Table of Contents
The Europeans Are Coming! by Geoffrey & Willis
Preservation Party at Union Station
The Last Old McDonalds by Dan Mahnke
11th Annual Interstate Batteries Great American Race
One-Day Route 66 Bus Tour La Verne to Santa Monica
Where the Orange is Now by Vivian Davies
San Bernardino's 4th Annual Route 66 Rendezvous by Geoffrey and
JoAnne Willis
Volunteerism by William G. Steel, Jr.
The National Park Service Wants to Hear From Youby Geoffrey and
JoAnne Willis
One Way to Travel On Route 66 by Charlotte Tufts
Remember Our Story on the Palms Motel?
THE EUROPEANS ARE COMING! by Geoffrey & JoAnne Willis
Californians have a unique opportunity in mid-October to meet a different breed of
Route 66 enthusiasts. On Monday, October 11, 1993 approximately 130 antique European cars
from twelve countries will arrive in Needles, California (1-3 p.m.) participating in the
Club for Antique Automobiles and Rallies (CAAR) Route 66 Rally. The club which has staged
many long distance rallies in Europe began this cross-country American tour in Baltimore,
MD on September 29, 1993, after having shipped their cars from overseas. They then made
their way to Chicago and then across Historic Route 66.
Highlights of the tour include an antique toy museum in Missouri, a dinner in Tulsa, OK
with author Michael Wallis, a side trip to Anadarko Indian Village, a big Texas barbeque
at Lake McClennan, and a Billy the Kid escape re-enachment in Puerta de Luna, NM. Veering
off to Las Vegas, a double wedding is planned at the Imperial Palace amongst 50 million
dollars worth of Deusenbergs. This event (Oct. 9) is to be entered in the Guiness Book
of World Records.
In Needles, they will be entertained by the music of Mojave Indians at a luncheon in
the park near El Garces. On Tuesday, October 12 they will be visiting the Thomas Winery at
Vineyard and Foothill Blvd in Rancho Cucamonga. and having lunch at eateries in the
immediate vicinity through arrangements by Route 66 Territory Visitors Bureau. After lunch
they will proceed along Route 66 to the Santa Monica pier where a media reception is
planned for approximately 4:30 p.m. Barnard Management Services, proprietors of the future
Club 66 on the pier have invited the Model T Club to escort the European cars onto the
pier. California Historic Route 66 Association will present CAAR with a plaque
commemorating their historic rally.
On Wednesday, October 13, the Europeans’ cars will be on display at Huntington
Beach Mall (I-405 & Beach Blvd) from 2-6 p.m., free. American owners of antique cars
are welcome to participate in the show also at no charge. From 6-8 p.m. dinner will be
served at the Olde World Village Restaurant at 7561 Center Ave., Huntington Beach. A
choice of chicken, bratwurst, or pork roast dinners will be available at $6 per person.
CAAR California representative is Peter Rollenhagen. 8 pm. marks the beginning of partying
and dancing to the upbeat sounds of a European band til closing. The Holiday Inn has
reserved some rooms for party-goers.
Don’t miss this once in a lifetime opportunity to see some of the rarest classic
autos in the world and experience the world-wide appeal of Route 66.
PRESERVATION PARTY AT UNION STATION
On Sunday, October 17, 1993 from 4-7 p.m. Union Station at 800 N. Alameda St. in
downtown Los Angeles will be a scene of a landmark event sponsored by the Los Angeles
Conservancy, the area’s leading preservation organization. Celebrating the 15th
Anniversary of the LAC, the party is called CROSSROADS LA, the junction of the city’s
past and future. What better place for this event than the historic train station which
embodies both LA’s past and its’ new direction for transportation in the future.
Festivities will include special tours of the beautifully restored Union Station (4-6
p.m.), spectacular birthday cakes in the shapes of LA landmarks, and live music. In
addition to complimentary cake and champagne (served at 6 p.m.), there will be tempting
tastes from eateries throughout LA at nominal charge. A live and silent auction will
feature many unique items, works of art, trips and services.
