| ROUTE 66: HISTORY |
Long before interstates flattened the map into straight lines and exit numbers, there was U. S. Route 66 – a road that didn’ t just connect places but defined what it meant to travel across America.
It wasn’ t fast or direct. But for nearly six decades, it was the road people chose when they wanted something more. They chose it because it offered possibilities.
THE BIRTH OF A NATIONAL IDEA
Route 66 was officially commissioned in 1926 as part of a broader effort to organize the growing network of American highways. At the time, the country was shifting – industries were booming, automobiles were becoming more accessible,
and the idea of long-distance travel was transforming from novelty into necessity.
The road stretched 2,448 miles from Chicago to Los Angeles, linking the industrial Midwest to the Pacific Coast. But more importantly, it connected rural communities to opportunity.
Its routing wasn’ t accidental. Promoters like Cyrus Avery championed a path that would pass through as many towns as possible, ensuring economic benefit along the way. Instead of bypassing communities, Route 66 stitched them together.
In its early years, much of the road was unpaved or inconsistent, a patchwork of surfaces that reflected the limitations of the time. Back then, Route 66 carried ambition.
Top: Members of the U. S. 66 Highway Association in El Reno, Oklahoma, c. 1932. Photo courtesy of the Oklahoma Historical Society. Bottom: The posts signify where the original Route 66 went through the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona.
20 / AUGUST 2026 / RIDERMAGAZINE. COM