Route 66's Route 66 Centennial (1926-2026)
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Route 66's birthday
When was Route 66 created?
The short answer: there are two dates!
The first is April 30th, 1926. This is the date that the team promoting the need of a highway from Chicago to Los Angeles rejected the numbers U.S. 60 and U.S. 62 and proposed U.S. 66 as the number for this highway.
The second date is November 11th, 1926, the date when the AASHO adopted the U.S. numbered highway system and it also published the map with all the designated U.S. Highways, including Route 66.
A bit history: the creation of the U.S. Highway system
The named auto trails like the National Old Trails, Lincoln Highway, and Ozarks Trail created in the 1910s were the effort of private associations who were pioneers during the early days of the aumtombiles and they worked to promote and build better roads and highways.
Highway construction was the responsibility of each state, but lack of funding and common criteria regarding signs, road marks and designations was an obstacle in the development of an interstate highway system.
That is why state highway officials got together in December 1914 and created the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO). They would harmonize the criteria so that all states had a uniform system of signs, and highway designations.
By the 1920s, the Federal government was providing funding to the states' highway deparments throgh the federal-aid highway program. And this improved the roads across America.
The Secretary of Agriculture Howard Gore appointed the Joint Board on Interstate Highways in March 1925. This had been a recommendation of the AASHO. The board was composed by 21 state highway officials and 3 federal officials. It would transform the American highway system.
At their first meeting in April 1925 they decided that each of these highways would be named a "U.S. Highway," they also chose the design for the highways' shield based on the blazon (coat of arms) of the Great Seal of the United states. It would include the name of the State in the upper part of the shield with "U.S.," and the highway number below; this was ratified on their August 2025 meeting.
Then they tackled the numbering of the highways. The Joint Board established a committee with five members to prepare and present the highway numbering system. Cyrus Avery (Father of Route 66) was one of its members.
They prepared a logical numbering system with the transcontinental and main east-to-west highways numbered with mutiples of 10, starting on the Canadian border (the first highway was U.S. 2 as it wasn't reasonable to have a U.S. 0). North-to-south highways were numbered from 1 to 101 starting on the Eastern seabord and ending on the Pacific coast.
On September 25, 1925, the highways were assigned their numbers, and the highway that would link Chicago with Los Angeles (which later became Route 66) was designated U.S. 60. This violated the transcontinental highway numbering system but four of the Committee's five members were officials of the states that the highway would cross so they voted for it.
This caused contriversy motivated by the opposition of Kentucky who objected that they were the only state in the Mississippi Valley without a highway ending in zero.
Avery had no problem in changing the highway's number as long as it had the same one from Chicago to Los Angeles. The compromise was to offer Kentucky U.S. 60 and assign U.S. 62 to the Chicago to LA highway.
On April 30, 1926, two members of the Committee, Avery and Piepmeier met in Springfield MO and on the advice of John Page, Oklahoma's Chief Highway Engineer they chose the number "66" wich hadn't been assigned to any other highway. Avery and Piepmeyer sent a telebram to Washington stating that they preferred sixty six to sixty two." Route 66 was born.
Kentucky agreed in July 1926 (U.S. 60 was aligned through the state, from Newport News VA to Springfield MO, so U.S. 66 was assigned to the highway from Chicago to Los Angeles.
The change meant that maps, shields, signs and brochures printed in advance had to be scrapped.
The U.S. Highway plan was finally approved on November 11, 1926, the Official Birth the United States Highway System and of U.S. Highway 66.
The 1956 Interstate System and the slow death of US66
Thirty years later, on June 29, 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, creating the modern Interstate System. Its goal was to build a 41,000-mile-long higwhay network with limited access multi-lane roadways linking 90% of America's cities with populations above 50,000.
This bill marked the beginning of the end for Route 66 because traffic would opt to move along the safer, faster and more convenient freeway system.
In the meantime, its western and eastern terminus were moved: the western one, from Santa Monica to Pasadena (1964), and then to Needles in CA (1972), and finally to Sanders AZ (1979). The eastern one from Chicago to Scotland MO in 1974.
Route 66 survived for another 29 years until its final decertification in 1985 when the Interstates I-15, I-40, I-44 and I-55 replaced it for good. Other highways (U.S. 50, 40, 101, 2, just to mention a few have survived as they don't have Interstates running parallel to them along their whole lenght, like Route 66 had.