There will be displays by neighborhood associations and historical societies
celebrating local preservation projects. Of particular interest to our members is the
participation of groups along Route 66 such as Highland Park Heritage Trust and Hollywood
Heritage. This provides us with an opportunity for a dialogue concerning the road and
its’ landmarks which are disappearing every day. Incidentally, it was an LAC member,
Charles J. Fisher who spearheaded the drive to restore the Arroyo Seco Bridge — one
of his many nominations to the National Register of Historic Places.
Proceeds from CROSSROADS LA benefit the LAC Preservation Network Program to assist
neighborhood preservation organizations and heritage education.
We strongly urge our members to take advantage of this exciting event to learn about
and hopefully even get involved in historic preservation.
THE LAST OLD McDONALD’S by Dan Mahnke
In the last issue of Roadsigns we printed an article "Stand By No. 3"
– McDonalds stand #3, the vintage stand that is still operating with outdoor seating,
now a novel landmark in the city of Downey, CA. As you know by now, McDonald’s
Corporation wants to replace it with a modern one just like thousands of others.
The LA Conservancy who has been sounding the preservation alarm, has members in our
Association as well to echo that sound. Just today one member, Richard Amadori Jr., sent
us a copy of his Sept. 20th letter to the mega Corporation in reference to the
closing of the Downey restaurant. He felt it was appalling that the chain would even allow
the losing of the last running, old style restaurant. It is their history, but profits may
give priority over the preservation.
11TH ANNUAL INTERSTATE BATTERIES GREAT AMERICAN RACE
On June 27th, pre-1943 cars started in Huntington Beach, CA on a 4300 mile
trip and passed through Barstow on their way to Norfolk, VA by July 10, 1993. The City of
Barstow put on a party for these racers on Main St., with our Association in attendance.
We heard interesting stories from racers and attenders about traveling the old road,
including the sister of the new owner of the Sidewinder Café. With 1000’s in
attendance, cars were lined up all along Main St. for close viewing. Car 66 just happened
to park in front of our booth. Owner/driver, Jim Hampton from El Paso, TX and navigator,
John Sears from Baton Rouge, LA in a ’36 Buick, were one of the qualifying winners in
the Championship Class.
ONE-DAY ROUTE 66 BUS TOUR LA VERNE TO SANTA MONICA
Encouraged by the success of our two-day Route 66 bus tour of last fall, our tour La
Verne to Santa Monica on September 11, 1993 was another winner.
The group left La Verne at 9:00 a.m. heading west on Route 66. With our member Dave
Settle driving our bus, and Vivian Davies as our tour guide pointing out the historical
places of interest on all of Route 66 (to be found in our Guide to Historic Route 66 in
California) we soon found out there were additional sites that were just off the road.
In Glendora we saw the "largest growth" of bougainvillea, then over to the
venerable Moreton Bay Fig tree, comparable in size to the famous one in Santa Barbara.
To get to the Route 66 early alignment on Foothill Blvd. in Monrovia, we passed the old
gas station and garage on Shamrock St., then enjoyed a real treat — a delightful tour
through the wonderful Aztec Hotel, garden and Brass Rail Restaurant, all still in its 1924
glory. Checking out the Colorado Street Bridge over Pasadena’s Arroyo, we found it is
indeed, being readied for reopening to traffic following seismic reconstruction.
Figueroa Blvd. took us to the Lummis Home in Highland Park and then to lunch at the
lovely Brite Spot Café, our business member on Sunset Blvd. in Los Angeles. Next, a brief
tour past LA’s’ City Hall, Court House, Union Station, Olvera Street, over to
the famous Victorian homes on Carol Street in Angelino Heights, then past Echo Park.
Then west on Route 66 to Fairfax where at 3rd we briefly checked out
Farmer’s Market. Back on 66 to Santa Monica and a wonderful drive several miles north
on Pacific Coast Highway, then a short stop at the Santa Monica pier, then dinner in the
lovely garden patio of The Main Street Tavern, another business member. A free raffle of
T-shirts, Guides, pins, Route 66 audio tapes, etc., on our way home (8:00 p.m.) rounded
out a happy day.
