Route 66 is a prime example of a historic transportation corridor a linear cultural
landscape comprising a historically significant route along which people and/or goods have
moved. Such a corridor is composed of several elements buildings, landscapes, bridges with
different levels of integrity and representing various periods of time. The whole, or at
least the interrelationship of the parts, is more important than the individual
components. In terms of integrity and preservation, the historic corridor cannot be
treated as a structure. Corridors are not single physical entities needing protection, but
experiences represented through physical elements encountered in space and time. Historic
transportation corridors link together elements sharing a common theme and provide a
linear experience of temporal and spatial motion. The challenge facing the supporters of
Route 66 is to preserve what is essential about the road while allowing it to exist in an
environment of continual change.
What is essential about the road? Among the physical resources there are public works,
such as the roadway and bridges; commercial architecture, such as motels, gas stations,
diners, other roadside businesses; and distinctive structures or landmarks not essential
to the traveling experience, such as the Arcadia Round Barn and the Coleman Theater. They
are important because they combine with natural features to create landscapes that define
the road and endow it with its distinctive character.
Many of the structures are in good condition and are currently used, mostly as
commercial enterprises. Some are unoccupied. About 25% of the surviving buildings would
need substantial repairs before they could be used again. Another 25% are virtually
disintegrating.
The characteristics of commercial architecture along Route 66 are varied and represent
a number of design styles and construction techniques. The most common formal
architectural approaches are art deco and Pueblo revival. One of the most attractive
construction methods is sometimes called Ozark giraffe.
The art deco style, zigzag and streamlined or modern, is in evidence along Route 66.
Zigzag was largely a system of low- relief, angular ornaments applied to smooth building
surfaces (such as the 11th Street bridge in Tulsa, Oklahoma). Zigzag was popular from
around the time of World War I until about 1930 when it was overtaken by streamlined.
Modern abandoned ornamentation almost entirely in order to focus on forms such as smooth
walls, rounded edges, and circular windows (such as the Coral Court in St. Louis,
Missouri, and the U-Drop Inn in Shamrock, Texas). Streamlined deco was especially
well-suited to industrial buildings with designs implying speed and efficiency. Logically,
transportation became its special theme. The modern approach also had a persuasive logic
viewed from the perspective of Depression-era economics. Whereas zigzag deco's success
depended largely on fine materials, artistically wrought and skillfully applied, modern's
stripped down forms were ideal for mass production, typified by horizontal bands of steel
windows, rounded corners, incised string courses, and flat roofs.
Pueblo revival architecture originated in New Mexico at the beginning of the 20th
century. It was primarily a revival of traditional Pueblo architecture. In general,
buildings were massive with projecting roof beams or vigas. Often they were accompanied by
longer projections, or canales, which served as rainwater gutters. Pueblo style is adobe
in appearance. Some have battered walls with blunt angles and irregularly rounded
parapets. Walls are usually plastered, and the roofs are flat. When the building is more
than one story, the stepped-up roofs of the Indian community house may be imitated. A
veranda, or portal with wooden posts often having wooden bracket capitals, or corbels, is
a common feature.
During the first two decades of the 20th century, Pueblo style became the popular
choice for buildings of all sorts in New Mexico and Arizona. It was first used in hotel
architecture around 1909 in the E1 Ortiz Hotel in Lamy. By 1920 it became the basis for
the famous La Fonda Hotel in Santa Fe. Widely adopted from the Midwest to California,
Pueblo revival became one of the most common designs along Route 66, particularly for
overnight accommodations. Its distinctive and visually appealing forms were ideally suited
for motor courts. Ready-made versions maintained essential no-frill interpretations. They
included stucco over frame construction giving the appearance of the mud plastered adobe
and the square projecting beams that recall the round vigas.
Most cities along Route 66 have motels that imitate this design. The heaviest
concentrations are in the southwest, particularly New Mexico, Arizona, California, and
Texas. But the motif is also present in the Midwest, as is seen in the Casa Grande Motel
in St. Louis, Missouri.
The Ozarks were probably the origin of a colorful building style commonly encountered
along Route 66. Often called Ozark giraffe. these slab-rock dwellings are a 20th-century
variation on the older cobblestone house tradition. The technique may have been based on
the cement-and-gravel wall construction method promulgated in the late 19th century. Ozark
giraffe houses became especially popular in rural areas in the 1930s when agricultural
extension bulletins depicted and encouraged the use of the technique. Slab-rock building
was a true folk craft passed on with local and personal adaptations. The flat, smooth
slices of rock embedded in cement were an economical use of indigenous material, which was
mostly limestone that split easily. Often the use of stone and concrete went beyond veneer
and was structural as well. In some rock-faced houses, the walls are formed of a pasty
cement mixture combined with pebbles, then poured into wooden forms, with flat, smooth
slices of rock embedded in cement on the exterior. In other examples, standard frame
construction is covered with rock slabs. In Missouri this was sometimes used as a way of
stabilizing and rebuilding existing frame houses that were deteriorating. The finest
examples of this building style, such as the Wagon Wheel Motel, are in Missouri, but a
substantial number of structures in Kansas and Oklahoma, such as the Rock Cafe in Stroud,
Oklahoma, provide color and variety in the landscape.
