Historic Route 66: A Journey Through History
Historic Route 66: A Journey Through History
The Historic Route 66 presentation begins with a video montage of contemporary Route 66 scenes. Next, a short discussion of the history of road building in the United States notes that many of our current highways (including Route 66) follow trails first blazed by Native American footpaths, 19th century canals, and railroad trunk lines. We explore why Route 66 winds from Chicago to L.A., and we look at the historic biography of the local thoroughfares that carried the highways traffic in the Chicago area.
Next, a video slide show of images depicts the damage done to Route 66 cities and towns by the passing of time and the migration of through traffic onto the Interstates. From the west side of Chicago, through neglected areas of otherwise thriving communities and through ghost towns like Glen Rio and Goffs, the photos show desolation caused by the bypass of previously-thriving corridors of travel. However, these images do not spell the End of Route 66.
The final section of the standard presentation is a virtual tour of Route 66 today. Through Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California, the images show the vibrant life still lived along the highway corridor, despite the fact of Route 66s official de-commissioning in the 1980s. Amidst the decay caused by the interstates, thrifty and industrious business owners and highway enthusiasts continue to breath life and longevity into Americas Main Street, the Mother Road, Route 66.
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