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ROUTE 66.
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History of the "Mother Road." Impact of highway on trucking industry & migration to California. Architecture of Route 66 & iits decline & fall. Symbolism of road.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
History of the "Mother Road." Impact of highway on trucking industry & migration to California. Architecture of Route 66 & iits decline & fall. Symbolism of road.

Paper Introduction:
ROUTE 66: THE MAIN STREET OF AMERICA Introduction Route 66, the main route from Chicago to Los Angeles in years past, began early in the 19th Century as a series of wagon trails leading settlers south and west. As time went by, these trails were linked together as a direct line to the West Coast though country that was not subject to the wild winters found in the region of the Oregon and California Trails across the upper midwest and west. In Northern Arizona, the old trail was known as the Beale Wagon Road, which cut straight across the wilderness in the 1800s. Later the railroad line followed the trail, with many small towns sprouting up along the iron track (Fox, 1). At the beginning of the 20th century, hardtopped roads leading from th

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Route 66 helped tofacilitate the single greatest wartime manpower mobilization in the historyof the nation. By the 192 s, a powerfulforce had evolved, wedding road builders and the motor industry, in whichgovernment and business Joined happily in promoting as a national policyone mode of travel over all others. This enormous capital outlayserved to underwrite entirely new industries that created thousands ofcivilian jobs and the post-war California boom (Thompson, 6).Get Your Kicks On Route 66 After the war, thousands of soldiers, sailors, and airmen whoreceived military training in California, Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma,and Texas abandoned the harsh winters of Chicago, New York City, and Bostonfor the Southwest and the West. By today's standards, the show is ratherunbelievable but in the 196 's, it brought Americans back to the routelooking for new adventure. they come into 66 from the tributaryside roads, from the wagon tracks and the rutted country roads. ROUTE 66: THE MAIN STREET OF AMERICAIntroduction Route 66, the main route from Chicago to Los Angeles in years past,began early in the 19th Century as a series of wagon trails leadingsettlers south and west. The motor industry, which the public embracedas an alternative to the hated rails, viewed government as a partner inprogress. And as they sat andfumed, smoky locomotives and electric interurban trains streaked by,carrying passengers and produce in to the bustling depots (Goddard, 1). In many respects, the physical remains of Route 66 mirror theevolution of highway development in the United States from a rudimentaryhodge-podge of state and country roads to a federally subsidized complex ofuniform, well-designed interstate expressways. Bobby Troup, former pianist with the Tommy Dorsey band, nowan ex-Marine captain, penned a lyrical road map of the now famous cross-country road in which the words, "get your kicks on Route 66" became acatch phrase for countless motorists. Later the railroad line followed the trail, with many smalltowns sprouting up along the iron track (Fox, 1). The highway-motor complex coalescedautomakers, cement, asphalt, and steel producers, and petroleum companiesinto a common purpose. (Goddard, 1) While legislation for public highways first appeared in 1916, withrevisions in 1921, it was not until Congress enacted an even morecomprehensive version of the act in 1925 that the government executed itsplan for national highway construction.Officially, the numerical designation 66 was assigned to theChicago-to-Los Angeles route in the summer of 1926. Works CitedFox, JoLynn:_"Spirit Of Route 66 Remains Alive In The Hearts Of PeopleWorldwide;" www.azjournal.com.Goddard: Stephen B: "Getting There: The Epic Struggle Between Roadand Rail;" http://www.rte-66.com.Marshall, J.T.: "America's Main Street: History of Route 66;"http://www.rte-66.com.Steinbeck, John: "The Grapes of Wrath;" New York: Modern American Library, 1991.Thompson, W.J.: "The Mother Road: Route 66;"_Los Angeles: NationalHistoric Route 66 Federation, 1998.----------------------- 9 Various alignments of thelegendary road, many of which are still detectable, illustrate theevolution of road engineering from coexistence with the surroundinglandscape to domination of it (Goddard, 17). There, asin ancient cities, another world began. "During World War II," he recalledlater, "I saw the superlative system of German national highways crossingthat country and offering the possibility, often lacking in the UnitedStates, to drive with speed and safety at the same time." Thecongressional response to the president's commitment was the passage of theFederal Aid Highway Act of 1956 (Goddard, 9). During dry weather, people ventured forth in theirhorse-drawn wagons, but in rainy seasons those foolish enough to brave themud soon found themselves mired up to their hubs. Along the way and over the years, it added suchdiverse groups as road contractors, insurance companies, banks, and moteloperators, to name but a few. Between 1941 and 1945 the government invested approximately$7 billion in capital projects throughout California, a large portion ofwhich were in the Los Angeles-San Diego area. In fact, the highway was the road of opportunityas well as flight: it brought business to the impoverished Southwest andprovided new ways to earn a living for multitudes of people along itscourse (Thompson, 4).The Second World War Completion of an all-weather capability on the eve of World War IIwas particularly significant to the nation's war effort. Route 66 opened to link Chicago and Los Angeles with a2,4 -mile continuous highway that would come to be called the "Main Streetof America." Route 66 was a highway spawned by the demands of a rapidlychanging America. From 1933 to 1938 thousands of unemployed male youths from virtuallyevery state were put to work as laborers on road gangs to pave the finalstretches of the road. Although