The majority of the commercial architecture along Route 66 does not reflect any formal
architectural style, except the whim, convenience, and limited resources of their owners
and designers. The eclecticism is apparent in buildings constructed of cinder block with
western ranch and southwest mission influences, such as the Paradise Motel in Flagstaff,
Arizona; structures made out of locally quarried stone, such as the Beale Hotel in
Kingman, Arizona, and the Threatt Service Station near Luther, Oklahoma; cement tepees,
such as the Tee Pee Restaurant in Lupton, Arizona, and thousands of structures made of
bricks, cinder blocks, or clapboard siding. Most of the buildings are functional, simple,
and have little adornment.
Roadway
Approximately 2,400 miles of Route 66 survive. Although some portions of the original
road have disappeared, significant segments parallel or crisscross the interstates that
replaced the original road. Some even approach the core of the major metropolitan areas,
such as Chicago and St. Louis.
Route 66 became a national highway in 1926. This designation. however, only meant that
the new highway number would be imposed on existing roads, a substantial portion of which
were unpaved. with the exception of Illinois and New Mexico, paving resulted in few
alignment changes. Still, some alignment changes were made even before Route 66 was
entirely paved.
Much of the road followed county boundaries, making sharp, right- angle turns in an
effort to connect county seats. As Americans began to drive faster cars highway engineers
began to straighten Route 66 for safety reasons. Increasing speed and the demands of heavy
vehicles led to four-lanes during World War II, most of which survives in Illinois. West
of Oklahoma the course of Route 66 was always relatively straight as it paralleled the
railroad. The highway meandered only to avoid topographic obstacles.
Variations in road features the traveled way, the shoulder, the median, the swale
(drainage channel), the side slope (cut), the presence or absence of stripes and banked
curves, and the type of construction (various forms of asphalt or concrete pavement)
produced changes in the character of Route 66. Abandoned early alignments tend to be
narrow, have no shoulders, stripes or swale, curve sharply, and closely follow the
topography.
One of the alignments that should be included in any preservation strategy is in the
vicinity of Miami, Oklahoma. This three and one-half mile paved section is one of the
earliest existing sections of the highway. It is 9 feet wide with 6 feet of gravel
shoulder on the sides. It was constructed sometime between 1919 and 1924 as part of
Oklahoma Highway 7 and became Route 66 shortly after the highway's official designation.
It remained a part of the road until 1936 when the highway was rerouted to its present
location. The road is surfaced with an asphalt mixture over a concrete base. Some of the
pavement is intact and smooth but most is weathered, cracked, and rough. Unbroken white
lines, painted on the edges of the asphalt, remain visible.
Where the original concrete pavement survives mostly in Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma,
and California cracks are often overgrown with weeds. Those portions paved with asphalt
are either on the verge of becoming dirt tracks or almost completely covered with
vegetation. Traveling in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona provides ample opportunity to
obscene the deterioration of the original pavement.
Many segments of the original Route 66 alignment are still used extensively. In most
cases they have been modified to comply with highway department standards. Despite modern
features such as wider shoulders, adequate swales, gentler curves, resurfaced pavement,
and newly painted safety stripes, they often retain features that are a testimony to their
age, such as stone curves and semicircular drains.
Heavy commercial traffic along Route 66 increased dramatically as a result of U.S.
involvement in World War II. To accommodate growth, a substantial portion of the road
became a divided highway. In Illinois, it is often possible to observe three generations
of the road side-by-side the original Route 66 alignment, the divided highway that
followed it, and the interstate that replaced them.
The old alignments often fail to meet current safety standards. Extremely narrow or
non-existent shoulders with a winding roadway, inadequate drainage, and deteriorating
pavement might appeal to those searching for Route 66, but the various highway
departments, in charge of ensuring the safety of travelers, want to avoid the legal
ramifications of accidents along such stretches.
Bridges
Many Route 66 bridges are on old alignments that are no longer heavily used or that are
closed to automobile traffic. They are major contributors to the allure of Route 66. Like
many other structures along the road, they bear testimony to the highway's evolution.
