel-- Part 15: A Visit to Costelloe's

APRIL 25, MONDAY

**  On the way to Missouri, I had picked up a copy of the Illinois Times, a newspaper about things happening in Springfield, Illinois.  There was an ad for a new place that had just opened called Costelloe's out to the west of town.  There was also one in Chatham, near Springfield.

We used to go to a popular Springfield restaurant called Coz's.  We also found out that Coz's was owned by the brother of a good friend of ours named Frank Costello, who owned a favorite hangout of ours, Costello's Pub & Grub on Fox Lake, Illinois (Chain of Lakes).

We had heard that they had sold Coz's, but could this be a place of theirs?

We asked the bartender if this place was connected to Coz's and she said yes.  This Costelloe's was managed by Frank's brother's son, Tim.  We had intended to go to Fulgenzi's after that, but ended up staying a bit longer at Costelloe's.  (They added the last "e".)  Love those free peanuts.

--RoadDog

Sitting Here At the Munger-Moss Motel-- Part 14: A New Route 66 CD For Us, the Road Crew

APRIL 25, MONDAY

**  While at Rich Henry's I bought a CD of Mother Road Songs by the Road Crew.  I've heard of them often, but never had one of their CDs.  Great Route 66 music and listened to it the rest of toady and much of Tuesday on our way home.

**  Drove through Mt. Olive and by Soulsby Station and the Miners' Cemetery where Mother Jones is buried.

**  We continued on 66 to Litchfield and past the Ariston and new museum.  After the fried chicken, tacos and cookies, we weren't hungry and did not stop at Jack's for more tacos.  But, we glanced longingly as we drove by.

**  Back on I-55 to Springfield and got a room again at the Route 66 Hotel and Convention Center.  We plan on coming back for several days this summer.

--RoadDog

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

Sitting Here At the Munger-Moss Motel-- Part 13: A Visit With Rich Henry at His Rabbit Ranch

APRIL 25, MONDAY

**  Drove by the Church of the Neon Light and the site of the Meramec Caverns barn and got off at the Staunton, Illinois, exit and drove the old Illinois Hwy 4, which became the original Route 66.

**  DeCamp Junction was closed again.  We never seem to be able to catch this place open.  We think we might have seen a for sale sign as we drove by.

**  We actually found Rich Henry's Rabbit Ranch without driving around a lot.  We usually do not find this place right away.

**  Rich was raking leaves and came over to introduce us to his outside rabbits, many of them rescues.  He knew the history of each one.  Then we went inside and met the inside rabbits.  We often met the queen of Rich's rabbits, Montana, who would personally autograph postcards of herself (by biting it).  It was funny when he put her into the presidential race.  Perhaps she could have beaten the Donald.

**  Rich was a big reason we got hooked on Route 66 as his was the first regular Mother Road place we went to on our first trip along the road back in 2002.

See What You Did, Rich!!  --RoadDog

Sitting Here At the Munger-Moss Motel-- Part 12: Eating Our Way Across Route 66

APRIL 25, MONDAY

**  Back on I-44 and drove to Rolla and got off to do Route 66 through it.  This city has a whole lot, I mean a whole lot of stoplights to go with lots of traffic.  Don't know that I am going to do this again.

**  Of course, another stop at the Jack-in-the-Box (Jack's) in Sullivan (even though we weren't hungry after the Chester's Chicken back at St. Robert's.

**  Back on I-44 and decided to take I-270 around St. Louis so we could see the Chain of Rocks Bridge.  I was getting tired so we took a break at a McDonald's in Florissant, a suburb in the northwest side of St. Louis.  I decided to buy three of their cookies for $1.

I was told I had to wait as they were just baking them.  In the future I will be very happy to wait for the cookies as they were some of the best I've ever eaten.  The chocolate chips were gooey.  One of Liz's cookies fell apart.

**  Drove by the Chain of Rocks Bridge on the I-270 Bridge, a great way to get a true glimpse of the grandeur of the Chain Bridge.

**  Into Illinois on I-270 and got off on I-55.

Cookie Monster Would Love This.  --RoadDog

Tuesday, May 3, 2016

Sitting Here At the Munger-Moss Motel-- Part 11: Hooker Cut and John's Modern Cabins

APRIL 25, MONDAY

**  Boy, that Chester's Chicken is good.  Wish they had more of them.  Usually there are only a few in any given state  if at all.

