ATTRACTIONS

Route 66: the Mother Road, symbol of the American dream

American culture and filmography has filled our heads with the image of the great U.S. expanses, including Rocky Mountains and desolate places, cut in half by Route 66, the highway that, since the 1920s, has accompanied the American dream.

From Steinbeck to Hunter Thompson, many are the writers and others who have extolled this symbol of American-ness, crucial to the great migration of people from the Northeast to California at the time of the Great Depression.

Now disused due to the proliferation of major highways (desired by Eisenhower after World War II), it remains passable in long stretches because of the historical value it represents. It remains a road of dreams, often broken, of suffering and suggestion, of literature and harsh, stark reality. This is our tribute.

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Route 66: the Mother Road or the dream highway symbol of the American dream
American culture and filmography has filled our heads with the image of the great American expanses, between Rocky Mountains and desolate places, cut in half by Route 66, the highway that has accompanied the American dream since the 1920s. From Steinbeck to Hunter Thompson, many writers and others have extolled this symbol of American-ness, fundamental to the great migration of the population from the northeast to California at the time of the Great Depression. Now disused due to the proliferation of major highways (ordered by Eisenhower after World War II), it remains passable in long stretches for the historical value that it represents. It remains a road of dreams, often shattered, of suffering and suggestion, of literature and harsh reality. This is our homage.
Freepik
Route 66: the Mother Road or the dream highway symbol of the American dream
The official name today is United States Route 66 (U.S. Route 66) and was, from 1926 to 1985, one of America's greatest arteries of wheeled travel. It entered the world's imagination through U.S. literature and filmography, but today it is no longer used as a real highway, but retains historical value like few roads in the world.
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Route 66: the Mother Road or the dream highway symbol of the American dream
At the time of its peak use, in which Route 66 was the true artery of America, the towns in its path experienced very rapid and enormous economic growth. This, of course, depended in large part on the amount of people passing by the new road. Nowadays, some have survived, some have downsized and some are real ghost town, perfect for Tarantino movies or visits to what was once America.
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Route 66: the Mother Road or the dream highway symbol of the American dream
Opened on November 11, 1926, it connected the northeast all the way to California. Speaking more specifically, the road started from Chicago and passed through several states, namely Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Nuovo Messico, Arizona and California, over a total distance of 3755 kilometers (2333 miles), until it reached Santa Monica.
Chuck Coker - Flickr.com
Route 66: the Mother Road or the dream highway symbol of the American dream
Route 66 was instrumental in sustaining the U.S. economy during the Great Depression and Dust Bowl, allowing the migration of millions of American farmers to California, in those years one of the only states that still offered jobs such as fruit picking. California was booming in those years thanks to the new film industry.
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Route 66: the Mother Road or the dream highway symbol of the American dream
Route 66 was taken off the list of American highway in 1985. After World War II, President Eisenhower wanted to reintroduce in the United States the highway system he had seen in Germany, which allowed great travel at great speed. In 1990, after the highway had long since been effectively abandoned (the 1960s saw the beginning of its decline), some states began to push for a revival of the road, not as an intersection but as a place of historical interest.
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Route 66: the Mother Road or the dream highway symbol of the American dream
The first sign with the header Historic Route 66 was installed in Kearnery Street at the intersection with Glenstone Avenue in Springfield (Missouri). today it has been replaced and moved near Eureka, Missouri. Similar signs now mark the entire route that it is still possible to follow.
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Route 66: the Mother Road or the dream highway symbol of the American dream
Imprinting Route 66 in the collective imagination was the American writer John Steinbeck with his novel "The Grapes of Wrath". The book describes the migration of millions of farmers from'Oklahoma to California during the Great Depression. The lack of work was due to three factors: the crisis of 1929, the Dust Bowl (a series of sandstorms that destroyed fields in the 1930s) and the advent of technology in farming, such as the use of tractors.
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Route 66: the Mother Road or the dream highway symbol of the American dream
The Roy's Motel and Café is a motel, cafeteria, gas station, and auto repair shop, disused for many years but now largely restored, on National Trails Highway of U.S. Route 66 in the small town of Amboy, in the desert town of Mojave, in San Bernardino, County, California. The historic site is an example of mid-century modern architecture Googie. The entire town of Amboy, including the now disused Roy's complex, is owned and under the care of a private conservator. It is featured on many covers of the book by Kerouac "On the Road".
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Route 66: the Mother Road or the dream highway symbol of the American dream
The Route 66 crosses 8 states and 3 time zones. However, it crosses only three states on Kansas for 21 km thus winning the record for the state with the smallest segment. A great time to travel it in a single trip might be from spring to early summer or in September and October because it is not too hot or cold, it should not snow, there is not too much crowding, and the cost of accommodations is low.
Pexels.com
Route 66: the Mother Road or the dream highway symbol of the American dream
Today  Route 66 remains every time we see a Cadillac pass us by , every time we sit in a Diner, or every time we have to make the most classic of "journeys of hope." No longer do we encounter the great pilgrims or dreamers of Beat Generation seeking freedom, but the legacy it left in Western culture will never lose its luster.
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