WHERE THE ORANGE IS NOW by Vivian Davies
Many of you purchased our Guide to Historic Route 66 in California and enjoyed
the photographs. Our photo of the historic orange brought back nostalgic memories for many
who remember when there were a lot of businesses in Southern California whose structures
were in the shape of the product they sold. Thinking back, some of those buildings were
selling food — a donut and hot dog on a bun come to mind. But the famous Brown Derby
was certainly not selling hats! I remember a camera shop whose entrance was enclosed in
the lens.
Inevitable development precluded the relocation of the orange and details were not
available for the updating of the second edition in our Guide. But we were
reluctant to eliminate the photo of the orange, and the corresponding mileage reference
could only hint as to the original site.
Thanks to the heroic efforts of Hazel Putnam of Fontana’s Historical Society the
orange was saved, relocated, and will be restored. Its fine new home is the entrance of
Fontana’s new shopping center with aWalMart, 17251 Foothill Blvd., still Ca-66, one
block east of Sierra
Our favorite orange will remind you of the thousands of orange groves that used to
surround it, and its protective fence today assures us that it will not be just a Kodak
memory. And "down the road" it may be used as a visitor’s center for the
greater retail complex.
SAN BERNARDINO’S 4TH ANNUAL ROUTE 66 RENDEZVOUS by Geoffrey and
JoAnne Willis
Vroom! Vroom! The deafening roar of revved up engines and the smell of exhaust filled
the streets of downtown San Bernardino as the 4th annual Route 66 Rendezvous
swing into high gear. If it’s your town, you gotta go to the party. If you’ve
got a hot rod, you’ve gotta show it off — arm out the window displaying that new
tattoo being viewed by hundreds of enthusiastic fans in Route 66 T-shirts everywhere.
You’re part of the E Street Cruise, parading around two blocks, two lanes thick in a
you-name-it kind of vehicle. We rode with our friend in a 1922 Dodge Brothers 1-1/2 ton
pick up. He won’t win the best sounding exhaust judging, but everyone loves his
ahoogah horn. Look for this truck in an upcoming Shakey’s commercial with Lauren
& Hardy impersonators.
In addition to the scores of street rodders and restored classic vehicles from
auto’s to fire trucks to semis, there were numerous other attractions. The tempting
smell of barbeque beckoned from an array of food booths. Other vendors did a brisk
business in everything from Route 66 memorabilia to rodded accessories and necessities.
Most fun of all was the friendliness of the people themselves. There were no strangers
at this party. San Bernardino is known as "The Friendly City" and this was
certainly true, especially at the beer and wine tasting court where you could sample such
brews as Honey Beer and Buzzard’s Breath.
Historic Route 66 signs mark E Street reminding us that this was once a city alignment
of the famous highway. Signs such as these and remakes of the original highway shields
marked the perimeter of the vending area. Continuous music of the 50s and 60s piped in
over PA speakers throughout the fairground also added a touch of nostalgia to the event.
The Rendezvous is a great party!
VOLUNTEERISM! – Excerpts from a talk by Wm. G. Steel, Jr., June 1991,
published in The Grinding Wheel, by Friends of the Old Mill (San Marino, CA),
Southern California Headquarters of the California Historical Society.
One of my favorite quotations, and I don’t have it word for word, is from Alexis
de Tocqueville — the young Frenchman who was here to study prisons in our country in
1831. They finished their report and after returning to France, he wrote his classic Democracy
in America. He said, "Americans are an amazing people. If they see a need that
isn’t or can’t be met by the various governmental bodies, they form a committee
and do it themselves." Volunteerism isn’t new and certainly isn’t confined
to Americans but de Tocqueville saw it in the 1830s as a unique part of the American
psyche. We have seen it over the years as we have come from frontiersmen, farmers with
neighbor barn raisings to sophisticated urbanites who paint school buildings to raise
money to augment financing. Former President Reagan said in a speech to the National
Alliance of Business, "Americans are needed to keep this country true to the
tradition of volunteerism that has served us so well. And they are needed to keep America
true to her values."
Together we can do everything —separate we can do very little.
THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE WANTS TO HEAR FROM YOU
by Geoffrey and Jo Anne Willis
After more than a year of exhaustive research on Route 66 cataloging resources,
examining every alignment (driveable or not), conducting hundreds of interviews and
collecting a vault of photographs and videotape, the National Park Service Route 66 Study
Team hit the road again. Through a series of public meetings the team called for feedback
to the four preliminary concepts they developed for potential federal involvement with the
future management, preservation, and promotion of Route 66 which are outlined in their
latest newsletter.