**  Exit 163 is also by the entrance to the Hooker Cut section of old Route 66, now called Highway Z.  As  have said before, Hooker Cut is my absolute favorite stretch of Route 66.  Drove through it and felt the ghosts driving through there.

**  We also stopped by the sad John's Modern Cabins.  Every year we see them, they have decayed a bit more.  All of the cabins are now down and in various stages of decay.  But, it is still a reminder of what Route 66 was.  The vegetation has about taken it over as well.

**  It is also sad to see Verneille's Motel, which evidently is still open and appears to be well-kept up.  I'd like to stay there sometime.

**  This stretch of road marks the death of two highways.  Not only was it Route 66 before being by-passed by I-44, but also there is a stretch of I-44 through there that has also been abandoned.

--RoadDog

Sitting Here At the Munger-Moss Motel-- Part 10: Saying Goodbye to Ramona and Hello to Chester's Chicken

APRIL 25, MONDAY

**  Had coffee and talked with Ramona in the lobby of the Munger-Moss.  Caught up on my blogs and then left, saying goodbye to Ramona.  Again congratulated her on owning the Munger-Moss for 45 years.  that is a long time to do anything.

**  She says they would like to retire, but will not sell to just anybody.  The people have to be committed to continuing the motel as it is.

**  They bought the place in 1971, after a particularly hard winter in their native Iowa.

**  We drove Route 66 awhile going east, but got back on I-44, getting off at Exit 163 to get gas at the Road Ranger which I had seen was $1.86.  Filled up.

**  I saw that they had a Subway and, even better, a Chester's Chicken place.  We became hooked on Chester's fried chicken at a little place across from the Driftwood Inn in Panama City Beach, Florida, that sold it.  Unfortunately, they stopped selling it.

It is my belief that Chester's fried chicken is the juiciest and tastiest anywhere.  We had to get a two-piece snack pack and it sure brought back some taste memories.

Mouthwatering Good.  --RoadDog

Monday, May 2, 2016

Sitting Here at the Munger-Moss Motel-- Part 9: VFW and More 66ers

APRIL 24TH, SUNDAY

**  On the way back to the Munger-Moss Motel from Bennett Spring, we stopped at the Lebanon VFW.  A Korean War veteran at the Senor Pepper's on Friday had told us this place was open on Sundays.  We found a bingo session going on in the main hall and bypassed that to the bar.  We find that bingo players can be really mean if you interrupt them.

**  Before walking in, we looked at the marker to veterans killed in the line of duty in wars from World War I to the Persian Gulf out in front of the building.  We saw the name of Charles Wrinkle, we were told a relative of Glenn Wrinkle, who operated the famous Route 66 Wrink's Market in Lebanon.  Charles was killed in World War II.

**  Watched the St. Louis Cardinal victory and there were sure a lot of friendly folks there.

**  Back at the Munger-Moss, we sat out by the picnic table near Route 66 and talked with a couple from Williamsburg, Virginia, who were doing Route 66 on a motorcycle.

**  Later, we went across 66 to the bowling alley for a couple.


--RoadDog

Sitting Here at the Munger-Moss Motel-- Part 8: "Click's on 66" and Rainbow Trout

April 24, 2016, Sunday

**  We saw a building by the Exit back to I-44, and stopped in.  The name on the building was "Get Your Click's on Route 66."  Unfortunately, they are in the process of opening the place, but we did get to talk with the owner, last name Click.  This will no doubt become a regular stop for us

**   Drove I-44 back to Lebanon and then took Missouri-64 about 13 miles to Bennett Spring State Park.

**  We've often heard about it, but this was our first time there and well worth the short drive.  Bennett Spring is known for its rainbow trout and there were a lot of people fishing both off the banks of the stream and in it (wearing those waders).

**  We went to the restaurant there which is in a building constructed in 1920.  I had never had trout, so this seemed a good time to order it.  I ordered the rainbow trout almandine for $15 which came with a salad bar and two sides.  That was sure money well-spent.  I know one more place I'll be eating at the next time through.

Something Fishy Here.  --RoadDog