Route 66 is one of the nation's most legendary highways, beginning in 1926.

• It was known as the nation's first all weather highway, linking Chicago to Los Angeles.

• It was the shortest, year round route between the Midwest and the Pacific Coast.

• It symbolized freedom for motorists across America. 

• Other names: The Mother Road, Main Street of America, Will Rogers Highway.

• A network of electric vehicle charging stations is being installed along the 2,448-mile route, so it will soon be possible to drive the entire route in an EV.

Listen to Nat King Cole perform Get Your Kicks on Route 66 (1956)

The Historic Route 66 Virtual Tour, Google Arts & Culture

CROSS-LINK: The Rise of the Automobile and 21st Century Self-Driving Cars

.  View April 30, 2022 Google Doodle for Route 66

Ran through Chicago, Illinois, through Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona before ending at Santa Monica, California, covering a total of 2,448 miles (3,940 km).

Original start date: The numerical designation 66 was assigned to the Chicago-to-Los Angeles route on April 30, 1926, in Springfield, Missouri. 

The Dust Bowl (the 1930s) facilitated the movement of many farming families from Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas, and Texas. They headed west in the hopes of finding agricultural jobs. Route 66 was the most popular route traveled by these people.

Click here for an illustrative timeline about Route 66.

Fun Facts Page

Learn about the first fast food restaurant that opened on Route 66

Look here for a summary of route 66

 LITERATURE CROSS-LINK: Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

A 1931 Studebaker sedan commemorating U.S. Route 66,

a decommissioned transcontinental highway, where it passed through

Petrified Forest National Park in northeastern Arizona 

PRIMARY SOURCES

 About the Route 66 Archives and Research Collaboration

 MULTIMEDIA SOURCES

Route 66 Television Series 1960s

11 Must Watch Films Shot on Route 66

John Mayer Route 66 Song