Today, the Illinois Route 66 Association announced its annual Hall of Fame inductees and the winner of the Tom Teague Ambassador Award.
First, the inductees, as described by the association:
The Crossroads Diner in Mount Olive, Ill.
The Route 66 diner the Crossroads is a favorite place to stop and eat while traveling Route 66 in Illinois. The Crossroads Diner was placed on the west side of Route 66 and south side of Route 138 in Mount Olive in late 1953. It officially opened for business in early 1954. It opened as the Crossroads Diner and has kept the name ever since. It was and still is on the 1940-1977 alignment of Route 66. The Crossroads belongs to the original owners, the Oltman family, although most of the time it has been leased out. It is different than most diners because it has two horseshoe counters, which was the original diner. Then in the mid-1960s, an additional dinning area and larger kitchen were added. Back in the 1950s, the Crossroads also had a gas station on the lot (it eventually closed). This old diner is still a favorite place with truck drivers because of the easy access off Interstate 55 at Exit 44 and its large parking lot where truckers can park for the night and get some great food.
The Mill in Lincoln, Ill.
The Mill has been officially saved from demolition, and is on the way to complete restoration. The Mill, designed like a Dutch mill, originally opened as The Blue Mill in 1929. It was a sandwich stand on a bustling section of the 1930-1940 section of Route 4/Route 66, where many gas stations and businesses were located. Later, in the post-WWII era, the Mill became a restaurant/bar and was famous for schnitzel sandwiches. Additions were built to the back of the original building. The restoration process is being done in phases, with the first being to make the structure safe and photogenic on the outside (thus drawing visitors as a photo attraction), and then later to fully restore the building as a museum.
Sprague’s Super Service in Normal, Ill.
Sprague’s Super Service was built at 305 E. Pine St. in Normal circa 1930-1931 by William W. Sprague, a Bloomington contractor. The brick first story housed a restaurant, gas station and garage. The second story, finished in a decorative swirl of stucco and half timbering, contained a large owner’s apartment with plenty of natural light and an attendant’s apartment. Sprague’s superior carpentry skill is evident in a building that is intact and structurally sound after more than 75 years. With many remaining original architectural features, two additions to the structure in 1948 and 1967 have visually altered, but not obliterated, the original appearance of the building. According to Michael Taylor, former program manager for Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program, the property “is unique along the entire route” as one of only three combination gas station/living quarters along Route 66 in the United States. Sprague’s, however, is the largest and the only one with a garage bay and cafe. Taylor declares that this property “has much historic integrity and significance.” The current owners plan is to open the historic location as a Route 66 visitor and education center and gift shop.
Stateville Prison in Crest Hill, Ill.
Both Route 66 and the Stateville Prison started in 1926. In those days of operation, Stateville was 70 percent self-supporting, raising feed for the cattle and hogs that were used to feed the prisoners, as well as vegetables. In 1974, the canning plant at Stateville canned 240,000 gallons of vegetables, grown on the farm and harvested by the inmates to feed the inmates, not only at Stateville, but any of the other tax-supported institutions in Illinois. Old Route 66 was a very necessary roadway to support the prison and its operation.
And the Tom Teague Ambassdor Award goes to:
Lenore and John Weiss
John and Lenore have worked unselfishly in giving of their time and money to further the ideals of the Route 66 Association Preservation Committee through the state of Illinois. They have traveled the road and worked nationally to promote tourism on the route. They’ve helped television and movie crews, introducing them to important contacts within the cities, villages and towns in Illinois and allowing many projects to be filmed on Route 66. They jointly organized the Preservation Committee preservation projects, including the Cyrus Avery Award-winning Standard Oil Station in Odell, the Auburn Brick Road, and a vintage segment of Route 66 south of Springfield — all of which are now on the National Register of Historic Places. Their lectures and bus tours educate Route 66 to people from all walks of life. They serve on the Hall of Fame Museum Committe. Today, they are still out there working to save the road through hard work, education and promotion of Illinois’ Route 66 heritage.
The Hall of Fame dinner will be the night of June 13 at the Crowne Plaza in Springfield. It coincides with the association’s annual motor tour. For more details, go here.
(Photos courtesy of the Illinois Route 66 Association)