The landmarks on U.S. Route 66 include roadside attractions, notable establishments, and buildings of historical significance along U.S. Route 66 (US 66, Route 66). The increase of tourist traffic to California in the 1950s prompted the creation of motels and roadside attractions as an attempt of businesses along the route to get the attention of motorists passing by. With the decommissioning of Route 66 many of these sites fell into disrepair, but some still exist and have been the focus of preservation efforts.

Illinois

Lou Mitchell's Lou Mitchell's, also known as Lou Mitchell's Restaurant, is a Chicago diner located at 565 W. Jackson Boulevard. It is a popular restaurant for commuters, as it is located near Union Station. It is also located near the start of U.S. Route 66 an ...

(Chicago) – A restaurant listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and nicknamed "the first stop on the Mother Road". *

Gemini Giant The Gemini Giant is a landmark statue on U.S. Route 66 at the eastern entrance to Wilmington, Will County, Illinois. Standing outside the Launching Pad drive-in restaurant, the 30 foot tall statue is one of many giant "Muffler Man" advertising pro ...

(Wilmington) – A 30-ft tall Muffler Man fiberglass statue of a spaceman with a rocket. *

Cozy Dog Drive In The Cozy Dog Drive In is a restaurant located at 2935 South Sixth Street in Springfield, Illinois, United States. The ''crusty curs'' which were hot dogs coated in a corn meal batter, were sold at the USO club and at the base PX by Ed Waldmire. ...

(Springfield) – A hot dog restaurant with Route 66 memorabilia and a gift shop. * Maid-Rite Sandwich Shop (Springfield) –

Maid-Rite Maid-Rite is an American casual dining franchise restaurant chain. Before it became a restaurant chain, it was a single restaurant, opened in 1926 by Fred Angell. By the end of the 1920s, four franchises were granted; these four restaurants are s ...

franchise built in 1921 and housed in a listed building. *

Shea's Gas Station Museum Shea's Gas Station Museum Center piece The Mahan Filling Station located on Route 66 in Springfield, Illinois was transformed from a working Texaco, and later Marathon, station into a museum by owner Bill Shea and his wife Helen. The museum contai ...

(Springfield) – Former gas station and museum currently in use as a restaurant. * Dixie Travel Plaza (McLean) – Large trucker and travel plaza. File:Lou Mitchells in Chicago.jpg, Lou Mitchell's Restaurant File:Gemini Giant on 66.jpg, Gemini Giant File:CozyDogDriveIn SpringfieldIL.jpg, Sign at the Cozy Dog Drive In File:Maid-Rite Drive Thru.jpg, Maid-Rite Sandwich Shop File:Shea's Gas Station Museum.jpg, Shea's Gas Station Museum

Missouri

* World's second largest rocking chair, Fanning – Large statue of a rocking chair. *

Red's Giant Hamburg Red's Giant Hamburg is a restaurant on U.S. Route 66 in Springfield, Missouri, which is believed to have been the world's first drive-through restaurant. It reopened in 2019. Overview Sheldon "Red" Chaney (May 20, 1916 – June 2, 1997) ...

(Springfield) – The world's first

drive-through A drive-through or drive-thru (a sensational spelling of the word ''through''), is a type of take-out service provided by a business that allows customers to purchase products without leaving their cars. The format was pioneered in the United ...

restaurant. *

66 Drive-In 66 Drive-In is a historic drive-in theater national historic district located on U.S. Route 66 in Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri. The theater opened on September 22, 1949, four years before the first local television stations signed on in the ...

(Carthage) – Historic drive-in theater. * Ted Drewes (St. Louis) – A frozen custard company. File:World's Largest Rocking Chair.jpg, World's second largest rocking chair File:Red's Giant Hamburg.jpg, Red's Giant Hamburg File:Carthage Route 66 Drive-in.jpg, 66 Drive-In File:Ted Drewes.jpg, Ted Drewes

Kansas

* Baxter Springs Independent Oil and Gas Service Station (Baxter Springs) – Historic gas station. * Rainbow Bridge (Riverton) – Historic bridge. * Williams' Store (Riverton) – Historic store. *

Kan-O-Tex Service Station The Kan-O-Tex Service Station in Galena, Kansas, is a souvenir shop and tourist attraction in the former Little's Service Station building, a Kan-O-Tex filling station that originally served U.S. Route 66 motorists in 1934. History US Route 66 w ...

