Along66, Jan. 2022: Get Your Passports Here and How About Those Facades

JANUARY 21

29,000 Oklahoma Route 66 Passports were distributed in just a few months of 2020, you know the virus year, well, so was 2021.  80,000 were ordered.  

They brought in money to the state even with you-know-what.

The passports are a great idea and I would like to see every state doing that.  Let's face it, getting them stamped is fun.  Liz and I sure like to do it when we are on a motor tour.

JANUARY 26

The City of Carlinville, Illinois, is doubling the amount of facade grants for the Route 66 Centennial coming up in 2026.

It is usually a total of $10,000 but now goes to $20,000.

Hey, that centennial is a big deal.  (Glad it didn't happen during the you-know-what.)

RoadDog

'Route 66 Tattoo Man" Hospitalized

From the February 26, 2022, KJRH Oklahoma.

One of those great characters we have on Route 66, Ron Jones, probably better-known as "The Route 66 Tattoo Man"  was  hospitalized Friday morning in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, with acute  kidney failure.  He is at Jane  Phillips Hospital.    

Ron Jones is a long-time Route 66 enthusiast who has covered his body with nearly 200 tattoos with the vast majority showing places along his beloved Route 66.

The owners of Buck  Atom's are asking  people to send cards and cheer him up.

Ron Jones

3500 SE Frank Phillips  Blvd.

Bartlesville, Oklahoma 74006

Room #579

We have had occasion to meet and talk with him.  Like I said, quite the character and one of the big reasons we all love this road.

--RoadDog

Australians Like Oklahoma 66

From the February 11, 2022, Karryon site from Australia "Ready to get your kicks on out to  two Oklahoma road trips?"

OKLAHOMA'S ROUTE 66

Route 66 is America's most-traveled  tourist trip going from  Chicago to Santa Monica  And... the longest  drivable stretch is in OKLAHOMA.

It covers 600 kilometers (well, it's Australia, you know), in case you're wondering, 373 miles.  It is filled with charming towns, mind-expanding museums,  and more quirky-but-cool oddities  than you'll fond in Ripley's Believe It Or Not Museum.

Here are some neat stops they present:

Oklahoma Route 66 Museum

Golden Driller in Tulsa

Chandler Route 66 Interpretive Center

Admiral Twin Drive-In

The Blue Whale of Catoosa

POPS

Darryl Strawbird's Museum Rod & Custom Car  Hall of Fame Museum

Buck Adams Cosmic Curios on 66

--RoadDog

Along66, Jan. 2022: That Neat Old Ozark Court Motel Sign to Be In an Exhibit! Car Rental 'Price Shock!'

JANUARY 14

Ozark Court Motel sign to be restored and planned for a Route 66 exhibit in 2025.  Right before the Centennial!!

It was originally in St. Clair, Missouri but disappeared from Route 66 twenty years ago.

A collector has procured it and plans to include it in a Route 66 exhibit at the National Museum of Transportation in St. Louis n 2025.

The motel dated to the 1930s.  The sign was made in 1952 and was rescued in 2002 by a collector, but presently owned by  Greg Rhomberg who acquired it in 2021 and plans to restore it.

Well, at least the sign has turned up again and we can all get a chance to see it.  Thank  you Mr. Rhomberg.  I don't remember if we saw it when it was still up.

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JANUARY 20 

If you plan on renting a vehicle of any sort to drive Route 66 this year, be prepared for "price shock!!"

Car rental prices are WAY UP!1  Rental of an SUV for two weeks, one-way was $1,800.  Today it is $5,500.

We've got to find whoever is making all this profit and relieve them of their ill-got gains.

--RoadDog

Along66, Jan. 2022: Good News for the Old Pop Hicks Restaurant and Glancy Motel

JANUARY 13

Clinton agency completes deal for Clancy Motel-Pop Hicks development.  Clinton, Oklahoma.

The Clinton Economic Development Authority bought both sites and will turn it over to a local developer to renovate or rebuild them.  A pledge of $5.5 million has been made to accomplish this

It is hoped that both sites will be restored and running by the time of the Route 66 Centennial celebration in 2026.

The Glancy Motel was built in 1958 and had been in a steep decline until it was condemned by the city condemned it in 2019 for numerous code violations.

