Route 66 - Part 1
Day 21 Shamrock to
Groom
The ride today started a little cooler and the winds were not quite as strong as yesterday only 10-20 mph headwinds....
Lela
--- Actual Mileage / --- Actual Elevation
The ride today started a little cooler and the winds were not quite as strong as yesterday only 10-20 mph headwinds....
Lela
Lela – Founded in 1902 as a rail station.
McLean
Once known as the “Uplift City” for the ladies
undergarment factory which now houses the Devil’s Rope/Old Route 66 Museum..
Founded around the turn of the 20th Century by
an English rancher, Alfred Rowe, who later lost his life on the Titanic in
1912, McLean is now perhaps the most evocative town along the Texas stretch of
Route 66.
McLean is headquarters of the State’s Historic Route 66
Association, and efforts are being made to preserve the town in prime
condition.
Phillips 66 Station - Cottage-Style--a type of gas-station that
proliferated in the 1920's and 1930's in response to popular tastes. Prior to
the development of the cottage-style station, many fuel vendors were housed in
little more than shacks, and they were considered undesirable as neighbors. The
larger oil companies--notably Pure Oil Company and architect C.A.
Peterson--responded with a design that attempted to blend into a neighborhood
by mimicking residential construction. There is a former Phillips 66 station in
McLean, TX, that exemplifies the breed.
Devil's Rope Museum - 100 S. Kingsley Street [806-779-2225] A
nickname for barbed wire, the invention of which was a true milestone in the
history of the American West, as it allowed for fencing inspire of the lack of
plentiful timber required for more conventional fence construction. There is a
museum dedicated to Devil's Rope in McLean, TX, which shares a building with a
Route 66 exhibit that is most entertaining and educational. The Route 66
Exhibit houses a Giant Cobra and a big Bull.
Marie Foundations - Undergarment company that used to operate in
the building now occupied by twin museums celebrating Devil's Rope and Route
66.
"Rattlesnakes Exit
Now" - Well-known
sign displayed high above I-40 exhorting travelers to use the next exit in
order to experience a reptile display. The aging sign was partially downed by a
storm in 2006, and is being repaired for display in nearby McLean, TX.
Cactus Inn –
Refurbished
McLean-Alanreed
Area Museum - 117 N. Main – houses panhandle history exhibits as well as
artifacts relating to the prisoner-of-war camp here during the war years.
Alanreed
Eldridge - An
early name for the town of Alanreed, TX. The original townsite is north of the
current Alanreed. By going a few miles north on highway 291, and then west on
County Road X, you can find the old Eldridge cemetery.
Gouge-Eye - A former name for the community of Alanreed,
TX, said to have originated with an ugly brawl.
Regal Reptile Ranch - Long gone, this tourist stop was located on
a bypass section of Route 66 on the north edge of town. A large, crudely made
snake's head, which formerly advertised the place, is now part of the
collection at the Route 66 Museum in McLean, TX.
Groom
66 Courts - A
now-demolished motel court with an adjacent gasoline station designed with
subtle Art Deco influence and clad in stucco. The 66 Courts were an inspiration
in the design of one of the new rest areas on nearby I-40.
Britten Truck Stop (Leaning
Water Tower) - Long closed, what remains to be seen is a water tower that
was placed at the site as an advertising ploy (marked "Britten")
during the time the truck stop was in business. The water tower was never
properly installed in the ground, causing it to lean markedly, and thereby
adding to the visual spectacle. It is marketing in the best roadside tradition
and also made its way into Cars.
“Cross of Our Lord
Jesus Christ” Stainless Steel Cross - 19-stories tall and weighing nearly
three tons, this cross was erected by a religious group in 1995 and is just shy
of 200 feet tall. This was the largest cross in the Western hemisphere until a
copycat erected a slightly taller one along I-70 in Effingham, Illinois. The
complex also includes statues of the “Stations of the Cross.”
Route
66 Steakhouse (old Golden Spread Grill) - 407 East Front Street
Tomorrow is our last day of riding as we will arrive in Amarillo,TX at the Big Texan Steakhouse and Motel. Tomorrow will complete our ride of Part 1 of Route 66 (Chicago, IL to Amarillo, TX).
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