(Galena) – Former service station and souvenir shop. File:Baxter Springs Independent Oil and Gas Service Station.jpg, Baxter Springs Independent Oil and Gas Service Station File:Rainbow Curve Bridge 2006-07-03.jpg, Rainbow Curve Bridge File:Eisler Brothers.jpg, Williams' Store File:4 Women on the Route.jpg, Kan-O-Tex Service Station

Oklahoma

* Blue whale of Catoosa (Catoosa) – A waterfront structure in the shape of a blue whale. * Pops restaurant (Arcadia) – A soda pop themed restaurant with a neon sign in the shape of a soda pop bottle. *

Round barn A round barn is a historic barn design that could be octagonal, polygonal, or circular in plan. Though round barns were not as popular as some other barn designs, their unique shape makes them noticeable. The years from 1880 to 1920 represent th ...

(Arcadia) – A round barn built in 1898. * Milk Bottle Grocery (Oklahoma City) – Historic grocery store with a large metal

Braum's Braum's is an American chain of ice cream parlor and fast food restaurants. Based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Braum's was founded in 1968 by William Henry "Bill" Braum in Oklahoma City. The company operates over 300 restaurants in 5 states, prima ...

milk bottle atop its roof. * Rock Café (Stroud) – Restored historic restaurant. Owner Dawn Welch inspired the character of Sally Carrera in the movie ''Cars''. * Foyil Filling Station (Foyil) – Historic filling station. File:Rt 66 Blue Whale Highsmith.jpg, Blue Whale of Catoosa File:Pops sign in Arcadia.jpg, Pops roadside sign File:Arcadia Round Barn in Fall.JPG, Arcadia round barn File:OK-OKC-NClassen-milkbottlegrocery.JPG, Milk Bottle Grocery File:Rock Cafe Oklahoma.jpg, Rock Café File:Foyil Filling Station.png, Foyil Filling Station

Texas

* Leaning tower of Britten (Groom) – A leaning water tower. * ''Cadillac ranch'' (Amarillo) – Public art installation created in 1974 by Chip Lord,

Hudson Marquez Hudson Marquez (born in 1947 in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA) is a painter, storyteller, writer, and video artist, whose work includes many paintings, installations with the art collective Ant Farm, the ''Cadillac Ranch ''Cadillac Ranch'' i ...

and Doug Michels. * The Big Texan Steak Ranch (Amarillo) – A steakhouse restaurant best known for its 72-ounce (4.5 pounds or 2.04 kg) steak challenge. *

U-Drop Inn The U-Drop Inn, also known as Tower Station and U-Drop Inn and Tower Café, was built in 1936 in Shamrock, Texas along the historic Route 66 highway in Wheeler County. Inspired by the image of a nail stuck in soil, the building was designed by J ...

(Shamrock) – A listed art deco gas station and restaurant, used as inspiration for one of the buildings in the cartoon village of Radiator Springs, in the movie '' Cars''. File:Leaningwatertower.jpg, Leaning tower of Britten File:Cadillac Ranch.jpg, ''Cadillac Ranch'' File:Amarillo Texas Big Texan Steak2 2005-05-29.jpg, The Big Texan Steak Ranch File:U-Drop Inn, Wheeler County, TX, US (02).jpg, U-Drop Inn

New Mexico

* Blue swallow motel (Tucumcari) – Motel listed on the National Register of Historic Places in New Mexico. * El Rancho Hotel & Motel (Gallup) – Historic hotel used as a base for several movie productions in the 40s, 50s and early 60s. * Aztec Motel (Albuquerque) – Historic motel demolished in 2011. * Maisel's Indian Trading Post (Albuquerque) – Native crafts store opened in 1939 in a Pueblo Revival building featuring murals designed by Olive Rush. File:Blue Swallow Motel sign from W 1.JPG, Blue Swallow Motel File:Nocturnal Hotel El Rancho.jpg, El Rancho Hotel File:Aztec Motel Albuquerque 2010.jpg, Aztec Motel File:Maisel's_Indian_Trading_Post,_Albuquerque_NM.jpg, Maisel's Indian Trading Post

Arizona

* Wigwam Motel (Holbrook) – A motel with rooms built in the form of tipis. * Standin' on the Corner Park (Winslow) – A public park commemorating the song " Take It Easy", recorded by the

Eagles Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...

. *

Jack Rabbit Trading Post The Jack Rabbit Trading Post is a convenience store and curio shop located on former U.S. Route 66, five miles west of Joseph City, Arizona city limits off of Exit 269 on Interstate 40. Description It was founded in 1949, on the site of either ...

(Joseph City) – Convenience store and curio shop featuring a large fiberglass jackrabbit. *

Delgadillo's Snow Cap Drive-In Delgadillo's Snow Cap Drive-In is a historic eatery and roadside attraction located along former Route 66 in Seligman, Arizona USA. The drive-in was built in 1953 by local resident Juan Delgadillo (1916–2004). Delgadillo was working on an extr ...

