A new Route 66 Visitors Center, housed in a renovated 1930 Phillips 66 gas station in Baxter Springs, Kan., is set to open Saturday afternoon, reports the Joplin (Mo.) Globe.
Auman said that by Saturday, he expects the building to be stocked with tourism brochures and Route 66 souvenirs.
Most of the building has been painted tan, with doors, door frames and window frames painted maroon. The roof is orange. Auman said it is the color scheme the Phillips 66 stations used from 1947 to 1959.
The station was renovated with the help of a $26,000 cost-share grant from the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program.
The center is being run by the Baxter Springs Heritage Center and Museum, which has a page devoted to the visitors center renovation, including photos.
What a great old building. I’m glad they were able to save it. It looks very good in those photos, and to find the original overhead door was a great stroke of luck.