Flash flooding reported in Flagstaff July 31, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Weather.add a comment
A cloudburst Friday in the Flagstaff, Ariz., caused scattered flash flooding around the city, including standing water at the Milton Road underpass on Route 66, reported the Arizona Daily Sun.
The mid-afternoon bursts led the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office to temporarily close Highway 89 between Silver Saddle Road and Sunset Crater, along with several other residential roads. Reports from county officials had water flowing curb to curb on Campbell Avenue, washing over debris and large rocks. However, there were no calls for help for injured or stranded area residents.
Localized street flooding also snarled traffic and activity throughout the city, especially near downtown when the Milton Road underpass flooded and all four lanes of traffic were closed for about two hours.
For the day, Pulliam Airport recorded 1.32 inches, most of it falling between about 3 and 4 p.m. Northern Arizona University saw 1.71 inches, and about 1 inch fell outside a weather spotter’s home in Timberline.
That’s an astounding amount of rain in one day for northern Arizona. No injuries or deaths were reported. More rain is forecast for Sunday.
Here’s some video of the flooding along the Mother Road:
Wayne the Train takes a cruise July 31, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Music.add a comment
Country-swinger Wayne “The Train” Hancock performs “Route 66″ from his live-in-concert “Swing Time” album. A true road warrior, Hancock plays this sing at virtually every gig.
A closer look at Chandler July 30, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Attractions, Television, Towns.add a comment
Here’s a nice and informative video about the Route 66 town of Chandler, Okla. The clip was produced by the good folks of OETA.
Santo Domingo Trading Post gets $1 million restoration grant July 30, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Businesses, Preservation.add a comment
The former Santo Domingo Trading Post along old Route 66 north of Albuquerque was awarded a $1 million federal grant from the Economic Development Administration to restore the property, reported the New Mexico Business Weekly.
The trading post is on Kewa Pueblo, formerly called Santo Domingo.
From the report:
The trading post is adjacent to the New Mexico Rail Runner Express stop on the pueblo. It was consumed by a fire in 2001. Pueblo officials expect the revitalized trading post to generate 30 jobs. Plans for the site include a restaurant and other services for Rail Runner commuters, tourists and local residents.
The dilapidated building still bears a faded sign that proclaims “where real Indians trade” and was on Historic Route 66 and the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe rail line. That made it a well-known tourist stop for the Southwest Chief and motorists. Dignitaries, including President John F. Kennedy, visited the spot as well.
The trading post was listed on the New Mexico Register of Cultural Properties in 1997 and on the National Register of Historic Properties in 1998. Tony Tortalita, governor of Kewa Pueblo, said the trading post has been an icon of the pueblo’s history and the plan is to use it to showcase its culture and traditions through arts and crafts.
Some photos of the old Santo Domingo Trading Post can be found here.
Hula hoops and malt shops July 30, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Restaurants.1 comment so far
I’m posting this just because I like it, plus you get to see the Route 66 Malt Shop at its new location in the Nob Hill area of Albuquerque.
Santa Rosa scoops July 29, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Gas stations, Museums, Preservation, Publications, Restaurants, Towns.1 comment so far
I always enjoy the print edition of the Guadalupe County Communicator, based out of Santa Rosa, N.M., when it arrives in my mailbox each week. It’s a lively newspaper owned by a former Rocky Mountain News reporter, and the fact it’s on Route 66 is bonus.
This week, the Communicator contained these items of interest to Mother Road fans:
- Longtime New Mexico Route 66 advocate Johnnie Meier is considering a Route 66-themed museum in the 1906 Charles Ilfeld Warehouse in Santa Rosa. I’d known that Meier, who owns a Classical Gas petroliana museum in Embudo, N.M., was looking at Santa Rosa for another museum. But this was the first I’d heard about a specific location. Meier also may put the museum in Tucumcari.
- The nearby Route 66 ghost town of Cuervo may put its long-closed schoolhouse on the market. The school was built with stone, and sits on a rise just south of Interstate 40 and Route 66. But the roof is decaying, but townsfolk want to sell the building before it deteriorates to where it’s no longer salvageable. Cuervo, which once boasted a population of 240, now counts only 11 residents. The Santa Rosa School District, which owns the property, will likely put it up for bid.