(Seligman) – Restaurant built in 1953 by Juan Delgadillo, brother of

Angel Delgadillo Angel Delgadillo (born April 19, 1927) is an American barber and businessowner in Seligman, Arizona who has been dubbed the "guardian angel" of U.S. Route 66. He is the main founder of the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona, established i ...

, the "guardian angel" of U.S. Route 66. * Meteor City, Arizona (Coconino County) – Historic trading post. * Valentine Diner (Valentine) – Prefabricated diner. File:Wigwam motel 3.jpg, Wigwam Motel File:Standing on the Corner.JPG, Standin' on the Corner Park File:Here it is! Jackrabbit Trading Post, Route 66, Joseph City, Arizona LCCN2009634052.tif, Sign for the Jack Rabbit Trading Post File:Snow cap seligman.jpg, Delgadillo's Snow Cap Drive-In File:Along Old Rt. 66, Diner, Valentine, AZ (6709916209).jpg, Valentine Diner

California

* Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch ( Oro Grande, California) – Unique pitstop featuring many tree-shaped sculptures made from glass bottles & vintage items. * Wigwam Village #7 ( San Bernardino) – Another location of the Wigwam Motel chain. * Bagdad Cafe (Newberry Springs) – Formerly the Sidewinder Cafe, renamed for the '' Bagdad Cafe'' movie, which was filmed there. * 66 Motel (Needles) – Former motel. * Cucamonga Service Station (

Rancho Cucamonga, California Rancho Cucamonga ( ) is a city located just south of the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains and Angeles National Forest in San Bernardino County, California, United States. About east of Downtown Los Angeles, Rancho Cucamonga is the 28th ...

) – Restored service station built in 1915 & now housing a museum of Route 66 & the local area. * Bono's Historic Orange (

Fontana, California Fontana is a city in San Bernardino County, California. Founded by Azariel Blanchard Miller in 1913, it remained essentially rural until World War II, when entrepreneur Henry J. Kaiser built a large steel mill in the area. It is now a regional h ...

) – one of the last extant giant orange-shaped fruit stands once common to the region. This stand was built in 1936 and moved to its present location in 1997. *

Old Trails Bridge The Old Trails Bridge is a historic bridge over the Colorado River in San Bernardino County and Mohave County in the United States, that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). It has also been known as Topock Bridge and a ...

(Needles) – Bridge over the Colorado river. *

Aztec Hotel The Aztec Hotel is a historical landmark building in Monrovia, California, Monrovia, in the San Gabriel Valley, California. The hotel is an example of Mayan Revival architecture still in existence. It was designed by architect Robert Stacy-Judd, a ...

( Monrovia, California) – A 44-room hotel opened in 1925 (one year before the creation of Route 66) and built in "Mayan style" though it was named "Aztec" because its designer, architect Robert B. Stacy believed that the general public was more familiar with the Aztecs than the Mayans. *

Chicken Boy Chicken Boy is a statue located on North Figueroa Street in the Highland Park district of Los Angeles. The 22-foot tall fiberglass statue was recognized by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger with the ''Governor's Historic Preservation Award'' in ...

(Los Angeles) – A Muffler Man statue with a chicken head. *

Roy's Motel and Café Roy's Motel and Café is a motel, café, gas station and auto repair shop, defunct for many years but now being largely restored, on the National Trails Highway of U.S. Route 66 in the Mojave Desert town of Amboy in San Bernardino County, Cali ...

(Amboy) – A restored service station with Googie architecture features. * Summit Inn – Historic roadside diner located at the summit of el Cajon Pass in San Bernardino County, California. * Barstow Harvey House (Barstow) – Historic building, formerly a hotel and railroad depot. File:Bagdad CA - Bagdad Café.jpg, Bagdad Cafe File:Chicken Boy statue Los Angeles.jpg, Chicken Boy File:Route 66 Motel Sign Needles CA.JPG, Route 66 Motel sign File:Trails Arch Bridge.jpg, Old Trails Bridge File:Roy's Cafe & Motel.jpg, Sign for Roy's Motel and Café File:Aztec Hotel.jpg, Part of the facade of the Aztec Hotel File:Summit Inn Interior.jpg, Summit Inn, photographed in 2007 File:Harveyhouse3.JPG, Barstow Harvey House in 2006 File:Cucamonga Service Station 1 (cropped).jpg, Cucamonga service station File:Bono'sHistoricOrange.JPG, Bono's orange

References

External links

Roadside America: The Decline Of Kitsch?
by '' NPR''
Society for Commercial Archeology
{{DEFAULTSORT:List of Route 66 landmarks Roadside attractions Tourist attractions along U.S. Route 66 Landmarks