Unlike modern bridges, which are nearly indistinguishable from the rest of the roadway,
early bridges were distinct structures that were aesthetically appealing and provided a
sense of crossing between places.
The bridges are also important because many reflect particular stages of bridge design
and construction. Some of the earliest and most attractive bridges are single span steel
trusses. The best known, and one of the most notable engineering/architectural features
associated with Route 66, is the Chain of Rocks bridge, which crosses the Mississippi
River north of St. Louis. A continuous through-steel truss, made up of a series of spans,
it is really two bridges that form an obtuse angle where they join. This curved bridge
offers splendid views of the river and the wetlands along its banks. The Chain of Rocks
bridge appears to be in good condition, but it would have to be refurbished to meet safety
standards. It is currently closed.
Another important structure is the 11th Street bridge in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A continuous
multispan concrete arch bridge with verticals, it has ornate guardrails with art deco
motifs, making it very unusual. It was labor intensive to build and reflects a technology
and aesthetic approach to bridge construction that is seldom seen today.
Another interesting bridge is a steel truss over the Mojave River near Oro Grande,
California. This skewed through truss is the only one of its type along the road. It has
an unusually ornate guardrail. It also has an additional lattice immediately below the
portal for stability.
Pony bridges are also common. In most cases, they are simple span bridges, but there
are some exceptional multiple spans. The bridge crossing the South Canadian River near
Hinton, Oklahoma, is a Parker camel-back pony truss with multiple simple spans. It
stretches for three quarters of a mile. This bridge also offers magnificent vistas of the
river.
In southwestern Missouri, pony trusses are the norm. Though relatively small and
simple, each bridge has singular characteristics that contribute to the sense of discovery
derived from driving Route 66.
Another bridge worthy of national recognition is Rainbow Bridge near Baxter Springs,
Kansas. This concrete arch is the only one along Route 66 and possibly one of few left in
the country.
The most common type of bridge on Route 66 is a simple span steel girder on concrete
pile foundations or concrete piers with concrete guardrails. Many of these bridges were
already in place in 1926 but continued to be built throughout the 1930s. Eventually this
basic design was enhanced to produce structures like Horse Creek Bridge east of Afton,
Oklahoma. Still in excellent condition, this continuous span steel bridge with reinforced
concrete decking and guardrail has a four-foot-wide pedestrian walkway on each side of the
roadway. This was common on bridges built during the late 1930s and 1940s, but Horse Creek
Bridge is one of very few along Route 66 that has pedestrian walkways.
State highway departments are concerned with safety hazards since the majority of the
bridges lack approach rails, increasing the risk of serious accidents. Unfortunately their
fascinating stylistic features often make them unsafe. Many Route 66 bridges are no longer
heavily used or are closed to automobile traffic.
Many of the old trusses require detailed inspection since most were constructed before
the advent of the heavy loads that oil trucks, tandem trailers, and concrete mixers carry
on highways today. The failure of one member or connection of a truss bridge can result in
complete structural collapse.
Motels
Overnight accommodations provide some of the most interesting examples of commercial
architecture along Route 66. Preliminary inventories (see appendix D) indicate that they
constitute close to 50% of all the commercial establishments built before 1960. Surviving
motor courts and motels show the evolution in design and construction that resulted from
economic considerations and travelers' needs and expectations.
Hotels dominated the lodging industry in the early 1900s but were oriented toward
public transit travelers. Located in central business districts, few were convenient to
automobile users. Garages, where they existed, were usually some distance away with valet
parking for a fee. Hotel design emphasized public space large entrance lobbies. lounges,
and expansive corridors, as well as restaurant, coffee shop, bar, banquet room, ballroom,
and meeting room facilities. Private spaces were cramped. The standard accommodations
included a bed, a chair, a desk, a tiny closet, and a small bathroom. This emphasis on
public rather than private space reflected the hotel industry's peculiar profit mix. Only
50% of hotel profits have come traditionally from room rentals, compared to about 80% for
motels since World War II.
Although few hotels are closely associated with Route 66, they provide an excellent
example of the top-notch accommodations available to Americans at the time the highway was
officially designated. Railroad hotels, such as El Garces in Needles, and the Harvey House
in Barstow are architecturally imposing but face away from the road and were unlikely to
have been chosen by early Route 66 travelers. Other hotels, like El Rancho in Gallup and
the Oatman Hotel in Oatman, Arizona, are famous for attracting glamorous movie stars as
well as many dusty and weary automobile travelers.
