The Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program announced four cost-share grants for 2024, including to the Osterman Station in Peach Springs, Arizona, and the so-called Ski Slope House in Daggett, California.
Here are the details of the grants from the Nation Park Service:
— Osterman Station rehabilitation, $30,000 grant, $30,000 cost-share match. In 1929, Swedish immigrant John Osterman built a fueling station along Route 66 in Peach Springs using a concrete block kit from the Sears-Roebuck catalog.
The Hualapai Tribe purchased the station in 2005 to preserve it and nominated it to the National Register of Historic Places. The building recently was damaged when extreme weather caused the roof and a wall to collapse, leading the National Trust for Historic Preservation to name it one of America’s 11 Most Endangered Places in 2023.
Today the Hualapai Tribe is developing a preservation and reuse plan for the station as part of a larger revitalization effort. Community members have expressed interest in several potential future uses for the station such as a museum, visitor center, artist guild, gift or coffee shop and electric/gas station. NPS cost-share grant funds will support the canopy’s restoration as part of the effort.
— Route 66 Corridor California Information Bureau building (aka Ski Slope House and Russian House) rehabilitation, $20,000 grant, $20,000 cost-share match. Built in 1926, the building once was a California welcome center operated by the California Information Society. The society was established in 1891.
The station later operated as Ma Millet’s Cafe and is the last known remaining example of these information bureau buildings. Grant funds will assist with the restoration of the building to its original appearance, which will open as a museum.
— Route 66 Road to Discovery and Learning Project, $15,550 grant, $23,250 cost share match. The project by 302 Stories Inc. will develop educational materials to raise awareness about Route 66 so future generations can appreciate and learn from the iconic road in New Mexico.
Three video educational modules will be produced for use in public and private schools throughout New Mexico. The modules will introduce middle and high school students to different facets of Route 66 while also meeting specific New Mexico Public Education Department academic standards.
The modules will use archival photos, more than 30 hours of never-seen-before broadcast video footage of Route 66 in New Mexico and new footage to weave past and present oral history interviews with scripted narration and music to explore the history, industries, people and culture connected to the highway. Potential topic areas include history, geography, culture and literature, economics, art, social studies, science and technology.
The modules will be made available to the public and distributed through YouTube and other organizations interested in promoting and teaching about Route 66.
— Route 66: Wartime Women. $24,182 grant, $35,681 cost-share match. The project, directed by Assertion Films, aims to honor and celebrate women’s unique experiences, perspectives and stories to amplify diverse voices and enrich collective understanding of this historic highway from World War II to the Cold War. The Route 66 Road Ahead Partnership applied for the grant.
“Route 66: Wartime Women” is a project of documentary short films, a story map and a comprehensive lesson plan tailored for sixth- to 10th-grade classrooms. The project will delve into the intersection of international conflicts, the military-industrial complex and women’s experiences along the Route 66 corridor.
Beyond classroom use, the project will extend its reach to organizations such as the Girl Scouts and international institutions to foster a deeper understanding of American history through the lens of Route 66. The grant will support aspects such as filming interviews, postproduction work including editing and website development, as well as the creation of lesson plans and overall project administration. The resulting materials will be available to the public for educational use and other purposes.
Since 2001, the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program has given 179 projects a total of $2.72 million with $4.5 million in cost-share matches, totaling $7.10 million in public-private investment toward the revitalization and commemoration of the Route 66 corridor.
(Images of the Osterman Station and Ski Slope House via the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program)