Ethan Edwin "Pop" Hicks opened his restaurant on New Years Day in 1936 and expanded it greatly in the years following  until he sold it in 1968.  After that, it exchanged owners several times until  Howard and Mary Nichols bought it in  1989 and operated it until 1999 when the building was completely destroyed by fire.

--RoadDog

Along66 Jan. 2022: Death of Charlie Nixon of Glenrio

JANUARY 12

Charlie Nixon, native of Glenrio, dies at 89.

Glenrio is a ghost town on Route 66, straddling the Texas-New Mexico border.

Mr. Nixon was born April 13, 1932, in Glenrio.  He grew up in Endee, San Jon, Porter and Tucumcari, New Mexico.

The second son of James "Ivan: Nixon and Rosa Lea Hackett Nixon who worked long hours in cafes, gas stations, bars and dance halls that they managed and owned.

Charlie was quite a character himself with too much to write about, so read the obituary and watch the video at Route 66 News for this date.  Also, read his obituary at Legacy.

Just one of the people who make Route 66 such a fun place.

--RoadDog

Oklahoma Getting New Route 66 Signage

From the February 17, 2022,  6 KPVI NBC News "new signs  guide travelers on Oklahoma's  Route 66" by Kimberly James.

They are being placed in conjunction with the upcoming centennial celebration of the Mother Road in 2026.

Ken Busby of the Route 66 Alliance said:  "One of the biggest complaints that we receive from travelers is that it is difficult to stay on Route 66 because of the various alignments in some cities and maps are sometimes difficult to follow.

A resurgence of interest in Route 66 came about in  the 1990s with Michael Wallis' book "Route 66:  The Mother Road" and the 2006  Disney/Pixar film "Cars."

Route 66 has played a major role in the history of Oklahoma since its beginning, largely thanks to  Cyrus Avery, "The Father of Route 66."  Without him, it is highly likely that the road never would have come through the state or Tulsa.

When Route 66  first opened in 1926, he convinced the Federal Highway Department that the  11th Street Bridge (built in 1917 and the first concrete, steel-reinforced bridge) in Tulsa was a good way to get across the Arkansas River.

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Illinois and Missouri both have great Route 66 signage to follow.  I'm looking forward to the time all states to the west have similar signage.  It can get confusing.

You Can Never Have Too Much Signage, Neon or (Many) Museums.  --RoadDog

Along66, Jan. 2022: Joe & Aggie's Cafe in Holbrook Facing Bleak Times

JANUARY 8

Joe & Aggie's Cafe faces uncertain future after closing, death of longtime owner.

It is located in Holbrook, Arizona, and closed in the fall of 2020.  The closing is attributed to Covid-19.  The same time, they also lost Stanley Gallegos, who died at age 82 in September 2020.

The cafe opened in 1943.  In 1958 he married Alice Montano, the daughter of the restaurant founders Joe and Aggie Montana.

Stanley also ran a barbershop in the corner of the v]building and was the inspiration for Stanley, the founder of the fictional Route 66 town of Radiator Springs in the 2006 animated movie "Cars."

The cafe is located at 120 W. Hopi Drive (Route 66).  Famous for its chili.  Looking at pictures of their food and I'm hungry now.  Wish we'd stopped when we drove through.

Cash value of the whole building is just $31,000, so anyone of you wanting to get into the restaurant business, this is your chance.

Hoping It Reopens.  --RoadDog

Illinois' Starved Rock Region-- Part 4: Hegeler Carus Mansion, Star Union Spirits, Uptown Grill and LSTs

**  Hegeler Carus Mansion in LaSalle, Il.  A  Second Empire structure completed in 1876 by renowned Chicago architect William W. Boylington for Edward Hegeler.   Hegeler was a zinc manufacturer and publisher.

**  Star Union Spirits in the historic Western Clock building in Peru for tours and tastings, specialty and artisan spirits.

**  Uptown Grill in LaSalle Since 1985 featuring aged steaks, fresh seafood and a full service bar and lounge with over 100 wines and 12 craft beers.

**  Seneca launched 157 LSTs (Landing Ship Tanks) during World War II and some 27,000 workers were employed.  These ships landed tanks, vehicles, troops and supplies and were an important aspect of the eventual Allied victory.  Every spring the town celebrates Shipyard Days in June to commemorate it.

--RoadLST

Illinois' Starved Rock Region-- Part 3: Hiking, Tasting, Eating, Sampling and Floating

**   The Starved Rock Lodge Activities Department bow has a very popular winter walk hike at Wildcat Canyon which has ice-climbing on the park's frozen waterfalls.

