U.S. Highway 66

U.S. Route 66 marker

U.S. Route 66

Will Rogers Memorial Highway
Route information
Length2,448 mi (3,940 km)
ExistedNovember 26, 1926 (1926-11-26)[1]–June 26, 1985 (1985-06-26)[2]
Tourist
routes
Historic Route 66
Major intersections (in 1947)[3]
West end
US 101 Alt. in Santa Monica, Cal.
Major intersections
East end US 41 / US 54 in Chicago, Ill.
Location
CountryUnited States
StatesCalifornia, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois
Highway system

U.S. Route 66 (also known as Route 66, U.S. Highway 66, The Main Street of America, The Mother Road and the Will Rogers Highway) was a highway in the U.S. Highway System. One of the original U.S. highways, Route 66 was established on November 11, 1926. However, road signs did not go up until the following year.[4] The famous highway originally ran from Chicago, Illinois, through the U.S. states of Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California, before ending at Los Angeles, running a total of 2,448 miles (3,940 km).[5] It was replaced by freeways starting in the 1950s and stopped being a highway in 1985.

References

  1. Bureau of Public Roads & American Association of State Highway Officials (November 11, 1926). United States System of Highways Adopted for Uniform Marking by the American Association of State Highway Officials (Map). 1:7,000,000. Washington, DC: United States Geological Survey. OCLC 32889555. Retrieved November 7, 2013 – via Wikimedia Commons.
  2. Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering (June 26, 1985). "Route Numbering Committee Agenda" (PDF) (Report). Duluth, MN: American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Retrieved April 16, 2014 – via Wikimedia Commons.
  3. Rand McNally & Company (1947). Road and Reference Atlas (Map). Chicago: Rand McNally & Company. pp. 20–21, 25, 38–39, 54–55, 72–73, 80, 104, 107, 110.
  4. Route 66 Timeline
  5. A table of mileposts for the original US 66 alignment of 1926

Other websites

Delgadillo's Snow Cap Drive-In in Seligman, Arizona. The eatery is still a popular tourist stop.