Cost-share grant season begins now February 21, 2009
Posted by Ron Warnick in Preservation.1 comment so far
The Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program is taking applications for its annual cost-share grants.
Applications may be submitted to the program office until May 1. Applications are available here or by e-mailing IM_rt66@nps.gov .
Most grants will cover up to 50 percent of a project’s cost; many of them have to do with preserving a historic property on the Mother Road.
Grant awards will be announced on or before June 12.
Adding ladies to the legend February 20, 2009
Posted by Ron Warnick in Businesses, Movies, People, Preservation.add a comment
The Tampa Tribune takes more of a feminist angle of Route 66 in leading off its story about 4 Women on the Route of Galena, Kan.:
Think of Route 66 and several names come to mind: Bobby Troup, who wrote “Route 66″; John Steinbeck, who proclaimed it the Mother Road in “The Grapes of Wrath”; Will Rogers, whose face appears on plaques and is carved in granite memorials all along the old highway.
But those are all guys. How unfair.
At long last, it’s time to tie some ladies to the legend. Renee Charles, Melba Rigg, Betty Courtney and Judy Courtney are the forces behind Four Women on the Route – the diner and gift shop they lovingly transformed from a 1930 gas station. Their work is bringing new life to a corner of the fabled highway in Galena, Kan.
The article also explains the links of Galena to the “Cars” movie. One is the inspiration to the well-known Mater character; the other is a more obscure “ghost” sign that makes an appearance in the film.
English-only bill harmful to tourism? February 20, 2009
Posted by Ron Warnick in Road trips.3 comments
There’s a bill, sponsored by Rep. Randy Terrill, R-Moore, winding its way through the Oklahoma Legislature that would bar any state agency from accommodating non-English-speakers.
There are the usual arguments about whether such legislation is discriminatory. But according to the Bixby Bulletin, Rep. Anastasia Pittman, D-Oklahoma City, brought up an issue that I hadn’t considered, and it’s a significant one concerning the Mother Road:
Rep. Pittman said she took part in a meeting Tuesday where Department of Tourism officials discussed Oklahoma’s potential to attract international business and tourism.
“We invest hundreds of thousands of dollars each year just to attract businesses and tourism from countries such as Germany, and that investment has paid off. In order to attract these dollars, we have to publish brochures and websites in different languages. If we don’t keep up these efforts, international travelers and businessmen will simply go somewhere else.” [...]
“We are at the crossroads of America, connected from corner to corner by interstates and by Route 66. We have a diverse heritage, including the oldest and the newest cultures to live in this land. No matter what provisions are written into this bill, at its heart it sends a message to people across the globe that Oklahoma does not want your business, and that we do not want your tourism.”
Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed, and an exception was placed into the bill creating an exemption for efforts regarding commerce and tourism. Lawmakers, including Terrill, had better make sure that exemption stays there if the bill happens to become law.
Exemptions also were created for American Indian tribes, of which there are several dozen in Oklahoma. Pittman makes the rather cogent argument that the more exceptions you place in the bill, the more meaningless — and possibly mean-spirited to certain peoples — it appears to be.
Carson Daly’s Route 66 trip February 20, 2009
Posted by Ron Warnick in Motorcycles, Road trips, Television.add a comment
Carson Daly of NBC’s “Last Call with Carson Daly” went on a Route 66 trip by motorcycle from Flagstaff, Ariz., to St. Louis.
Here are the three-minute segments of his adventures:
I admire that he did the 30-mile stretch of gravel Route 66 from San Jon to Glenrio in New Mexico. A lot of first-timers aren’t that brave.
“Am I Right (or Amarillo)” February 20, 2009
Posted by Ron Warnick in Music, Towns.add a comment
Here’s Asleep at the Wheel, doing a song featuring one of Route 66′s key cities. Be on the lookout for several Route 66 landmarks in this video:
Elvis ate here February 19, 2009
Posted by Ron Warnick in Museums, Music, Preservation, Restaurants.1 comment so far
Here’s something interesting that just came from the latest newsletter by the Oklahoma Route 66 Association.
