Event Coverage Just another little Route 66 jaunt...

Just thought I'd share a few pics from the last couple of days...
For a little background, I've always be fascinated with Route 66, and since it's just about 3 hours away to the nearest piece of it, I really wanted to take my old truck on it..
When I discovered my wife and child were going to be out of town for a few days at a church meeting, I called my uncle who is also a car nut and made him an offer he couldn't resist- " Hey, you wanna go ride three days in a black un- air conditioned truck in 98 degree weather?" Who could resist?
First stop was the local store to fill up the circa 1950's ice chest... Before we made it out of Arkansas, I had to stop and take a pic of this old Big Bolt- may have to try to acquire it later... Soon enough, we found Missouri, and after a little searching, Route 66...

 

We ran around Springfield a bit, snapping pics... The old truck, hangin' with a couple of rednecks...
A poor ol' "T" locked up, probably for hangin' with those rednecks...

 

Then we headed out of town, to enjoy Route 66 the way it should be..Yeagley Chapel, a church on 66 predating the highway by 50 years.. An old garage someone has converted into a home:
I believe this was a tavern with rooms upstairs to rent Various sources claim Bonnie and Clyde stayed here, but I don't know if any of that is true. Still a cool old ruin, though.. .

 

In a book on Route 66 I've read, that last picture is of an old casket company... Maybe Bonnie and Clyde stayed in one of those!!!!!

 

Thanks for sharing. Looks like fun to me!

 

Very cool , thanks for the pics.
Hopefully I'll be able to repay ya 10 fold in a few months when my pop and I hit "the road" in my 49. I'm sure I'll shoot a few pics ... Or a thousand , lol !

 

I've got several more, but I've got to resize them. May be a day or so before I get them on here...

That may be what it is...I've read several different claims on what the old building was...This is what I based my thoughts on, although I'm not sure where I read the Bonnie and Clyde connection..
"The tree-invested limestone building has even been alleged to have served as a casket factory and mortuary. Apparently all that is not true though, and the fact is, according to the Springfield News Leader, it was built in 1902 by the Jackson family, with the occasional help of neighbors, with two rooms becoming a general store where families would sell produce, eggs and baked goods.





The Leader reports that upstairs had a living quarters with another large room for meetings and even church services. The Jackson's also had another building, no longer standing, just across the street that served as a mortuary and undertakers parlor where caskets could be purchased, which apparently is where the confusion has come for the stone buildings past.
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/mo-ghoststretch.html

 

Thanks for the ride. Waiting for more.

 

beautiful stretch of road there,, drove down it a few years back in our 38...........just loved it! thanks for the memories............

 

Outstanding shots and story! I hope to visit the Mother Road one day myself! Your pictures make me want to pack up and leave tonight! Can't wait to see the rest!

 

After leaving the site of the last pic- and wondering if the ivy growing there that I had put my hand in was poison oak- it wasn't , thankfully...we headed on to Halltown, where we stopped at the old mercantile. It is really showing it's age, as is the owner. I fear that its days are numbered... From there, we continued to my favorite place of this stretch of road, Gay Parita. Sadly, the owner recently died, and according to the neighbor, his widow did as well. As a result, it's tied up in probate and is locked up now, but the family has plans to re-open it.. Reluctantly leaving Gay Parita behind- oh, and don't miss the neighbor with a beautiful "Canned Ham" on display that I failed to get a pic of- we continued on and crossed this bridge built in 1923.. I was confused at first, because 10 years ago, when I came through on a Harley, I remembered a bridge with girders overhead too...Ah, there it is. Built in 1926, it is awesome, with a crystal clear stream trickling merrily under it..

 

Which one of you is the "Giant HAMBur"? In any case it's nice they acknowledged you.

 

Next up- Spencer, Missouri. A tiny collection of buildings that appear to have saw some care since I came through ten years ago, they make for a perfect photo op.. We continued westward, toward Carthage, watching for directions to a place called Red Oak II, Missouri...yep, there's our sign...

 

If you don't know about Red Oak II- basically, the story as I understand it is that a guy moved away and apparently made more money than I have. Returning home, he found that his hometown had became a ghost town. Unable to stomach that thought, he began buying the buildings and moving them to his farm. He apparently got friends to do the same, and now there is basically a small ghost town nicely preserved to check out. it's about 4 miles off of Route 66, and well worth the drive, even though the only casualty of our trip occurred here- a derned rabbit ran out in front of the truck and was squashed flat as a pancake before I could swerve. Guess he figured if he was gonna die, it might as well be a ride with class to kill him.
After that we found this: "Mom, I'm home"... Wait, I need gas...

 

Not being content with one old gas station, he collected another... This one, if I remember right, was originally on Route 66 and was the oldest remaining station of its style on the Route. When I came through ten years ago, it was off in an old field, sans pumps, with a fence around it, peeling paint and looking kinda tired. While I would personally preferred it to remain on the route, it does my heart good to see it shined back up..
If you don't pay for your gas, you might wind up here:
Which might put you here, paying a fine: You shoulda just stayed in school:

 

VERY COOL! Thanks for the trip.

 

I believe Bonnie and Clyde might have spent a night or two in a casket company in Gibsland, LA. Of course, neither was aware of it. Route 66 is a magnet for hotrod/streetrodders. Happy trails.

 

Great stuff! Thanks for the ride.

 

oldsjoe, don't put off your trip. My wife and I are planning on covering all the longer strips of what was/is Rte. 66. A nice drive starts just north of Kingman, Az. for over 80 miles then runs beyond Seligman, Az. If/when you take this route, expect a bit of a delay at Hackberry, Az., a gas station, former mechanic's garage-souvenir shop. Everyone there will want pictures of themselves in your car followed by plenty of conversation. We met travelers from France, Austria, Germany, and Japan. Have fun.

 

Thanks for sharing your trip with us. Great pics.

 

I've got a kid....I could use this from time to time... Cool trolley car turned diner, perhaps? Or maybe you'd just like to fly outta here- I'm not that brave.
After leaving, I gassed up the truck for real at the modern gas station just down the road and was immediately asked if my dad drove my truck often. Confused, I told the clerk no, that my dad was deceased. She said "Well, there's a guy up the road with a truck just like yours and I have to constantly chase him down to that old town to get him to pay me because he forgets...Sigh. A Ford is NOT like my Chevy... Shortly afterward, we found ourselves in Galena Kansas...We didn't get to explore Carthage/Joplin as much as we would've like, being as how I was trying to make sure I didn't lose the road...

 

terrific photo story

 

Heck yea , quite enjoyable

 

Great trip......... Thank You


Lynn W

 

Awesome, Thanks for the ride along!

 

Thanks for taking us along. HRP

 

We took the MotherRoad trip about 10 years ago starting around Joplin. Made it all the way to the left coast. Now that I am retired we plan to do it again taking much more time along the way. Highly recommended to any one, especially car guys and gals!!!

 

Awesome , it's on my bucket list to take our 53 all the way , potholes or not ! Great thread! Thanks. Flux

 

Great trip-I've got kids in Columbia so we should be able to do the Missouri section soon. I did the Illinois part last summer, but once I retire-Chicago to LA

 

Love these Charles Kuralt type posts! The America I grew up with and one that most urban east coast kids have no idea about. Missed them since PovertyFlats moved to FB. Thanks for posting, more please!