Illinois Route 66 - Shea's Gas Station

     There are vintage gas pumps and relic garages all along old Route 66, but this wonderful 66 attraction came with the stories and recollections of Bill Shea, owner of a gas station turned museum in Springfield. Bill had caught me and my camera wandering around the mementos piled all over his yard, popping out of the garage dressed in his blue, no-nonsense Marathon Gas overalls and looking meaner than a junkyard (or gas station) dog. Before I could escape to my car, though, Bill gave me a friendly 66 greeting and invited me in. 

     Inside the garage, I was treated to Bill Shea's version of old 66. A World War II veteran, Bill opened the station in 1946, operating it as a Texaco before switching 10 years later to the Marathon brand. He stopped pumping gas in 1982 and later turned it all into the museum it is today, an easy transformation for someone who claimed he never threw anything out. Bill showed me more of the antiques he had on display, recounted his own family history, and then described what the Springfield area was like when he first opened up for business after WWII. For me, it was a typical and priceless Route 66 encounter. 

     Bill was as nice a fellow as I would meet on the old highway, but he never came close to a smile during our conversation, lengthy as it was. And that was just fine with me. Longtime small businessmen have no time for such niceties.

Illinois Route 66 - Springfield

     The city of Springfield, Illinois, is all Abraham Lincoln, all the time. You can visit his presidential museum, his home, his law office, and even his final resting place. This is the city where Lincoln practiced law, and it was from here that he left for the White House in 1861. Springfield is also loaded with Route 66 attractions, but I'm guessing that the majority of travelers in town are unaware of them, caught up as they are with Honest Abe.

     All roads lead to Springfield, the state capital, as they have both before and after the reign of Route 66, and the arrival of the interstate only helped in the economy of this tourist destination. Not that the town depends in any large way on Lincoln or 66 tourism - the state government is the city's largest employer.

      The first photo was taken after this reporter had eaten one too many corn dogs, at the place that allegedly invented them. I know there is some controversy over this, but where else would such a great fast food be hatched, other than on Route 66? Next is the famous and patriotic Lauterbach Tire Muffler Man, which I ran into on the outskirts of town. The last photo is an angled capture of the Old Statehouse, where Lincoln (and later Barack Obama) announced his candidacy for president. Log Book: 197 miles motored on old 66.    

Illinois Route 66 - Ernie Edwards

     I was treated to many fascinating myths and legends while traveling the old two-lane highway, and Route 66 proprietor Ernie Edwards, owner of the Pig-Hip Restaurant, had some of his own. Leaning back on his chair and thoroughly enjoying himself, Ernie informed me that indeed, he had met Mr. Al Capone, former resident of nearby Chicago. He also complained to me that the Steakburger, featured menu item of the hugely successful Steak n' Shake chain, was actually his invention. He also let it be known that he had cooked dinner for Colonel Harland Sanders one night, way before the chicken man was ever famous. Another rambling story about the early days ended with Ernie punching someone in the nose, but I don't quite recall the details or the recipient. The most famous of Ernie's stories involves the actual naming of the Pig Hip Restaurant. As Ernie tells it, an early customer, a traveling salesman, stepped into the restaurant one day and asked for a sandwich "off of that there pig hip" after noticing a ham on display. Inspired, Ernie changed the name of his restaurant right then and there. 

     The 1946 Jack Rittenhouse guide book entry for Broadwell was quick and to the point: "Two-score homes surround a tiny depot and the grain elevators which bear witness to the corn growing ability of this region." The little town hasn't changed much since then, and it seemed to me during my visits that Ernie Edwards took the most pride in his voluminous visitors sign-in book, which offered evidence of the many world travelers who had taken the time to visit his little place in the middle of rural Illinois.

Illinois Route 66 - Pig Hip Restaurant

Located in Broadwell, the former Pig Hip Restaurant was my all-time favorite stop on Route 66, and not just for the wonderful memorabilia or the photo friendly building and sign. The main attraction at the Pig-Hip was the proprietor, Ernie Edwards, who ran the restaurant from 1937 to 1991 before turning the place into a museum. In his late eighties when I first met him in 2005, Ernie ambled out of his adjacent house after I had rudely arrived after closing time, pulled out a wad of keys, and opened up. He was then nice enough to give me a personal tour. We sat back afterwords, and Ernie made sure not to leave out any of his legendary tales of old 66, even after his wife, Francis, stopped by to join us, obviously with dinner waiting on the stove back at the house. I politely took my leave a couple of stories later, but made it my business to stop by a couple of times after that just to say hello to the Edwards, with one final visit in 2008 to see how they were coping after the museum burned to the ground in 2007. I found that Ernie, with his sense of humor intact and the stories still flowing, was now entertaining visitors on his back porch. He was even gracious enough to invite me into his home that day. Sadly, I don't know if Ernie's health allows him to greet visitors anymore, a huge loss for all of us. Log Book: 176 mile motored on old 66.