Most Americans who drove Route 66 did not stay in hotels but in accommodations that
emerged as a result of the growth of automobile travel. The motel, the most common,
evolved from other features of the American roadside. Its predecessors were the auto camp
and the tourist home. Auto camps developed as an alternative to the more expensive and
less convenient hotels. Partly out of civic pride and partly from a sense of
self-protection, towns along popular routes roped off spaces for campers. Water, fuel
wood, privies or flush toilets, showers, and laundry facilities were provided free of
charge. The majority of the structures in the camps were inexpensively constructed with
locally available materials.
The need for cheap accommodations increased and private operators entered the auto camp
business nationwide. The typical camp had a central service building and tent sites
defined by picnic benches, restrooms, a keeper's house, and the trodden ground of previous
campers. Auto camps like Camp Joy in Lebanon, Missouri, and Red Arrow Campground in
Thoreau. New Mexico. still survive.
Tourist homes also filled many of the auto camp's functions, particularly in areas
where the weather was not conducive to camping. The typical tourist home was a private
house, usually located on a major thoroughfare near downtown, where one or more bedrooms
were rented for the night. A fine example of such a structure is just off old Route 66 on
South San Francisco Street in Flagstaff, Arizona.
As highway travel increased, more businesses along the road began selling gasoline and
oil and offering other services to travelers. As soon as the gas stations opened, need for
more suitable accommodations became apparent and the cabin camp appeared. Growth was
rather dramatic. In 1926 the Amarillo city directory listed one tourist campground, an
outdoor tourist camp, and a cottage camp. Two years later it listed 25 tourist courts
along Route 66.
Three varieties of cabin camps emerged the auto camp with cabins added, the cabin camp
built from scratch without tent camping, and the tourist home with cabins added. Cabin
camps were arranged in a number of ways row, row-in-row, L, crescent, and clustered.
Cabin camps offered certain advantages. They were located in peripheral highway
locations where land was cheap. Those with less than a dozen cabins could be operated by
two people, usually a husband and a wife who lived in the premises. Building and operating
costs were low and room prices could be kept to a minimum. Few hotels could compete with
their rates and those that did were usually run-down and derelict establishments. Cabin
camps intercepted travelers at the city's edge. Parking space was readily available. Above
all, cabin camps offered informality.
As cabin camps became more substantial, they became known as cottages. Cottages were
more permanently constructed, and they were larger and winterized for year-round business.
Cabins and cottages tended to be arranged geometrically on open spaces or courts. U-shaped
courts were narrow or wide depending on the depth of the lot and the extent of highway
frontage. Cottage complexes usually had less than ten units each. In the 1920s cottages
were usually arrayed as individual units with open spaces in between, like John's Modern
Cabins in Arlington, Missouri. Attached garages were popular after 1930. Later it was
common to find cottage/garage combinations linked wall-to-wall to form continuous facades.
Although a facade might be continuous, the integrity of each building was preserved in
individual rooflines. A separate building housed a small reception desk, the only interior
public space. Public space was relegated out-of- doors to courtyards or the front yards of
row and L-shaped complexes. Architecturally, cottages were made to look like up- to-date
suburban housing.
Surviving cabin camps and cottage courts are common along Route 66 and include some of
the most distinctive examples of commercial architecture. Some are log cabins, such as a
few of John's Modern Cabins. Some reflect rich architectural traditions, particularly the
slab-rock construction (Ozark giraffe) common in Missouri. Prime examples of giraffe
design in Missouri are the Rancho Court in Springfield, the Wagon Wheel Motel in Cuba, and
the Shamrock Motel in Sullivan. Other notable cottage courts are the Wigwam Motels in
Holbrook, Arizona, and Rialto, California. Constructed of cement and painted white with
Indian-style designs, these courts are examples of the widely heterogeneous character of
architecture along Route 66. Probably the court that has attracted the most attention is
the Coral Court in St. Louis, Missouri. This national register property, a prime example
of art deco modern, is in danger of disappearing. It is vacant and might require a
substantial investment to become economically viable.
Motor courts evolved by copying the form of cottage courts, but room units were totally
integrated under a single roofline and often were in one building. They were single-story
structures with or without garage facilities. Many courts had coffee shops as part of the
integrated design. By 1948 there were approximately 30,000 motels in operation nationwide
with an average of twenty units per establishment.
Motor courts varied from converted cabin and cottage courts to elaborate complexes.
Although a range of architectural styles was represented, western themes were most
popular. Motor courts with facades integrated around interior courts were reminiscent of
Spanish missions and haciendas. They imitated the Pueblo revival style, especially when
constructed of stucco to simulate adobe. Names like El Rancho and Casa Grande appeared
often and were scattered from the Midwest to the Pacific coast.
