U.S. Route 66 Association

U.S. Route 66 Association is a nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to preserving, promoting, and interpreting the cultural, historical, and economic significance of U.S. Route 66. Founded in the late 20th century amid efforts to document and protect American roadways, the association connects communities, historians, preservationists, and travelers across the United States. It collaborates with municipal agencies, heritage organizations, tourism bureaus, and academic institutions to maintain historic alignments, promote roadside architecture, and foster cultural tourism.

History

The association emerged as part of a broader heritage movement that involved figures and entities such as National Trust for Historic Preservation, Historic Route 66 Federation, Route 66 Road Ahead Partnership, Smithsonian Institution, and Library of Congress. Early supporters included preservationists associated with National Park Service initiatives, scholars from University of Oklahoma, Arizona State University, and University of Missouri, and artists connected to Bob Waldmire and Jack Kerouac-inspired Beat Generation studies. The organization’s formation paralleled major preservation milestones like listings on the National Register of Historic Places, cooperative projects with Federal Highway Administration, and advocacy during legislative efforts involving the Interstate Highway System and state departments such as Illinois Department of Transportation, California Department of Transportation, and Missouri Department of Transportation. Prominent collaborations referenced the work of historians at Markham Museum, curators at the Chicago History Museum, and documentary filmmakers who chronicled alignments through Route 66: The Mother Road-style projects.

Organization and Membership

Membership draws from a broad range of stakeholders including municipal officials from cities like Chicago, Illinois, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Oklahoma City, and Santa Monica, business owners from motels and diners listed in guides by Rand McNally and AAA, scholars affiliated with University of California, Los Angeles, University of New Mexico, and DePaul University, and nonprofit partners like Preservation Oklahoma and Historic Springfield Foundation. The association’s governance often features board members with ties to institutions such as Travelers’ Century Club, American Automobile Association, and regional tourism authorities including Visit California, Explore Minnesota, and Discover Branson. Volunteer chapters coordinate with cultural organizations like Museum of Neon Art, Route 66 Museum (Clinton, Oklahoma), Petrified Forest National Park, and local chambers of commerce from towns such as Shamrock, Texas and Holbrook, Arizona.

Preservation and Advocacy Efforts

Advocacy work involves collaboration with federal and state entities including the National Park Service, Federal Highway Administration, United States Department of Transportation, and state historic preservation offices in New Mexico Historic Preservation Division, Arizona State Historic Preservation Office, and Illinois Historic Preservation Division. The association supports nominations to the National Register of Historic Places and partners with preservation groups such as National Trust for Historic Preservation, Preservation Action, and local bodies like Route 66 Alliance. Projects often focus on roadside resources like the Wigwam Motel (Holbrook, Arizona), Blue Swallow Motel, Chain of Rocks Bridge, Meramec Caverns, and neon signage preserved in collaborations with the Museum of Neon Art and curators from the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Legal and planning work has intersected with policies influenced by the Historic Preservation Act, environmental reviews tied to the National Environmental Policy Act, and transportation planning under the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act. The association has also worked with media outlets such as National Geographic, The New York Times, and Smithsonian Magazine to raise awareness.

Annual Events and Programs

The association organizes and supports annual driving tours, heritage fairs, and interpretive programs in partnership with organizations including National Trust for Historic Preservation, Main Street America, International Route 66 Festival, and state tourism offices like Visit Arizona and Missouri Division of Tourism. Signature activities include guided caravans coordinated with travel clubs such as Antique Automobile Club of America, interpretive seminars with academics from Arizona State University and University of Illinois, and roadside cleanups executed with volunteers from AmeriCorps and local high schools. Programming also features oral history projects recorded in cooperation with Library of Congress initiatives and documentary screenings at venues like Chicago Cultural Center, Los Angeles Conservancy events, and regional museums including the Route 66 Museum (Clinton, Oklahoma) and Kansas Route 66 Museum.

Impact and Legacy

The association has influenced tourism development in communities along historic alignments from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, California, contributing to revitalization projects in downtown corridors such as Arcadia, Tulsa, Albuquerque, Flagstaff, Arizona, and Dayton, Ohio through partnerships with entities like National Trust for Historic Preservation and local economic development agencies. Its preservation efforts have helped safeguard landmarks including motels, diners, bridges, and neon signs, thereby informing scholarly research at institutions such as University of Kansas, University of Texas at Austin, and Northern Arizona University. The association’s outreach fostered cultural recognition in media venues like PBS, BBC, and The New Yorker, and influenced policy dialogues in forums hosted by United States Department of Transportation and congressional delegations from Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. Its legacy endures in guidebooks by Rand McNally, coverage in travel journalism in Lonely Planet and Fodor’s, and in educational exhibits at museums including the National Museum of American History and the Smithsonian Institution.

Category:Historic preservation organizations of the United States Category:U.S. Route 66