A consorted effort was made by both the California Historic Route 66 Association and
the Route 66 Territory and Visitors Bureau to get area newspapers to make the general
public aware of these meetings and the importance of their attendance. Most importantly
though, are the written responses to the study that we send to their Denver headquarters.
Briefly, here are the four concepts, reprinted from a synopsis provided by the National
Park Service.
1) ROUTE 66 REDISCOVERED AND NURTURED. This concept provides a traditional approach
to resource preservation and visitor education. It focuses on saving the best
representative features associated with Route 66 and provides for planned visitor
experiences. Strict criteria would be developed to guide the visitor experience,
preservation, and interpretation of resources. Only those resources that meet specific
criteria would be preserved and interpreted. A federal commission would help coordinate
and stimulate management action by cooperating partners.
2) THE ROUTE 66 NATIONAL HERITAGE CORRIDOR. Under this concept, visitors would be
encouraged to explore the areas within a broad heritage corridor along Route 66, which
would function as a central linking spine. The experience would be focused on the
corridor, and visitors would be limited only by their individual imaginations. A
consortium of states would develop and encourage programs. Federal technical assistance
would be provided.
3) ROUTE 66 COMMEMORATED. Under this concept those portions of the various
interstates that replaced Route 66 would not be recognized as a commemorative highway.
Designation, recognition, and informational/directional signing would be the only formal
federal action. It would then be the decision of the states, counties, communities, and
organizations along the corridor to adopt, preserve, interpret, or promote the route.
4) THE ROUTE 66 NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL. This concept would provide for the
designation of Route 66 as a National Historic Trail unit or the national trails system. A
national historic trail is dependant upon a partnership between the federal government
(which administers the program) and grassroots organizations, agencies, and individuals,
including private landowners (responsible for day-to-day management).
At the September 13 1993 meeting at Sycamore Inn, Rancho Cucamonga, a stimulating
discussion of each concept raised many valid questions and points of view. The discussion
was recorded by the Park Service on audio tape and computer in a diligent effort to save
as much public feedback as possible for later review.
One lasting impressing they likely took away with them was the need for greater
specificity in detailing exactly how each plan would be implemented. Another was the
overriding need for consistent and complete signage including directional arrows at turns,
junction markers and Route 66 access signs at all appropriate interstate offramps. While
there were those who favored the Heritage Corridor concept for its all-inclusive appeal,
others feared it would de-emphasize the importance of the road itself. There were those
who favored the National Trails concept because it would increse public awareness and
recreational use of the road, while others feared that its inclusion in the trails system
would tempt state and county highway departments to decertify it as a highway and possibly
result in road loss instead of preservation. Ultimately this is the kind of feedback the
Study Team is seeking from every one of us in order to refine their present concepts to
the most workable strategies reflecting the most often recurring public sentiments and
containing the fewest pitfalls and loopholes.
Sometimes people’s thoughts run with parallel intent, but one thinks of an
important detail, i.e. sentiment shared by CD in California and BA in New Mexico: People
don’t expect maintenance of the road to include making it a new super highway; they
expect an old road. So maintenance would mean just making sure hazardous, damaged spots
are repaired (which in many jurisdictions is currently accomplished). Sounds simple, but
BA thinks it out better reminding CD that "hazardous" can mean a 2-story RV not
being able to pass safely. They both agree that a historic road should not have to
accommodate such situations. Everyone should have something to say whether it entails a
grandiose plan, a view from their business doorstep or maybe a seemingly simple idea that
perhaps no one else has thought of.
ONE WAY TO TRAVEL ON ROUTE 66 by Member, Charlotte Tufts
Cars, vans, buses, trucks, motorcycles, and even bicycles have traveled Route 66. Now
I’m going over the Mother Road a different way — via post cards!
Although I’ve never driven the full Route, I’ve read all the books and
articles about it and have become more and more interested in everything that happens on
66. At age 81, driving long distances becomes very tiring, and not the pleasure it used to
be so I decided to bring Route 66 to my comfort able chair where I could travel over the
road any time I choose.