**  August Hill Winery & Illinois Sparkling Company in Utica has a tasting room with locally-made wines.

**  Lone Buffalo Restaurant by Tangled Roots Brewing Company in Ottawa.  These are all designated Illinois Makers sites.

**  Lock 16 Visitors Center in LaSalle is a year-round welcome center with historical exhibits, visitor information, a full-service cafe and gift shop.  Lock 16 is also home to the popular mule-pulled canal boat rides where period-dressed storytellers share history as people enjoy a float down a restored stretch of the I&M Canal that is open from May to October.

Looks Like We'll Have to Take a Boat Ride This Summer, Virus Willing.  --RoadCanal

Things to Do in Illinois' Starved Rock Region-- Part 2: LaSalle County Historical Society, Starved Rock Lodge, Buffalo Rock State Park and Illinois Waterways Visitors Center

**   The LaSalle County Historical Society Museum which has five facilities:  the Canal Warehouse, the One-Room Schoolhouse, the Heritage Center, the Blacksmith Shop and the 1875 Barn.

**  The Starved Rock Lodge and Conference Center which has n original 1930s CCC-built lodge overlooking the Illinois River,  It has 69 comfortable rooms and 21 cabins in the woods: a mammoth, two-sided fireplace in the Great Hall; an indoor pool, hot tub and sauna.

**  Buffalo Rock State Park.  This was originally an island in the Illinois River, but now a part of the shore and has a magnificent sweeping view of the area.

**  Illinois Waterways Visitors Center.  There is a group of bald eagles roosting near it (winter).  This is a family-friendly and informational center.

--RoadDog

Things to Do in Illinois' Starved Rock Region-- Part 1: Starved Rock Welcome Center and Illinois Made Gift Shoppe

From the February 12, 2022, Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, Illinois) "Ill. tourism director explores Starved Rock region" by Ryan Searl.

Illinois Office of Tourism Director Karla Flannery and a group toured the area the past Wednesday and Thursday to get a feel for what was available.

It started with a trip to the Heritage Corridor's brand new Starved Rock Country Welcome Center and Illinois Made Gift Shoppe at 248 Canal Street in downtown Utica.  It is open daily (except Tuesdays from January to March) and carries a curated selection of items as well as numerous artisan products.

The Illinois Office of Tourism has honored over 175 small businesses throughout the state in its Illinois Made list.  These designated artisans, crafts people and small-batch manufacturers provide truly one-of-a-kind experiences and high-quality, locally made goods from throughout the state.

The Starved Rock Country region is home to six Illinois Made makers, four of which were featured on the tour.

--RoadDog

Along66, January 2022: Food Truck Park for Sale in Springfield, Mo. and Francona Pottery to Reopen

JANUARY 7, 2022

The Route 66 Food Truck Park in Springfield, Missouri, has been put up for sale.  And, that includes the 25-foot tall muffler man.

Owner Kirk Wheeler opened it 2 years ago and now wants to retire.  Timing, of course, wasn't the best for such a project what with the virus thing, you know.

There is even a sports bar.

We have never been to food truck yet, but hear the food at most in really good, but a bit on the expensive side.

JANUARY 10, 2022

Francona Pottery to open a store in Oklahoma for the first time in a decade.

The original was  near Sapulpa and closed in 2010.  The new one will have a new shop and manufacturing facility in nearby Glenpool.

The original one opened in 1938 along Route 66, but ran into financial problems in the 1990s, then bankruptcy filings and new owners before permanently closing.

We were fortunate enough to visit the original place and buy some items.

Good to have them back.

--RoadDog

Along66, Jan. 2022: Death of David Clark, the 'Windy City Road Warrior' and Foremost Chicago Route 66 Authority

These are taken from the Route 66 News blog, your place if you want to know any and all things about our favorite road.  I just pick the stories I am most interested in and write about them.  For more information and the other things I didn't write about, go to the site.

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JANUARY 7

David Clark, the foremost authority on Route 66 in Chicago died January 4.  He was known as the Windy City Road Warrior.

He led tours and wrote several books on his area of expertise:  "Exploring Route 66 in Chicago" and "Route 66 in Chicago."

I was lucky enough to get to see his presentations on the road in Chicago on several occasions and took a tour with him once.  He was a very, very fast walked, but, man did he know his stuff.

