Oklahoma Route 66 - Afton

Don't know much about this old motel in Afton, when it was built, or even if this sign is still there today. It just makes for a great rusty Route 66 photograph! From my 2006 trip. Log Book: 649 miles motored on old 66.

Oklahoma Route 66 - Nine Foot Section

Just south of Miami, and a little tricky to find and follow, is a section of old, old Route 66 this is just a hoot to drive because it is only 9 feet wide. (Including curbs!) Constructed between 1919 and 1921 as Highway 7, it was later claimed by Route 66 at the more famous road's inception in 1926. It is one of several sections of the Mother Road known as the Sidewalk Highway, built only wide enough for one vehicle at a time. 66 legend has it that frugal local officials were able to build their section of the road twice as long by making it only half as wide. (Or maybe in those dangerous early days of auto travel, most road trips were only in one direction anyway, with the driver never to be heard from again. No return trip necessary!) Used now as a side road between farms, I had to pull way over onto the shoulder several times to let the local pickup trucks pass. Log Book: 653 miles motored on old 66.

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Oklahoma Route 66 - Miami

      As we travel west, Route 66 continues to connect many of the the cities and towns in the Tri-State (Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma) mining district, which produced lead and zinc for 120 years. Peak production in the district occurred between 1918 and World War II, and slowly declined after the war. The last active mine, near Baxter Springs, Kansas, closed in 1970. The city of  Miami experienced the same early 20th Century mining boom as the rest of the region, with miners and support people flocking to live and work in the area. Route 66 came along during the boom, in the late 1920's.

     Miami was lucky, at least for a while. In 1943, just as the mining era began its decline, the B. F. Goodrich company built a tire plant in the city. That plant supported the economy for over forty years, until its closing in 1986. Today, the mix of companies in town is not as solid as it could be. Blitz USA, in business since World War II and the largest manufacturers of gas cans in the United States, the "leader in portable fuel containment," nonetheless filed Chapter 11 in 2011. Miami also hosts some entities that offer only modest growth potential, including a couple of colleges, a 117 bed hospital, and the Stables Casino. ("High stakes bingo" anyone?) As for Route 66's effect on the local economy, I believe it was also always modest at best, as a city as large as Miami (13,500+ residents today) can amply support the restaurants and other roadside businesses in town without the increased traffic. 

     The Coleman Theater serves as the top 66 attraction in Miami. Mine owner George L. Coleman settled in Miami during the early boom times, and he built the theater in town that bears his name in 1929. Take a look inside at the "Mighty Wurlitzer" pipe organ, and marvel at the fact that the Three Stooges played there. Then have a burger at Waylan's as you head out of town, Onionhead. Log Book: 633 miles motored on old 66.

Oklahoma Route 66 - Commerce

    Here it is! Mickey Mantle Boulevard in Commerce, Oklahoma, formerly Route 66.
    Now that you know, don't be a bonehead and steal one of the signs from this old mining community, show some class and order one from the local Fire Department instead. It's just a $24 donation. (Commerce Fire Dept., Commerce, OK 74339) Log Book: 629 miles motored on old 66.

Kansas Route 66 - Baxter Springs

     Baxter Springs was a cow town until the early 1870's, when complaints by local ranchers led the Kansas legislature to ban Texas cattle from entering eastern Kansas. The cattle drives were replaced with lead and zinc mining in the early 1900's, with the town serving mostly as a host to mining company offices. With the prohibition of most mining within the city limits, Baxter Springs also attracted mine owners and operators to establish their homes there. This lack of local mining prevented the chat piles, lead contamination and scarred landscapes that other towns in the area suffered, and still endure today. Route 66 ran right down Main Street starting in 1926, adding to the towns prosperity, but not a real big deal compared to the mines.

     The last hurrah for the mining industry in the area was World War II, with the boom in demand you would expect, but post war, the industry declined as extraction lead to lower grade ores that sold for lower prices, and was less in demand. Route 66 was bypassed in the 1960's, and Main Street took another hit. But Baxter Springs has recovered since then, with the city diversifying into other businesses, industry and agriculture. Several companies have their headquarters and manufacturing plants in town, providing ample opportunity for the 4000+ residents. These include ATEC Steel, Blaylock Turbochargers, and King Louie America, the "number one supplier of Union Made in the USA apparel."

     66 legend has it that the Cafe on the Route, at one time the Crowell Bank, was robbed in 1876 by none other than Jesse James. I believe this story because it seems that only important and famous people are associated with Route 66, and because it is more fun to believe it than not when strolling through town. The bottom picture is of Bill Murphy's restaurant which also was a bank at one time, and yes, it too was the scene of a robbery. Log Book: 617 miles motored on old 66.

Kansas Route 66 - Rainbow Marsh Bridge

Two miles west of Riverton is an old Route 66 crossing of Brush Creek, the Rainbow Marsh Bridge. (Two other Marsh Arch bridges of this type were built on Route 66 in Kansas, but those others are long gone.) It was built in 1923 and served an early 66 alignment, and the only restoration I've heard about is a new paint job to cover up a mess of accumulated graffiti. A replacement bridge was built nearby to handle modern day traffic, but I believe you can still drive over this bridge if you pull over to it and carefully negotiate your giant SUV across it. Just watch out for 66 sightseers and photographers on the narrow span. Log Book: 612 miles motored on old 66.

Kansas Route 66 - Eisler Brothers Store

     You should make a point to visit the Eisler Brothers Old Riverton store during your short tour of Kansas 66, even if it's just for some chips and a bottle of Route 66 Root Beer. There's a nice old-fashioned feel to the place, the kind of Mom and Pop business you used to ride your bike to back in your home town. (Usually following your mother's orders to pick up a bottle of milk.) There was a mix of people in the store on the day of my visit, with me and a couple of 66'ers from Spain browsing the old road memorabilia, several busy landscapers stopping in for some quick refreshments, and a local woman ordering over the deli counter. (John Wayne and James Dean were also in the store, near life size.) This mix of customers has been necessary since the early 1960's, when Kansas 66 was bypassed by Interstate 44. And the state was bypassed indeed, as I-44 connects Missouri to Oklahoma without any detour at all into Kansas. 
      The store was first opened in 1925 by Leo Williams and his wife Lora, who ran a general store inside and had gas pumps outside to draw in the early Route 66 traffic. Joe and Isabell Eisler of Allen, Texas, purchased and renamed the store in 1973, and operated the business for many years as a local convenience store and 66 attraction. (They even kept the original tin roof that I didn't know about. Never looked up even once.) The Eislers passed on in the late 2000's, and I found a nephew of the former Texans, Scott Nelson, behind the counter during my 2008 visit. In 2011, Mr. Nelson, who is also president of the Kansas Route 66 association, purchased the business from the Eisler's estate. We wish him every success with his small business, and with his overseeing of the famous 13.2 miles of Kansas 66. Log Book: 610 miles motored on old 66.