- Meier, investigating whether the long-defunct Club Cafe still stands in Santa Rosa, found a building on the property that contains an old sign of the Club Cafe’s famous “fat man” mascot, plus ”a lot of dust.” It had been reported that the Club Cafe has been torn down, but Meier disputes that. It’s not certain whether what Meier found is proof that the building was the Club Cafe, but the sign was quite a find regardless. I reckon this fellow would settle the matter once and for all.
Red Cedar Inn to be converted into a business center July 29, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Businesses, Preservation, Restaurants.1 comment so far
Today, the Washington Missourian provided a bit more clarity about what’s happening to the closed Red Cedar Inn restaurant along Route 66 in Pacific, Mo.
According to the newspaper, owner Jim Smith is turning it into the Historic Red Cedar Business Center. He’s moving his real estate office in there, and other tenants will eventually follow.
He says changing the primary use of the building will not alter the original appearance of the structure. Only the empty kitchen area will be changed.
“I can tell you that the integrity of the interior of the building will be maintained,” Smith said. “The bar will remain exactly as it is and will be used as a break room.” [...]
“We reached a point where we had to do some renovations to the building,” Smith said. “We have some plans for the business center, but we’re not ready to reveal all of them yet.”
The Red Cedar Inn operated as a restaurant and tavern for more than 70 years until it closed abruptly in 2007. The City of Pacific once held an option to buy the building and convert it into a local museum, but those plans fell through.
Old motels and restaurants on Route 66 have been adapted into new uses before, including the Nob Hill Motel in Albuquerque.
Hello from Austin July 29, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Music.add a comment
Here are Asleep at the Wheel, with longtime Texas Playboys singer Leon Rausch, performing “Route 66″ during an in-store appearance at Waterloo Records in Austin, Texas.
Rausch and Asleep at the Wheel were at the store promoting their new album, “It’s a Good Day!”
Notes from the road July 28, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Animals, Attractions, Events, Movies, Museums, Restaurants, Web sites.add a comment
The Fanning 66 Outpost in the Route 66 hamlet of Fanning, Mo., is hosting its annual Picture in the Rocker Day on Aug. 7, where you can enjoy the rare opportunity of sitting (or standing) on the World’s Largest Rocking Chair.
The Viva Cuba blog had some of the details:
The Outpost charges $5.00 per person for you or your group to be lifted to the seat of the rocker. You bring your camera and take your own photos. In the past, photos have been taken for Christmas cards or other special events as well as just for the fun of it. The Saturday, August 7 event runs from 9 am to 5pm.
Previously, the Cuba Fire Department used their lift truck for the fund rasier, but they sold the truck. Rather than end the event, this year the Outpost is renting a lift truck, and the money raised will be used to pay for the truck.
In case you’re wondering, the chair is more than 42 feet tall.
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TOP ATTRACTIONS: The Blue Whale along Route 66 near Catoosa, Okla., was named one of the “Top 50 American Roadside Attractions” by Time magazine this week. Also cited were the World’s Largest Rocking Chair at the Fanning Outpost near Cuba, Mo., Devil’s Rope Museum in McLean, Texas, and Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo, Texas.
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RESTAURANT REUSE: Ron Sanderson reported on the Route 66 yahoogroup this week that the long-vacant Red Cedar Inn in Pacific, Mo., saw some good news and bad news. The good news is that the former restaurant’s roof has been repaired, and much of the complex has been brought up to code. The bad news is that the complex apparently is being converted into a used-car lot. That’s better than having a date with a bulldozer, I suppose …
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GRIN AND BEAR IT: Amid this story from the Arizona Republic about the Route 66 town of Williams comes some news about a new attraction, Bearizona. It’s a drive-through outdoor animal habitat that features burros, bison, Dall and bighorn sheep, and bears on 158 acres. It also includes a walk-through area where you can see the newborn or young animals. The complex remains under construction, but is open.
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REVAMPED WEBSITE: The City of Webb City, Mo., is set to roll out a refurbished website later this week, reported the Joplin Globe. Among the new features is a history of Route 66 in the city. The site can be found here.
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TOUR TIME: Here’s a report from the Quay County Sun about the first day of the inaugural New Mexico Route 66 Motor Tour in Tucumcari. More than 40 people participated.