entrepreneurs Cyrus Avery of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and JohnWoodruff of Springfield, Missouri deserve most of the credit for promotingthe idea of an inter regional link between Chicago and Los Angeles, theirlobbying efforts were not realized until their dreams merged with thenational program of highway and road development. In hisPulitzer Prize-winning novel, "The Grapes of Wrath," Steinbeck describedthe flight of the mythical Joad family out of rain-starved Oklahoma anddown Highway 66 to southern California. At the beginning of the 2 th century, hard-topped roads leading fromthe industrial downtowns of America stopped at the city lines. The national highway system had deterioratedto an appalling condition. By the end of the First World War, railroad depredations had poisonedthe well of public opinion. President Eisenhower had returned from Germany very impressed by thestrategic value of Hitler's Autobahn. This contrast spelled doom for the iron horse and untoldprosperity for the horseless carriage (Goddard, 2). The abbreviated routebetween Chicago and the Pacific coast traversed essentially flat prairielands and enjoyed a more temperate climate than northern highways, whichmade it especially appealing to truckers (Goddard, 3). 66 is themother road, the road of flight." (Steinbeck, 46) An estimated 21 , people migrated to California to escape thedespair of the Dust Bowl. He wrote that "66 is the path of apeople in flight, refugees from dust and shrinking land, from the thunderof tractors and shrinking ownership... With thatdesignation came its acknowledgment as one of the nation's principal east-west arteries (Goddard, 1).In The Beginning In 1932 U.S. Highway 66 completely succumbed to the interstate system in October1984 when the final section of the original road was replaced by Interstate4 at Williams, Arizona (Marshall, 14).Route 66 in America's Memory Route 66 and many points of interest along the way were familiarlandmarks by the time a new generation of postwar motorists hit the road inthe 196 's. The camps provided water, fuel wood, privies or flushtoilets, showers, and laundry facilities free of charge. Many of these cottages are still inoperation. Among the mostoutstanding examples of the evolution of gas stations along Route 66 areSoulsby's Shell station in Mount Olive, Illinois; Bob Audettes' gas stationcomplex in Barton, New Mexico; and the Tower Fina Station in Shamrock,Texas (Thompson, 5). The popular recording was released in1946 by Nat King Cole, one week after Troup's arrival in Los Angeles (Fox,3).The Architecture of Route 66 In the early years of Route 66, service station prototypes weredeveloped regionally through experimentation, and then were adopteduniversally across the country. Route 66 symbolized the renewed spirit of optimism that pervaded thecountry after economic catastrophe and global war. As time went by, these trails were linked togetheras a direct line to the West Coast though country that was not subject tothe wild winters found in the region of the Oregon and California Trailsacross the upper midwest and west. Though standard in language and format,the sign's message on January 13th, 1977 was chilling: "END OF ROUTE 66."That evening, news traveled to homes throughout America and the world,where it was received like a death in the family (Marshall, 16). Amid weeds and cornfields, dirtpaths snaked outward. The outdated, poorly maintained vestiges ofU.S. The highway advocates became so dominant inAmerican life that they were instrumental in changing the character ofcities and helping to suburbanize the nation. In Northern Arizona, the old trail wasknown as the Beale Wagon Road, which cut straight across the wilderness inthe 18 s. Often called "The MainStreet of America", it linked a remote and under-populated region with twovital 2 th century cities: Chicago and Los Angeles. The nationaloutgrowth of the auto camp and tourist home was the cabin camp that offeredminimal comfort at affordable prices. Virtually all roads were functionally obsoleteand dangerous because of narrow pavements and antiquated structuralfeatures that reduced carrying capacity. Ironically, the public lobby forrapid mobility and improved highways that gained Route 66 its enormouspopularity in earlier decades also signaled its demise beginning in the mid-195 's. Again, for many, Route 66 facilitated theirrelocation.One such emigrant was Robert William Troup, Jr., of Harrisburg,Pennsylvania. It was during this period that the television series, "Route66", starring Martin Milner and George Maharis, drove into the living roomsof America every Thursday. The auto camp developed during the years of the dustbowl astownspeople along Route 66 roped off spaces in which travelers could campfor the night. Contrasted with the Lincoln, the Dixie, and otherhighways of its day, Route 66 did not follow a traditionally linear course.The diagonal configuration of Route 66 was particularly significant to thetrucking industry, which by 193 had come to rival the railroad forpreeminence in the American shipping industry. As a result of this monumental effort, the Chicago-to-Los Angeles highway was reported as "continuously paved" in 1938(Marshall, 2).The Mother Road On May 1 th and 11th, 1934 a dust storm blew 3 million tons oftopsoil away in midwestern America from the Dakotas to Texas. By 197 , nearly all segments of the original Route 66 were replacedby a modern four-lane highway. And as the highway-motorcomplex eventually came to employ one of every six American workers, itbecame self- perpetuating by making the economy dependent on its continuedhealth. Eventually, auto camps and cabin camps gave way to motor courtsin which all of the rooms were under a single roof, becoming the modernmotel (Goddard, 12).The Decline and Fall of Route 66 Excessive truck use during World War II and the comeback of theautomobile industry immediately following the war brought great pressure tobear on America's highways. Buildings were distinctive as gas stations,yet clearly associated with a particular petroleum company. The last old sign hung from a light standard near the corner ofMichigan Avenue and Jackson Blvd.

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