Book review: “Route 66 Sightings”

The first time I leafed through the new photography book "Route 66 Sightings," I encountered one large image that stopped me in my tracks: It was Dawn Welch, owner of the Rock Cafe of Stroud, Okla., standing amid the ruins of her Route 66 restaurant after a fire gutted it in 2008. Her hands are … Continue reading Book review: “Route 66 Sightings”

“The Old Lucky Diamond Motel”

Vince Gill has a new album out, "Guitar Slinger," and this song is on it. Here's an acoustic version performed for KUPL radio in Portland, Ore. It's quite a Route 66 song. https://youtu.be/TmY8mpf3yO0 You can buy the studio version of this song for 99 cents here. The entire album can be downloaded for $9.49 here.

A tour of the Campbell Hotel

Recently, the owners of the Campbell Hotel along Route 66 in Tulsa offered me and Emily (aka Redforkhippie) a tour of the historic building. Last week, we took them up on their offer. We had toured the hotel in May during the Tulsa's annual Designer Showcase. However, that was when the hotel was dolled up … Continue reading A tour of the Campbell Hotel

Santa Fe motel will be converted into low-income housing

The historic Stage Coach Motor Inn along Cerrillos Road (aka Route 66) in Santa Fe, N.M., soon will be converted into a lower-income housing complex, according to the Albuquerque Journal. The Housing Trust of Santa Fe will begin renovating the motel in January. Plans call for revamping the inn’s three buildings into 15 studios apartments … Continue reading Santa Fe motel will be converted into low-income housing

Tucumcari’s newest repainting effort … and more

This past weekend, volunteers in Tucumcari, N.M., started their latest repainting effort on an abandoned gas station in town. The station, shown above, will be the seventh gas station in Tucumcari that's been repainted in a nostalgic color scheme on the Route 66 corridor. This station will be repainted to resemble a Magnolia station; area … Continue reading Tucumcari’s newest repainting effort … and more

The man behind the bottles

Here's a new video about Elmer Long, proprietor of the Bottle Tree Ranch on Route 66 in Oro Grande, Calif. https://youtu.be/pwAFW0jyapE Elmer's Facebook page is here.

The poop on Bill Freiday

Jim Hinckley pointed me to this recent obituary in the Kingman (Ariz.) Daily Miner of Burnell "Bill" Freiday, who died on Oct. 12 at age 95. The obit convincingly shows that Freiday lived a colorful life, with vocations that included these: [P]ig farmer, squab farmer, wood cutter, movie theater operator, tractor parts inspector, tractor test … Continue reading The poop on Bill Freiday

Lights on at the Luna Cafe

A vintage neon sign -- plus architectural neon -- of the historic Luna Cafe on Route 66 in Mitchell, Ill., were relighted Saturday night during a ceremony attended by about 200 people. Jim Thole of the Route 66 Association of Missouri's Neon Preservation Committee  reported that the neon was turned on at 6:44 p.m. Saturday, with … Continue reading Lights on at the Luna Cafe

Roller rink reopens in Sapulpa

When we last checked with the closed Starlite Skate Rink on old Route 66 near Sapulpa, Okla., about 18 months ago, it was being converted into a church. Now the Sapulpa Daily Herald says the roller-skating facility is going back to its old ways. It's been rechristened as the Route 66 Roller Dome, and its … Continue reading Roller rink reopens in Sapulpa

Chandler Baseball Camp named to National Register of Historic Places

Chandler Baseball Camp in Chandler, Okla., renowned for decades for its baseball-only camps run by Bo and Tom Belcher, was listed to the National Register of Historic Places effective Oct. 12, according to an email today from the National Park Service. The complex, at 2000 W. Park Road in Chandler less than a mile north … Continue reading Chandler Baseball Camp named to National Register of Historic Places