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ENCHANTED FOOD: Jane and Michael Stern of Roadfood.com, one of our favorite sites on the Internet, are planning a 2010 Roadfood Eating Tour in New Mexico on Sept. 17-18. On the itinerary so far are such Route 66 favorites as The Frontier and Mr. Powdrell’s in Albuquerque and a slew of Sante Fe restaurants. Tickets go on sale Aug. 2.
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OUTDOOR MOVIE: The Rolling Roadshow Tour by Alamo Drafthouse Cinema and Levi’s is presenting a free outdoor screening of “The Blues Brothers” at the Old Joliet Prison Park, on Friday, Aug. 13, just outside the walls of the now-closed but infamous prison. The prison, which becomes the setting for the first scene in the film, is just off Route 66. Alamo and Levi’s are taking a portable outdoor movie screen to select areas across the country this summer.
Author begins work on Route 66 encyclopedia July 27, 2010
Posted by Ron Warnick in Books, Maps.add a comment
Jim Hinckley, a Kingman, Ariz.-based author of several automotive and Route 66-related books, announced this week he is beginning work on a Route 66 encyclopedia and atlas. And he is soliciting help from the Route 66 community to help make the volume more complete.
In a news release, Hinckley said:
To ensure this work is historically correct, provides a comprehensive overview of Route 66, and is as current as possible, I am petitioning historic societies, museums, businesses, and Route 66 organizations for assistance in the form of suggestions for material to be included, contact information, historic information, and information pertaining to the acquisition of material to be used as illustrations.
General topics for inclusion:
1.) Community profile – a profile of each community on all alignments of Route 66.
2.) Biographies – concise biographical sketches of individuals that have played key roles in the roads history. Examples; Bob Waldmire, Cyrus Avery, Micahel Wallis, etc.
3.) Notable events that are directly associated with Route 66 or its predecessor auto trails such as the National Old Trails Highway or Ozark Trail. Examples; the Desert Classic automobile races 1908 – 1914, the Bunion Derby, etc.
4.) Predecessor highway history – the National Old Trails Highway, Ozark Trail, etc.
5.) Current businesses and their history – this category would be historic or new businesses such as Pops in Arcadia and Afton Station in Afton.
6.) Historic businesses now closed – examples for this category would include the Painted Desert Trading Post and Coral Court Motel.
7.) Route 66 entertainment – television shows and movies filmed on Route 66 or locations that were used in these films.
8.) Personal stories – short stories of personal experiences on Route 66 that will serve to illustrate its evolution.
My goal with this project is to chronicle the first 85 years of Route 66 history, to preserve it for future generations, and to further fuel the resurgent interest in the highway.
Those who wish to give information or offer to help Hinckley should e-mail jimhinckley(at)yahoo(dot)com.
Hinckley has written “Ghost Towns of the Southwest,” “Backroads of Arizona,” “Route 66 Backroads” and “The Big Book of Car Culture.” In the pipeline for this fall is “Ghost Towns of Route 66,” and he’s a contributor to the upcoming “Greetings from Route 66.”
The encyclopedia and atlas will be published by Voyageur Press. In a follow-up e-mail, Hinckley said the book is limited to 150,000 words and 2,000 illustrations, making it a sizable volume indeed. He has 18 months to turn in a manuscript, and the clock began ticking on June 1. So it won’t be in stores until 2012 at the earliest.
As for the atlas portion of the book, Hinckley wants it to be similar to the look of Stefan Joppich’s online Route 66 Atlas, and has enlisted his help.
Hinckley said he knows the book will be a huge undertaking, hence his plea to the Route 66 community for assistance.
I accepted the project for a number of reasons but topping the list would be an opportunity to provide a promotional resource for businesses along the highway as well as encourage others to create an Afton Station or Goffs museum. [...]
I fully understand it will be impossible to document every aspect as a result of time constraints, size restrictions, and the changing face of the road as evidenced with the fire at the Riviera and the resurrection of the Wagon Wheel Motel. I am also aware of my limitations and that is one of the reasons for seeking assistance in regards to the acquisition of material. [...]
For illustrations Joe Sonderman has graciously offered access to his post card collection. Likewise with Laurel Kane and Mike Ward. I will photograph the California section in October and if all goes as planned we will combine a photographic safari of the eastern section with a visit to Amarillo in June.
If Hinckley pulls this off (and there’s no reason to think he won’t), this exciting project may become a one-stop place for people wanting to know more about Route 66.