Albuquerque probably has the highest concentration of motor courts built in the Pueblo
revival style. El Vado, Zia Motor Lodge, Aztec Motel, and Tewa Lodge are only a few among
those that edge Central Avenue and provide it with a distinct character. Others reflect
the idiosyncratic designs typical of businesses along the road. A prime example is the
Dubeau Motel in Flagstaff, Arizona.
After World War II new motor courts were also called motels. Although they are the most
common businesses along Route 66. few exhibit the distinctive architectural
characteristics of their predecessors. Socioeconomic developments explain the loss of
individuality in their design and construction. Many were built at a time when the future
of Route 66 became questionable, when tax incentives discouraged investing in structures,
and when franchises encouraged standardization.
Motel construction boomed in the late 1950s and early 1960s. For financial reasons
motel owners often provide only minimal maintenance and repair and often sell after the
tax advantages expire. Buildings often deteriorate until they change ownership and are
renovated. Architectural integrity in motel building is thus short-lived. The tax code has
encouraged a brisk trade in second, third. and even fourth-hand motels, many of which
would otherwise have been abandoned. It has also encouraged flimsy construction. In 1960
the average life of a motel building was nine years.
Franchise motor inns were substantially larger and more luxurious than motor courts
often a complex of two-story buildings around a courtyard. Besides an elaborate outdoor
area focused on a swimming pool, the typical motor inn featured expanded public space
indoors. Although investment money was readily available, lenders wanted assurance that
new motor inns would show a profit. The motel chain provided this added security. Although
different types of chains evolved franchise chains, referral chains. one- operator chains,
and co-owner chains. they all operated with uniform standards. The architectural
distinctiveness that was typical of earlier Route 66 accommodations was discouraged and
eventually disappeared. Chains resulted in regimentation and eliminated much of the
idiosyncratic architecture that characterized the road until the 1950s.
Route 66 properties eligible for the national register (must be at least fifty years
old to be included) have received more attention than the businesses built after World War
11. The Munger Moss Motel in Lebanon, Missouri, and the Gardenway Motel near Gray Summit,
Missouri, merit attention. They are solidly constructed and exhibit an attention to detail
that disappeared in later examples. They are also important because they document the
latter stages in the evolution of overnight accommodations along Route 66.
Gas Stations
Gas station design evolved to accommodate changing gasoline distribution patterns and
marketing strategies. Service station prototypes were developed through experimentation in
many places and then were adopted almost universally across the country. Stations had to
look like gas stations and have distinctive company features. The challenge was to find a
different but similar look that would attract customers but also reassure them. This
prompted a constant drift to new color schemes, signs. and decorations but always within a
narrow range of building types in any one time period. For example, the "house with
canopy" look prevailed until the expansion into sales of tires, batteries, and
accessories and the introduction of automobile repair encouraged adoption of the oblong
box during the Depression.
Several gas station designs are commonly found along Route 66 the house, the house with
canopy, the house with bays, and the oblong box, which was common until the price of
gasoline rose significantly in the 1970s.
Curbside pumps and sheds were the first structures specifically designed to dispense
gasoline but most had disappeared by the late 1920s. The term "filling station"
first applied to the curbside pumps and underground storage tanks developed about 1915.
These stations were installed along streets in front of grocery, hardware, and other
stores that had expanded into gasoline sales. Gasoline was originally dispensed in tin
cans and was poured by hand into automobile tanks. The curbside station was an important
innovation. It allowed automobiles to be filled more efficiently. Centralized distribution
reduced the threat of fire.
After 1920 fire safety ordinances forced curbside stations to close in the larger
cities. They continued to thrive only in rural areas in conjunction with roadside
businesses.
While the original pumps are only found in museums or antique shops, establishments
that sell basic road services as well as gasoline continue to be a familiar sight along
Route 66. In most cases their architecture reflects the emphasis on function over form. In
general the main structure is built of local materials and conforms to the general design
concepts prevalent in the region at the time. For example, the Funk's Grove Country Store
in Illinois is wood frame with lumber facing. typical of the Illinois countryside. The
Budville Trading Company in New Mexico has a southwestern motif. In some cases it is
difficult to establish if the buildings originally might have served another purpose, such
as Bob Audette's gas station complex at Barton, New Mexico.
The first off-street, drive-in gasoline stations brought a number of structural
innovations. Small sheds were built to store oil, grease, and equipment. Before 1915 few
motorists drove automobiles in inclement weather because automobiles were not enclosed.
Cars were stored during the winter, so the sale of gasoline was a fair weather activity.
Sheds came in a variety of shapes and sizes, but all were utilitarian buildings with
little decoration beyond advertising signs. Driveways were usually of dirt or gravel. Some
stations were surrounded by board fences to hide the utilitarian metal, clapboard, or tar
paper sheds and the clutter of the unimproved driveways. Visually, these early stations
had much in common with lumber and coal yards.
