The Birth of Route 66A Talk Given by Tom Peters at the

MO State Univ. MarooNation Alumni EventPhoenix, Tues., Jan. 19, 2016

Born 1926; Died 1985 (59 years)

Birth of Route 66: Fri. April 30, 1926

1880s: Bicyclists Need Good Roads

1900: William Hope (“Coin”) Harvey

1902-1908: Monte Ne, AR via Rail

1913-1924: Ozark Trails Assoc.

Lift Missouri Out of the Mud

• July 1915: A Good Roads meeting in Marshfield (pop. 1,200) is attended by 4,000.

• Nov. 1921: MO Voters Approve $60 million for a series of Paved Primary Roads ($850 M in 2016)

• 1922: Heated discussions and protests over the routes of Missouri’s paved primary roads

• 1925: U.S. Proposes a Series of Numbered National Routes

Thomas H. (“The Chief”) MacDonaldDirected Federal Road Policy 1919-53

Cyrus Avery of Tulsa

B.H. Piepmeier, Chief Engineer, Missouri Highway Dept.

William Shields, Governor of KY

Colonial Hotel: Birthplace of 66

Woodruff Building

Across the Street

The Real Street Scene in the 1920s

Not a Momentous Meeting at the Time

Avery to Piepmeier, (Sat.) April 17, 1926:

“Am hoping to make a trip over that section sometime in the near future and hope to have the pleasure of seeing you.”

Colonial Hotel & Woodruff Bldg. 1924

This Was a Postal Telegraph Telegram

Note the Western Union Office

Centennial of the Birth of Route 66!

Thurs. April 30, 2026 in Springfield

Thank You!

Questions Discussion