Illinois Route 66 - Lincoln

     It was my good fortune to arrive in downtown Lincoln, Illinois, during Memorial Day festivities in 2006. My explorations stopped at once, of course, when I came upon the ceremonies being conducted in front of the Logan County Courthouse. (The courthouse is also shown above from a prior visit, in Route 66 appropriate black and white.) It was small town America at its best, with plenty of flags, veterans, fire engines, and lots of thankful and respectful people. I'm sure the food was great as well, but I did not have time to linger.

     The gathering made me realize that most of the veterans I remember from Memorial Days past, back in New Jersey when I was a kid, are almost all gone now. They had their fun, though, in their time, and I remember that my first ever Mets game was as part of a contingent of World War II veterans, my father included. We traveled to Shea Stadium that day on a bus filled with disabled veterans; the trip had been arranged by the local VFW, of which my father was an active member. The old man took me aside beforehand, and warned me that I might have to help out by pushing a wheelchair. I don’t remember what I expected to see on that bus as an eight year old, but I found it filled with raucous, regular guys having a good time – it was just that a few of them needed some assistance getting to the keg on the back seat. It was a day game we had tickets for, and happily, no one seemed to notice how early in the day the festivities had begun. (The beer cups were passed around sometime in the AM; it goes without saying that veterans traveling without their wives should be able to enjoy a beer or two even if it is a little before noon.) I remember that the bus got loud, that just about everyone knew a better route to the stadium than the bus driver did, and that I received equal amounts of good-natured taunting from both the disabled adults and the able-bodied ones. The fellows made my first ever baseball game a memorable one. Route 66 took me back.

Illinois Route 66 - Lincoln

     With the legal assistance of no less than Abraham Lincoln, this city was founded in 1853 by three local entrepreneurs anticipating a new railroad stop. The steam locomotives of the time required water stops and passenger depots every 30 miles of track, which allowed these gentlemen to predict where one of those stops would fall along the Chicago and Alton Railroad line. They then acquired the land that became Lincoln, Illinois. Located in fertile Logan County, Lincoln has also served as a farm support town through the years, and it became a popular place to retire to when one's farming days were over. Sections of the city also housed immigrant coal miners in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This large combined working class population attracted the professional classes - doctors, lawyers and teachers. Route 66 ran through the town from 1926 to 1978, connecting the farms to Chicago, St. Louis and the state capital of Springfield, while also attracting the tourist trade. Lincoln was as dynamic and energetic an American town as they come. Modern Lincoln is still a farm town, but also hosts three colleges and two prisons.

     Lincoln celebrates its Route 66 heritage by promoting its downtown historic district, which includes the domed Logan County Courthouse. There are some colorful murals to be found if you poke around, and you can also check out the classic brick Lincoln Theater. Be sure to pick up a Main Street Lincoln Saver Card before your walkabout in the city, for bargains galore downtown. At Hallie's on the Square, buy one schnitzel while showing the card and get a second schnitzel at half price. Log Book: 166 miles motored on old 66.

Illinois Route 66 - Atlanta

     Modern Atlanta has two main attractions that point to its past economic life: the J. H. Hawes Grain Elevator Museum (not pictured), and the giant Route 66 era Hot Dog Muffler Man. From the middle of the 19th century, Atlanta has been a convenient storage and shipping point for the area's wheat, corn, and barley farming. The old Chicago, Alton & St. Louis railroad line originally picked up these crops, with the town providing warehouses and grain elevators for storage. (The Hawes elevator operated from 1904 to 1976.) Atlanta also supported the local farming community with liveries, saddleries and blacksmith shops, and over the years has housed grain dealers, mills, and a pork packing business. The railroad also picked up and dropped off passengers in Atlanta, putting the town in the hotel business. Route 66 added to the tourist trade in the 1930's and 40's, temporarily adding to the town's prosperity during the old road's heyday. Atlanta in the 21st century retains its rural connection, with local businesses providing agricultural supplies and farm machinery, traditional grain storage and modern refrigerated warehouses, and local trucking companies that now handle the shipping. The decline of the railroads and the bypassing of Route 66 took away a lot of the hospitality business in town, but the modern interstate highway is just what the local farming industry needed.

     By the middle of the 20th century, Route 66 ran right down one of the main business streets in Atlanta. According to Jack Rittenhouse's account of his 1946 trip, U.S. 66 ran "past some very old store buildings, some dating back to the 1850's." From what I could see, a lot of those buildings are still there, with some bright Route 66 murals added in recent years to attract the modern 66 tourist. The town also boasts a handsome domed Library Museum with an adjoining clock tower, built in 1908. You need to park the car and hoof it around this part of town to appreciate Atlanta's Route 66 and farming heritage. Log Book: 155 miles motored on old 66.