It is difficult to determine whether any of the businesses that have a gas pump up
front now are descendants of the original gasoline sheds. Such commercial establishments
are wide-spread, particularly in the West, but their function is not limited to the sale
of gasoline. Architecturally they have little in common with gas stations.
In urban areas the curbside and shed filling stations were generally located in and
around the central business districts. After 1920 oil companies invested heavily in
neighborhood service stations. These were often on residential streets where large houses
on big lots faced wide, paved thoroughfares. The oil companies sought large corner lots
that were capable of accommodating the necessary driveways and that were accessible from
two streets. Before 1930 stations not only had to attract customers but had to be
attractive as well. Resistance to the destruction of old houses and the disruption of
residential neighborhoods lent support to zoning and other land use controls generally
feared by gasoline interests. The oil companies sought to build stations that blended into
residential neighborhoods to reduce opposition to their real estate practices.
The neighborhood service station was made to look like a small house. The most popular
styles sported low hip roofs. Most stations contained small offices, one or two small
storage rooms, and public restrooms. Some companies pursued traditional architectural
styles as a means of establishing company identities and developed a cottage style with
hip roof and cupola, trimmed with shuttered windows and cornice to simulate a
federal-style house. Others imitated the English cottage style with steep, end-gabled
roofs of blue tile and walls of white stucco placed either on hollow tile or on wood
lathe. Travelers can see excellent examples of this type of gas station along Route 66.
From the simple and functional lines of those found in Phelps, Missouri, McLean, Texas,
and Miami, Oklahoma, to the more sophisticated design of the Chandler, Oklahoma, Texaco,
they demonstrate the range of options available to those who became involved in the gas
retailing business. Even though the basic concept remained unaltered they looked like
houses they were designed to blend into their surroundings. The station at Chandler has
been restored and is among the best examples of this type of structure along the road.
Built of masonry in 1929 in the Tudor cottage style, it features a steeply pitched gable
roof with a frontal cross gable, a fireplace chimney with set-in clock, an arched entry
and display windows. It has a multicolored asphalt shingle roof with two large garage
bays. The addition of a canopy, supported by simple posts or balustrades that simulated
porches, produced another distinctive type of service station the house with canopy. Bays,
another design feature, soon became necessary. By 1925 most gasoline stations were
equipped with grease pits and car washing floors. Car washing required a solid, well
drained surface, so concrete aprons were built. Grease pits, open trenches with walls of
poured concrete or masonry, were usually located immediately beside the station. Cars were
elevated slightly above a pit on ramps that straddled the trench. After 1925 rotary lifts
operated by air compressors gradually replaced the grease pits. Where winter weather
interfered with outdoor car maintenance, prefabricated steel and glass washing parlors
appeared. More common, however, were the additions of covered bays to existing station
houses or the construction of new stations with two or more bays covering the washing and
lubricating floors.
Fine examples of the most common gas stations extend from Illinois to California. Like
their predecessors, these structures were unmistakably service stations but still retained
individual characteristics that set them apart from others down the road. The station at
Afton, Oklahoma, was constructed in the early 1930s of stucco-covered masonry. The canopy
and office were designed as a whole under a hipped metal tile roof. The two drive-through
openings are arched, as is the front opening for pumps. Windows are single-pane and
rectangular, with wood frames. Large wood brackets are attached to the soffit. There are
attached restrooms on both west and east sides of the building, with tiled pyramid roofs
and single wood entries.
The station at Rancho Cucamonga, California, dates from the 1920s. Its appeal stems
from the tiled details on the roof parapets and the curved stepped roofs with raised
edges. Its drive-through canopy is arched. The stucco-covered masonry is reminiscent of
the Pueblo revival. The large unattached covered bays and garage were built at the same
time and provide an appropriate and attractive background for the main building. The
curved, fluid lines of this building are not common in the design of other gas stations of
this type that tend to be characterized by a straight and angular style.
Not all the surviving gas stations of this type exhibit such a degree of
sophistication. Most display the simple lines and function typical of roadside
architecture. Good examples of these buildings are in Groom, Texas, Seligman, Arizona. and
Prokup, Oklahoma.
The Depression brought many changes to gasoline station design. To counter
deteriorating gasoline sales, many companies expanded auxiliary product lines requiring
larger display rooms and larger storage spaces. The sale of tires, batteries, and
accessories was widely adopted. At the same time companies began to emphasize automobile
repair, which required more and larger bays. In addition, the Depression encouraged many
companies to expand their territories into new areas, where the oil companies built
stations that were distinctive.