Rebirth of U.S. Highway 66
The delisting of Route 66 brought stagnation to the roadside communities along the highway. Traffic and potential customers bypassed the towns and cities, zipping past along the interstate highways. Local business suffered, the communities declined.
Angel Delgadillo of Seligman Arizona decided to fight back. In February 1987 He organized a meeting with local mom and pop store owners and went on to found the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona; they successfully lobbied to have the state designate several sections of old US 66 as as "Historic Route 66" in November 1987.
Route 66 Associatwions sprung up in the other seven states along the highway, promoting the highway with museums, tourist passports, hall of fame nominations, maps, websites offering travel and touris information, guides, working with the local, state and federal authorities to preserve and promote the highway.
In 1999 Congress passed an Act to create the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program; administered by the National Park Service. Since 2001 it has provided funds through cost-share grants to cover over 170 projects along the route. The Program ended in 2019.
Additionally, many sections of Route 66 have been listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The states of Missouri designated it as a State Scenic Byway, and Kansas as the Historic Route 66 Byway. On a National level, Illinois, Oklahoma, and New Mexico have designated it as Route 66 National Scenic Byway and Arizona as Route 66 All American Road.
Celebrating the 100th anniversary of Route 66
2026 will mark the 41st year since U.S. Highway 66 was delisted, but it is alive and kicking! Many states along the highway are planning events, and upgrading their attractions along the Mother Road:
Illinois
Edwardsville IL. Route 66 shield monument. Source. Click for St. view
The state has assigned $6.6 million in grants to improve the attractions in the communities along the road. The goal is to promote tourism and also highlight the state's electric vehicle sector building EV charging stations along U.S. 66.
Illinois will add more Route 66 exhibits and panels at the sites along mentioned in the famous Green Book, "The Negro Motorist Green Book," a guide that helped Black Americans avoid hostile places during their travels, it listed motels, hotels, restaurants and service stations where they were welcome.
New markers and monuments like the Edwardsville, Illinois, 12.5-foot monument shield (pictured) and the Normal, Chenoa, Lexington (pictured below), and McLean's signs with colored letters and U.S. 66 shields.
Missouri
Springfield MO, the city from which Avery and Piepmeier sent the April 30, 1926 telegram is "The Birthplace of Route 66", and will host events during the centennial.
There is a Missouri Route 66 Centennial Commission in charge of planning the official events and activities across the state during the 100th birthday.
The State Historical Society of Missouri has launched a Route 66 collecting initiative, aiming at preserving the highway's history. It is seeking artifacts, souvenirs, blueprints, photographs, postcards, movies, videos, business records and oral histories.
Kansas
The Baxter Springs Heritage Center and Museum, is working to have the historic Route 66 Rainbow bridge painted for the centennial. The bridge celebrated its own centennial in 2023.
Oklahoma
Tulsa has been hosting the AAA Route 66 Road Fest for several years, and it will be one of the signature national events of the 2026 US 66 centennial celebration.
The state is using $1 million of federal aid from the National Scenic Byways program, to improve some of the highway's segments near roadside spots and attractions that are heavily visited, for instance the Historic Round Barn in Arcadia.
Texas
Texas Route 66 100th Anniversary Large Sticker. Old Route 66 Association of Texas
In 2023 the Amarillo TX Convention & Visitors Bureau announced the creation of a new festival (Texas Route 66 Festival) that will attract locals and visitors it was held in June. It will be repeated on a yearly basis to commemorate the Route 66 Centennial in 2026.
New Mexico
The state's Tourism Department has requested $5 million to prepare the highway's celebration, and the city of Albuquerque has developed a Sign Improvement Program to restore the historic neon signs along the highway. They are assigning $432,000 for the project that will conclude by Fall 2025 with the signs along Central Ave
Arizona
Some of the Centennial initiatives include an app and the Route 66 Digital Passport. The application will guide visitors to spots where great pictures can be taken for posting on social media.
Federal Support
The Route 66 Centennial Commission Act became law on December 23, 2020 when President Trump signed it. President Biden appointed its members, and their goal is to "study activities that may be carried out by the Federal Government to honor Route 66."
We will update this page on a regular basis to add events and news regarding the centennial of Route 66.
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Credits
Banner image: Hackberry General Store, Hackberry, Arizona by Perla Eichenblat.
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