Sage Scott, a syndicated travel writer for the Associated Press, recently published a list of 14 women who helped build or preserve the mythos of Route 66.
“If you listen closely along Route 66, you can hear stories of great women echo through the kitchens of roadside diners, the front desks of family-run motels and the foundations of southwestern architecture,” she wrote.
These are those 14 women:
- Cynthia Troup, uncredited co-writer of Bobby Troup’s song “(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66”
- Joy Nevin, owner of Stockmen’s Supply Service in Arizona and co-operator of the Painted Desert Trading Post
- Fran Houser, longtime owner and operator of the Midpoint Cafe in Adrian, Texas
- Gladys Cutberth, who with her husband Jack ran the U.S. Highway 66 Association in Clinton, Oklahoma
- Lillian Redman, longtime owner of the Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, New Mexico
- Mary Colter, the reputed designer of La Posada in Winslow, Arizona, and La Fonda Hotel in Santa Fe (though there’s dispute about that)
- Dawn Welch, longtime owner of the Rock Cafe in Stroud, Oklahoma
- Melba Rigg, Betty Courtney, Renee Charles and Judy Courtney. who founded Cars on the Route in Galena, Kansas
- Stacy Grundy and Gina Lathan, owners of Route History in Springfield, Illinois
- Katrina Parks, director of documentaries about the women of Route 66 and Harvey Girls
It’s a pretty good list, though I thought of others who might be worthy of inclusion.
Do you have a few who might be members of a Route 66 Women’s Hall of Fame?
(Image of Lillian Redman, owner of the Blue Swallow Motel of Tucumcari, New Mexico, via 66postcards.com)