During the 1920s the oil companies had worked to soften the intrusion of the gasoline
station in the American landscape, but in the 1930s they sought to maximize gasoline
station visibility. Flat roofs replaced hip and gable roofs. Offices were enlarged and
integrated with the service bays. The amount of plate glass was increased with a
corresponding reduction in exterior decoration. Walls of stucco or brick were painted
using colors appropriate to company logos. Terra cotta was a popular facing material in
the 1930s: porcelain enamel dominated in the 1940s and 1950s.
The new oblong boxes contrasted sharply with their surroundings to attract attention.
The use of porcelain enamel invited adoption of vivid colors. The glistening porcelain and
glass facades were more easily lit at night. Some stations offered twenty-four-hour sales.
The prefabricated buildings could be erected quickly, and they could be moved if a station
proved unprofitable on a given site. They could be easily maintained: the facade materials
did not require frequent painting. They contained little wasted space.
Some oil companies modified the oblong box to be more distinctive. Despite these
modifications, the prime characteristic of the oblong box was its distinctive shape based
on a rectangular floor plan and rectangular silhouette.
Most oblong boxes were prefabricated. Steel I-beam frames were shop-assembled in
sections and then bolted together at a construction site. Structures were usually covered
with porcelain enamel sheets and plate glass. After 1950 cinder and concrete block
construction replaced prefabricated steel and by 1960 acrylic-vinyl and translucent
plexiglass had become popular. Plastic was used to simulate other building materials such
as wood, stone, and brick after 1960.
Various types of oblong box gas stations along Route 66 offer travelers the opportunity
to trace the evolution and the various manifestations of this extremely popular design.
Examples of the classic streamlined style service station with porcelain panels on walls
are at Ash Fork and Winslow, Arizona, and Chenoa and Carlinville, Illinois. Others can be
found at Williams, Arizona, Tucumcari and Albuquerque, New Mexico, Amarillo, Texas, and
Bristow, Oklahoma. A substantial number of these stations survive and many of them are
well-preserved. In some cases, the tiles have been replaced and the integrity of the
buildings compromised.
Gas stations along Route 66 exhibit a variety of designs and intriguing geographical
distinctions. In general the older structures are more likely to display some measure of
individuality and graceful lines. As the thirties came to an end widespread use of
prefabricated buildings and the need to attract customers produced almost total
architectural homogeneity among the gas stations. Distinctiveness disappeared. The trend
continues today and now has expanded to most of the businesses that cater to tourists
along the interstate.
Eating Establishments
In the 1920s, as growing numbers of Americans drove the nation's highways, eating and
driving became part of a single experience. Motorists traveling the roads that would
become Route 66 had limited choices. Many camped and prepared meals. The early campgrounds
and courts usually provided tourists with a kitchen or at least a stove. The alternatives
were limited. Hotel dining rooms and downtown cafes, seldom convenient for motorists, were
more closely associated with railroad travel and generally offered full meals.
By 1930 food stands and cafes catering to cross-country travelers and the many truckers
who were using the road began to appear. Some offered drive-in service, anticipating the
rise of fast-food drive-ins. Because of the success of franchises, few restaurants,
diners, or cafes from the highway's early years have survived. Many of those that remain
have undergone substantial alterations to conform to the changing standards and
expectations of American drivers.
Eating establishments along Route 66 displayed eclectic architectural styles. Their
design and construction methods were less deliberate than those of motels and gas stations
and reflected the idiosyncrasies of their builders and owners even more than motels and
gas stations. In the majority of cases these structures are hard to classify or describe
because they were put together with little attention to detail. Requiring low maintenance
and offering few frills, these buildings were angular, small, and simple, offered a basic
service. and depended on large and flamboyant signs to attract attention.
Drive-ins with canopies for curbside service were among the earliest, but few appear to
have survived. The Snow Cap in Seligman. Arizona, was built in the 1940s, but it retains
the basic character of the early fast-food businesses. The Pig Hip in Broadwell, Illinois,
is typical of the many eating establishments along the road: simple and functional. It
attracted travelers because of the quality of the food and the service and the location.
Other famous examples of this plain architectural style are the Club Cafe in Santa Rosa,
New Mexico, Bob's BBQ in Arcadia, Oklahoma. Vernelle's near Rolla, Missouri, and Ted
Drewes' Frozen Custard in St. Louis, Missouri. There are some notable exceptions. Among
the best known is the often- photographed U-Drop Inn. Located in Shamrock, Texas, this
famous landmark was built in 1936. A combination service station and cafe, it has both
architectural merit and visual appeal. According to legend the plans for the building were
scratched in the local dirt. Its art deco design sets it apart from other diners, but,
like many other businesses along the highway, it offered motorists the convenience of
stopping once for food and gas.