I'll never forget the spot on the Chicago River where 66 crossed it and the train tracks were when he said these three things made Chicago the city is is today through the transportation.

And, if there was anything about Chicago architecture, I mean, ANYTHING, he knew that as well.

He'll Ne Missed.   --RoadDog

MacArthur Bridge-- Part 3:The Vehicle Deck Has Been Removed, But Still a Busy Railroad Bridge

The disused automobile deck has been removed. 

By 2007, only about 30% of the automobile deck had been removed.  Most of the removed sections were on the East St. Louis side.  The western ramp side (St. Louis) was relinquished to Ralston Purina and turned into a parking lot.  In 2013, the TRRA (Terminal Railroad Association) began removing all of the auto deck over the river.

By late 2014, the vehicle deck on the bridge proper had been removed and work was progressing on the western approach.

In 1989, the TRRA obtained the MacArthur Bridge from the City of St. Louis in exchange for the Eads Bridge.  The Eads Bridge, one of the primary  reasons for the TRRA's original formation, had become obsolete for modern-day rail traffic due to height restrictions it placed on rail cars.

The MacArthur Bridge continues to be a vital railroad link connecting west to east for a large number of commodities and bulk cargo.    In 2012 it was the 17th busiest  railroad bridge in the United States.

--RoadDog

The MacArthur Bridge in St. Louis-- Part 2: Opened 1917 and Carried Route 66 from 1926 to 1955

A 1906 Congressional bill authorized the City of St. Louis to build a new Mississippi River bridge and bonds were issued for an initial $3.5 million.  Construction began in 1909 but money ran out before the approaches could be finished so an additional $2.75 million in bonds were issued in 1914.  

The bridge opened in 1917 when automobile traffic began to use it.  Railroad traffic did not begin to use the lower deck until 1928.  

The bridge was built by the Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron Company and the American Bridge Company and designed by Boller & Hodge.

From 1926 to 1955 the MacArthur Bridge carried U.S. Highway Route 66  until the completion of the Poplar Street Bridge.  At one time U.S. Highway 460 crossed the bridge, terminating  on the west side of the bridge.

In 1981, the bridge was closed to vehicles because of pavement deterioration  and the eastern ramp approaches on the East St. Louis side were torn out.

--RoadDog

The MacArthur Bridge, St. Louis

Earlier this month, I wrote about the MacArthur Bridge over the Mississippi River at St. Louis.  Here is some more information about it.

From Wikipedia.

The MacArthur Bridge is a truss bridge connecting St. Louis, Missouri, and East St. Louis, Illinois, over the Mississippi River.  It was initially called the St, Louis Municipal Bridge and popularly known as the "Free Bridge" because there were no tolls charged.  However, tolls were added for autos in 1932.   In 1942, it was renamed the MacArthur Bridge after World War II General Douglas MacArthur.

The bridge was constructed to break the monopoly that the Terminal Railroad  Association had on St. Louis as they controlled the other two bridges across the Mississippi and charged what were considered to be unreasonable tolls.

Upon completion, it was the largest double deck steel bridge in the world.

--RoadDog

The Little Burger King in Mattoon That Beat the Big Burger King

I was listening to Jim Morgan's Time Capsule on North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina's 94.9 WVCO, the Surf, this morning which was back to 1968 and heard him say that in this year a one-store Burger King in Mattoon, Illinois, withstood an attack by the big corporate Burger King over its name.  

Both were formed in 1952.  The Mattoon store had an Illinois copyright on the name and the big Burger King had a federal copyright.  It went to the courts and the little Burger King won and to this day, no corporate Burger Kings can be within 20 miles of Mattoon, Illinois.

So, if you're looking for a Whopper, don't go to Mattoon.  But, if it's a unique mom and pop operation you seek.  You know where to go,

Somebody Give Me A Cheeseburger.  --RoadDog

Along66 Dec. 2021: Bringing Those Great Old Neon Signs Back to Life (On the Cheap)

DECEMBER 28

Artist shows how he brings dead neon signs to back to life with "augmented restoration."

An artist by the name of Craig Winslow at the Neon Museum in Las Vegas is using technology to bring them back.

First, he learns what the sign looked like in its heyday and how it was animated.  He then digitally traces it onto a program and reanimates and colors them.

This is a great process to bring those back to life, especially until funds can be found to restore them.

