John Steinbeck dubbed it the Mother Road in his 1939 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Grapes of Wrath. In 1946, singer Nat King Cole invited Americans to get their kicks on Route 66. And in 1972, the you could find the Eagles “standin’ on the corner in Winslow, Arizona.”
Established in 1926, and running from Illinois to California, Route 66 drove the westward migration during the Dust Bowl; moved military supplies in World War II; and shaped American car culture and the spirit of the open road. But in 1985 it was decommissioned as a federal highway when increased traffic volume and the newer, faster Interstate Highway System made it obsolete, gradually bypassing it town by town.
Shaped by Women
But did you know that much of Route 66’s lore was shaped by women? They ran neon-lit motels, fed hungry travelers in roadside diners, documented the Dust Bowl, and even shaped the Southwest’s architectural identity. For these women, the Mother Road provided economic independence when traditional career paths were closed to them.
Lillian Redman came to New Mexico in 1915 by covered wagon. She ran the iconic Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, NM, for 40 years. Believing hospitality and good will went hand in hand, she slipped handwritten messages into each room like this one: “May this room and this motel be your second home. May peace and rest be yours while you are under our roof.”
Born in Canton, China, Linda Soohoo came to Winslow, AZ, in 1947 for an arranged marriage; she learned English by sitting in on sixth-grade classes. She and her husband eventually ran several businesses, including an eatery. Before long, Soohoo had mastered the art of making burgers, fries and tacos at Freddie’s Drive-In along Route 66 – a popular tourist stop that epitomized the American dream.
Fran Hauser transformed the Midpoint Café in Adrian, TX, into a haven for hungry travelers at the midpoint of Route 66. From 1990 until 2012, when she retired. She dished out warmth, hospitality and her fabled ugly crust pies — rustic, homemade pies with intentionally imperfect, non-fluted, rugged crusts along with the motto, “it doesn’t matter what a pie looks like, only how good it tastes.”
Dorothea Lange, one of greatest documentary photographers of the 20th century, traveled Route 66 through Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona and California in the 1930s, capturing the westward migration during the Dust Bowl. Her iconic “Migrant Mother,” shot in 1936, became the defining visual symbol of the Great Depression.
Virginia Tellez Wayne was a Harvey Girl, part of a pioneering workforce of young, single women “of good character” who staffed train-station restaurants across the American West. In their immaculate, starched black-and-white uniforms, they brought refined hospitality and eastern civility to rough frontier towns, established new standards for the restaurant industry, and provided independent career paths that helped settle the West.
Mary Colter, one of the few prominent female architects/interior designers of her era, shaped the aesthetic of the Southwest. Blending Native American and Spanish Colonial designs with the beauty of the natural landscape gave Route 66 – including the La Posada Hotel in Winslow, AZ, its distinct, romantic Southwestern visual identity.
Isabelle Greenway, a social and political activist, was Arizona’s first congresswoman in 1933. Her ranch sat near Route 66, which was unpaved and, during heavy rains, often treacherous. She helped push through legislation to pave the road, making it by 1938 the first highway in America to be fully paved – all 2,448 miles from Chicago to Santa Monica.
Alberta Ellis was a prominent Springfield, Missouri entrepreneur. She purchased a former hospital, transforming it into Alberta’s Hotel and Snack Bar in 1953, the only full-service hotel in town that welcomed Black motorists traveling Route 66 during the Jim Crow era. More than a place to spend the night, it was a gathering spot where Black families, doctors, soldiers, musicians and athletes could meet and feel safe.
Virginia Ballou and husband Frank ran Aunt Brenda’s Pit Bar-B-Q on Albuquerque’s historic 4th and Arno Streets. A vital neighborhood and travelers’ institution for decades, it was featured in The Green Book from 1949-1966, becoming famous for its barbecued pork, beef, ribs, homemade sauce and fried chicken for dine-in or takeout by the pound. Frank Ballou was descended from an early Black pioneer and US Army Indian Scout who settled in Albuquerque in the 1880s. Their historic site today is considered a cornerstone of African American entrepreneurship along New Mexico’s Route 66.
Joy Nevin was a trained pilot, farmer, rancher and an entrepreneur. Outfitting a panel truck she called home, she launched Stockmen’s Supply Service, offering ranchers everything from rope to tick killers to ammunition. She also helped run the Painted Desert Trading Post in Holbrook, AZ, site of her most legendary moment: halting traffic on Route 66 so a fellow pilot in distress could make an emergency landing. By the 1950s, business and traffic had dried up at the Painted Desert when Route 66 was realigned and the new Interstate Highway opened, blocking access to the existing road. Today, an original segment of the Mother Road bears her name.
Cynthia Hare Troup grew up in Philadelphia’s social circles until she, quite literally, decided to travel a different road. In 1946, she and her songwriter husband packed their car and headed to California on Route 66. Somewhere along the way, she casually uttered a phrase that popped into her head: “Get your kicks on Route 66.” Her husband turned those six words into the song recorded by Nat King Cole. Cynthia never received official credit, but she helped immortalize what’s known as the Mother Road in pop culture.