The Heartland of America Heritage Museum in Weatherford, Okla., is about finished restoring the Porter House Diner, an original Valentine diner. The museum estimates the refurbishment will be done later this month or early March.
The article by Marion Davidson doesn’t have an exact fix when the diner was built, but it was operating on Route 66 in Weatherford in the 1950s by the Porter and Snow families.
Then there’s this:
A guest book provided by Porter’s sister Mrs. Snow, still a resident of Weatherford, reveals that Elvis Presley frequented the Porter House Diner on his Route 66 travels through Oklahoma heading to the West Coast. One entry in the guest book is dated April 22, 1960, with his name, home as Memphis, and remarks as “Cool, Daddy.” The guest book will be part of the Heartland Museum display.
Presley also stayed several times at the Trade Winds Motel in Clinton, Okla., during his trips out west. So the notion that Elvis would have stopped for a bite to eat at the Porter House before getting some shuteye down the road in Clinton makes sense.
(Photo by Marion Davidson)
Help save Bird Creek Bridge near Catoosa February 19, 2009
Posted by Ron Warnick in Bridges, Preservation.2 comments
I was going to write about this, but I’m going to let Route 66 author and preservationist Jim Ross hold court for a bit. This is a partial text of an e-mail he sent today:
The Bird Creek Bridge (formerly known as the Verdigris River Bridge) at Catoosa near the Blue Whale now
has its neck stretched across ODOT’s chopping block. Some of you may have received a letter from them explaining why all the alternatives they supposedly considered won’t work, leaving replacement as the only option. The bridge was built in 1936 and carries westbound traffic. At 24 feet wide, it is 4 feet narrower than its eastbound “twin.” Strangely, ODOT did not use traffic count as justification, though they are pushing the idea of safety.
I talked to Melvena (at the state historical preservation office) about it, and she is not convinced that the bridge cannot continue facilitating traffic. ODOT initially tried to get her to enter the mitigation phase right away, but she refused, and subsequently asked Federal Highway to enter the process as a consulting partner, which they have done.
In addition, the National Park Service in Santa Fe has asked to become a consultant. What all this means is that the bridge ain’t dead yet and there is a fair chance we can save it. One crucial factor is that ODOT needs input from the public to help sway their decision-making.
If you can spare a few minutes to contact the individuals below, it could end up making the difference. Each time we do this, we are that much closer to ultimately changing ODOT’s (and other DOTs) thinking about how best to deal with these historic bridges. Thanks for listening, and thanks for your support!
John D. HartleyEnvironmental Program ManagerFHWA – Oklahoma Division5801 N. Broadway Extension, Suite 300Oklahoma City, OK 73118405-254-3341john.hartley@fhwa.dot.gov
Robert BartlettOklahoma Department of TransportationOklahoma Archaeological Survey111 E. ChesapeakeNorman, OK 73019405-325-7201rbartlett@ou.edu
Dawn SullivanPlanning and Research EngineerOklahoma Department of Transportation200 N.E. 21st StreetOklahoma City, OK 73105405-521-2927dsullivan@odot.org
A note: I’ve already written to the state about the Twin Bridges, and got a favorable response. I implored the state to “repair, don’t replace.” I think all of us want safe bridges, and I think that “repair, don’t replace” is an amenable and pragmatic solution. The state has already responded well to my request to mostly preserve the Captain Creek Bridge near Wellston and appear to be listening again.
If simply repairing the bridge isn’t possible, then I’m up for replacing the bridge with a design that resembles the old one. Again, pragmatism shouldn’t be tossed to the roadside.
UPDATE: Here’s a story about the bridge by The Oklahoman. Among those interviewed is Jim Ross, author of the “Oklahoma Route 66″ guidebook.
(Photo courtesy of Guy Randall.)