And, as I always say, "You can always use a little more (or lot more) neon!!"

--RoadNeon

Along66 Dec. 2021: Facades in Tulsa and Illinois State Museum Looking for 66 Stuff

DECEMBER 27

Tulsa Route 66 Main Street organization offering up to $1,000 for facade repairs.  Keep those buildings looking good.

DECEMBER 29 

Illinois State Museum seeking Route 66 items to bolster collection.

They have already gotten a lot of Bob Waldmire items.  This is in preparation for Route 66's 2026 Centennial celebration.  (Let's hope that virus is gone by then.)

They are especially seeking anything to do with the Black Experience on Route 66.

--RoadDog

What About Groundhogs? And, Exactly How Much Wood Can a Woodchuck?

Also known as woodchucks, groundhogs belong to a group of large ground squirrels known as marmots.    They grown up to 25 inches long and can live up to ten years in captivity.  (According to legend, Punxsutawney Phil is more than 125 years old, thanks to a magical potion he imbibes every summer.)

Groundhogs spend the winter hibernating in their burrows, significantly  reducing their metabolic rate and body temperature; by February, they  can lose about half their weight.

When they're out and about, the bristly rodents, wild berries and insects -- and they don't mind helping themselves to garden vegetables or agricultural crops.

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How much wood can a woodchuck chuck?

Very Chuckin'.  --RoadChuck

What About Wooly Bears and Other Groundhog Day Stuff

HOW ACCURATE ARE THOSE GROUNDHOGS?

They say that Punxsutawney Phil is about 50% accurate.  However, Woodstock Willie is 74%.  Who you gonna listen to?  Who you gonna call?

Some say that Staten Island Chuck is almost 80% right.

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WHAT ABOUT WOOLY BEARS?

For the last 30 years, residents of Vermillion, Ohio, have turned to a very different animal for their forecasts.  Thiers of choice is the wooly bear caterpillar. According to tradition, the more orange than black coloring on them in the autumn, the upcoming winter will be mild..

More than 100,000 people attend the town's Wooly Bear Festival held every fall since 1972.

But, researchers have found that the coloring is a result of last year's winter, not the upcoming one.

Oh well, another reason to party and much better weather.

--RoadHog

Groundhog Day Facts and History

From the History site.

The first official Groundhog Day celebration took place on February 2, 1887, in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.  The annual ritual has its roots in pre-Christian traditions and was brought to the United States by German immigrants.

It falls midway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox, the Celts, for instance, , celebrated it as Imbolc, a pagan festival marking the beginning of spring.

The first Groundhog Day celebration was the brainchild of local newspaper editor Clymer Freas, who sold a group of businessmen and groundhog hunters-- known collectively as the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club-- on the idea.

The men trekked to a site known as Gobbler's Knob, where the inaugural  groundhog became the bearer of ad news when he saw his shadow,

Nowadays, the ceremony is presided over by a group known as the Inner Circle.  Its members wear top hats and conduct the proceedings in the Pennsylvania Dutch dialect.  (They speak to the groundhog in "groundhogese.")

Every February 2, thousands of  spectators attend Groundhog Day events in Punxsutawney, a town of about 6,000 residents.

I was immortalized in the film "Groundhog Day" starring Bill Murray in 1993, though the film was shot mainly in Woodstock, Illinois.  Punxsutawney is still mad about that one.

I live about 17 miles from Woodstock and have attended the festivities often.

--RoadHog

Happy 2/2/22

As in February 2, 2022.

Well, this doesn't happen all that often.  But, the TWOs are wild today.

I remember one time being at Wrigley Field and looking at the scoreboard and saw TWOs all over the board.  The batter was Bill Buckner, number 22 and there were two outs and his count was 2 balls and 2 strikes.

The TWOS Have It.  --RoadTwo

Along66, Dec. 2021: St. Louis' MacArthur Bridge

DECEMBER 26

A closer look at the closed MacArthur Bridge in St. Louis.

It once connected East St. Louis and St, Louis across the Mississippi River and has been closed for the past 40 years but is still standing.

Tattoo Tony Alton and Roamin' Rich both made videos of what the bridge looks like now.

It was also called the Municipal Bridge and Free Bridge.  It originally opened in 1917 and was renamed for Gen. Douglas MacArthur in 1942.The automobile deck on it was removed in 2014.

--RoadDog