Naturally, we have to start with the great city of St. Louis.  My home for eight years in the late 80's/early 90's, I was, unfortunately,  at a point in my life where I was completely oblivious to the Route and all of the intrigue that came along with it.  I was too busy going down to the Blues clubs in Soulard ( the old French part of town), or drinking a brew in the Shadows of the 66 McKinley Bridge on the riverfront 'Landing'.  I remember driving past such classics such as the 66 Drive-In and the Coral Court (both gone now), but I paid them no heed.  However, I have paid attention to one great classic that's still there-Ted Drewes!  Ted Drewes has been a St. Louis tradition at the same location on Chippewa since the early 40's.  I, along with thousands of others, have stopped for a great custard cone after a ballgame downtown.  Believe it or not, I've also rolled a couple of games at the Crestwood Bowl down the street on Watson.

     Other notable classics still remain on the post '33 City 66 route (Tucker to Gravois to Chippewa to Watson roads).  I imagine the Donut Drive-In (on Chippewa) has been dropping batter in the grease for quite some time.  And though the Coral Court is gone, the brick at the old driveway remains.  I understand from conversations on the Yahoo Route 66 'e-group' that we are in danger of losing the La Casa Grande Motel to development.  Can someone give me an update and let me know if the Casa Grande is still around??  Author's note: the La Casa photo came from the web and is not my own...

     I tried to do a little exploration and followed the original routing (now MO100-Manchester Road) west out of St. Louis into the countryside.  It's been a few years since I'd moved away, so I was surprised to see how much the area has exploded in growth.  Much like Plainfield and Chicago, the Ballwin and Manchester areas used to be 'out in the country' but are now upscale bedroom communities for St. Louis.  Needless to say, with property & taxes now so high, there are precious few reminders of those earlier times.  A welcome surprise came my way as I caught a glimpse of what looked like vintage concrete in the Fox Creek/Hollow area.  A quick turn down Deer Creek Road, and 'voila', there in front of me was a wonderful strip of what must have been original 66 in this area.  As is apparent from the photo, this strip is on private property, but still can be enjoyed from the road.  Another pleasant surprise came as I passed over the Fox Creek bridge.  Obviously vintage, a placard verifies the bridge's date-1923. Mission accomplished-original 66 verified!

     Gray Summit has been around since the beginning of the road.  If you follow MO100 all the way west and cross I-44, you soon run into a true 66 classic: the Gardenway Motel (see pics).  Note: the top Gardenway pic is a 1024 pixel wallpaper worthy photo-long download.  Since the early 40's, the Gardenway has been serving the needs of the highway roadie passing through the area.  Perhaps an early tourist stayed here to visit the nearby Missouri Botanical Gardens.  Established out in Gray Summit in 1926, the gardens were relocated out into the county due to the heavy smoke pollution in St. Louis caused by the burning of coal for heat and electricity.  The delicate orchids couldn't handle the smoke.  Thankfully, we've advanced past those grimy days.

     Once past Gray Summit, you'll leave most of the trappings of the large city behind.  Ahead lie miles of pleasant roadways, wooded hills, and a myriad of ruins/relics with their associated ghosts and memories.  For example, be sure to check out the area near the Gasconade River.  The small communities of Gasconade and Hazelgreen are sure to delight and take one to a time past.  The Gascozark Trading Post is still hanging around, and is probably the store mentioned in the classic Rittenhouse guide.  Just across the street, be sure to take a couple of happy snaps of the gorgeous old Gascozark Cafe.  Per noted Missouri historian Skip Curtis, the stone front dates from 1939.  Be careful, I startled some slithering snake or other creepy critter in the brush around here...a fearless croc hunter I am not! 

     I had another 'stimulating' encounter with an 8-legged hitchhiker after returning to the car from getting these photos of this abandoned (I'm guessing) Phillips 66 station in Hazelgreen. I had just gotten back onto the road when out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that odd, uneven 8-legged gait of the heinous beast.  That fat, round spider body crawling up towards my face on my shirt collar elicited a somewhat surprising and unexpected response...  In the ensuing flailing melee and screams, both this driver, the car and these photos were just about lost to posterity.  Yet in the end, good triumphed over evil.  I emerged disheveled yet victorious with no remorseful thoughts of Charlotte's Web or the PETA organization whatsoever.

I had random full body quivers the rest of the day...

(Author's addendum: I have recently found out that this was indeed a Phillips 66, but it wasn't built until 1957 when the 4-lane I-44 construction came through.  As 66 was co-signed with 44 through here until it's completion and de-certification, I'm leaving these photos in here for now until I can obtain more material from this area!)

     Thankfully, my experiences down the road in the quiet town of Conway were a little more relaxing.  Named after a contractor with the railroad in the 1860's, Conway was once a thriving rail shipping point for many of the agricultural products found in the region. For example, in 1925, 57 rail cars full of tomatoes were shipped out of here!  I invite everyone to stop here as there is quite a bit of this history remaining to be seen.  For example, there are a couple of great 'ghost signs' advertising long defunct products for your enjoyment.  The sign of the 'Magnetic Water' has an interesting story: a fire burned down the adjacent building some time ago, and when the town removed the debris and a fire wall between the buildings, 'voila' -a bit of genuine history was uncovered!  This is not a replica.  I have yet to find out what the other sign was advertising.  It looks like "Warren ?something? Soda...delicious".  Any info would be appreciated!  Note: the 'ghost sign' of the girl drinking something 'delicious' sign has had its colors/contrast artificially enhanced to better make out the image. 

     In addition to the aforementioned 'ghost signs', there also exist many buildings that date from the earliest days of old 66.  One such example is the Wilkerson Brothers Ford building. The cornerstone reads Sept. 1926 placing this building's birth year the same as our beloved mother roads!  Check out my Now & Then section for a quick pic showing the dealership as it existed then.  Just past the Wilkerson's Ford building is Montgomery Auto.  It's not too difficult to imagine a tire tube being patched and being put back on a spoke rim here.

     Fortunately for us, Springfield has plenty for the intrepid explorer to 'route' out (pun intended).  Unfortunately, however, the weather didn't cooperate and thusly, I'm very disappointed with most of my photos from the area.  I was intrigued, however, by the stretch of road heading westward out of Springfield to Carthage.   Now known as highway MO96, many times, the earlier incarnations of old 66 are apparent alongside the existing route-usually on the north side of the highway.  Relics abound.  A great example is the remains of Bilco Station in Phelps.  Judging by the refurbished 'tubes' advertisement on the side of the building, I imagine that Bilco Station was one of the stations mentioned by Rittenhouse in his guide so many years ago.

     And thus, in the spirit of not making my pages so big that they can't download in the time span it takes Dominoes to deliver a pizza, we, the modern internet traveler, must press on to that little 66 lion that roared: Kansas.

--OR--
choose your favorite 66 state to jump to!