The Mill in Lincoln, Illinois, is architecturally distinctive and illustrates another
common phenomenon along the highway building additions. The structure was enlarged at
least twice to accommodate customers and/or different functions. What started as a bar and
local cafe became an attractive restaurant and banquet facility. The additions reflect the
effort to maintain the character of the original building.
About 25% of the travel-related businesses along Route 66 have multiple functions. The
most common combinations are gas station/diner, gas station/general store and motel/diner.
Roy's, a famous landmark to those crossing the California desert, offers food, overnight
accommodations, and gas in one convenient location. The architectural features of these
commercial structures are not exceptional. These buildings are not important because of
their intrinsic architectural merit, but because they document the evolution of the
services and the social context in which these travelers services were provided.
Other Roadside Businesses
Although mostly architecturally lackluster, these structures are notable for the
owners' efforts to attract the attention of the motorist who traveled Route 66. They
offered a wide range of goods and services and included wrecking services, automobile
dealerships, auto parts stores, curio shops, grocery/general stores, manufacturing sites
of Indian crafts, trading posts, and many others. These buildings originated in the late
1920s when entrepreneurs began to realize the economic potential of the highway and sought
to combine local trade with tourist services. Whether located in cities or in rural areas,
the majority of these properties were built in vernacular styles with oversized signs that
announced to motorists the services and/or goods provided. Like other commercial
enterprises along the road, they tended to be constructed of local materials. Often the
-66 structures have Indian-inspired murals on their facades, evidence that the builders
relied on the Pueblo revival style for their inspiration. The Claremore Auto
Dealership/Tire Company in Claremore, Oklahoma, is among the finest examples of this type
of building. Originally an automobile dealership made of bricks with a stucco coating and
geometric designs. It is an attempt to imitate a Spanish style. Another substantial
structure is the Bristow Motor Company in Bristow, Oklahoma. The auto dealership was
constructed of brick and displays some of the finest architectural details for a building
of this type.
Trading posts were common sights as Route 66 traversed the western plateaus. Some of
the original structures, such as the Santo Domingo Trading Post near the Santo Domingo
Pueblo in New Mexico, have managed to remain viable businesses and retain their original
character and function. Others, like the Budville Trading Company, in Budville, New
Mexico, barely manage to remain open. Most of their original form has been covered by new
siding and roofs, various additions, and numerous coats of paint.
The structures called "tourist traps" or "snake pits," tended to
have gaudily painted walls, fort-like palisades, or rustic board and batten facades
covering concrete block walls. These are the least distinctive properties, both in
function and in form, of those that line the road but are perhaps among the most colorful.
Near Winslow, Arizona, the Jackrabbit store, with its typical "Here it is"
signs, offers motorists a good example of the simple functional architecture that was
characteristic of most curio shops. They were made of brick or cinder block, had pitched
or flat roofs, gasoline pumps up front, Indian designs painted on the walls, and large
signs. The giant jackrabbit wearing a saddle in front of the store represented a common
gimmick, which often succeeded in getting the attention of weary parents traveling with
their families. In some cases the business specialized in a local commodity, such as
petrified wood in Holbrook, Arizona.
The spirit of these businesses continues today. In New Mexico and Arizona several
commercial establishments have maintained their function and colorful exteriors. Such
trading posts as Yellowhorse's, Tee Pee, and Fort Courage still attract travelers. The
main buildings have been remodeled or rebuilt, but their owners still attempt (and often
succeed) to persuade motorists to get out of their cars, give in to an impulse, and buy
souvenirs.
The Round Barn in Arcadia, Oklahoma, Galloway's Totem Pole Park in Foyil, Oklahoma, the
Blue Whale near Catoosa, Oklahoma, Meramec Caverns near Stanton, Missouri, drive-in
theaters, the Coleman Theater in Miami, Oklahoma, and the Kimo Theater in Albuquerque, New
Mexico are among the most distinctive and colorful road-side attractions. Quite different
in function and condition, they symbolize the nature of what awaited motorists on their
journeys. They were an important element for those driving Route 66 as they enlivened the
trips offering an opportunity to stop and relax.
Conclusion
Most of the varied physical resources associated with Route 66 are significant mostly
because of their association with the primary cultural and socioeconomic themes of the
highway. Within the larger collections of resources contributing to particular themes
there may be individual elements, including road segments, that, upon study of their
physical character and integrity, may be found to best represent such themes.
Reprinted from:
Special Resource Study Route 66
United States Department of the Interior
National Park Service (See Credits)
NPS D-4 July 1995.