First, I have all the books on a shelf near my chair, ready to be consulted as well as
the newsletters from the various Route 66 associations. I’m always on the look-out
for new publications as they come out. All the newspaper clippings and magazine articles
are in a notebook, in chronological order. Here I also keep any large maps in folders: a
1935 Illinois road map (Shell) and a 1947 "finger-tip tours" map (Shell), Santa
Monica to Amarillo. In 1965 a travel guide was put out by H. S. Crocker Co., San
Francisco, illustrated with maps and photos from Los Angeles to Chicago. This company has
also published many postcards of places along the Route.
The July 1981 Arizona Highways special issue makes great reading — "a
warm and wonderful look backward at the Main Street of America, Route 66". Just to
make this issue even more "special", at the top of the page where his picture
is, Bobby Troup has autographed it for me! (He is a friend of my husband.) The summer 1990
issue of Corvette Quarterly is well worth searching for; among other things, a
reprise of the old TV show, Route 66. I wish I had those 116 episodes on tape to
add to my collection! (As far as I’m concerned, the new TV show didn’t make it.
Sorry.)
The separate magazine articles and newspaper clippings are too numerous to cite
individually. There are new clippings to add almost every day. In the August 1975 Westways,
William Childress wrote a delightful account of his trip by Greyhound bus from LA to
Albuquerque. From 1988, when I started seriously clipping and saving articles, the
collection has really grown. Most of the new books have been well covered with reviews.
The appeal of collecting Route 66 ephemera is in discovering an off-beat reference
— such as the story in Harness Horse magazine for 4 March 1989. It is the
story of "On Route Sixtysix". A filly, it seems her mother, Fern’s Baby,
had been sold to slaughterhouse representatives at an auction in Pomona. A couple named
Boyce, members of Horse Care Foundation, hurried to Texas and bought the pregnant mare and
a couple of other horses. On the way back to California, in Kingman, Arizona, by the side
of the highway, a foal was delivered. Mrs. Boyce named her "On Route SixtySix",
trained her and she went on to a career as a pacer. And the :A Times for 20
February 1991 in the racing section mentioned her unusual birth and the celebration of her
first birthday!
Antiques & Collecting for January 1991 had fun in a piece by Don Stewart.
"Route 66 terminal but not quite dead yet!" The author warns about buying
expensive souvenirs because there are so many fakes (this applies to postcards too), but
urges the collector to "think of it as a trip through nostalgia, and marvel at the
photos of the quaint buildings and its romantic history. Collect the romance and forget
the reality and have fun". The New York Times of 7 March 1991 has a
fascinating interview with Harry Abrams, now 84, who ran in the coast-to-coast Bunion
Derby, along Route 66 in 1928.
In 1992, the 66th anniversary year of Route 66, the articles came thick and
fast. But now that the anniversary is winding down, will there be as much notice given to
the old road? We shall see.
So much for the written word — now to the pictures! First, I had to decide how to
organize the post cards so that I could travel the road the way someone driving it would.
Going from East to West seemed the most logical for me, and of course I needed maps to
guide me. I had older Auto Club maps photocopied in sections. Since the copies were in
black and white it was easy to draw a bright green line along 66. The card collection is
large enough to be divided into two volumes. My notebooks, by the way, are standard
3-ring, 3-inch capacity binders. The black covers are a good background for Route 66
decals of your choice.
Volume I holds Illinois through New Mexico. At the beginning I have a few cards showing
the whole route; one of them, a card by Crocker (HSC-320) is autographed to me by Bobby
Troup. A great way to start the trip! Also, in the beginning of the volume, I have some
modern cards put out by Athena International, showing an imaginary truck stop, another a
diner. Here I also have all the cards, so far, done by R. Waldmire of Illinois; black and
white sketches with very detailed descriptions of towns and sites on 66. All the cards are
housed in plastic pages — most holding four cards per page.
On the back of the map for each section I have listed the town names, going from East
to West, as a guide in placing the cards in geographical order. I look at the cards as I
would see the road while driving. Of course Illinois begins with Chicago, views of Grant
Park, etc., and then a nice "Streid’s Motel" card in Bloomington and
I’m on my way! Usually there are more motel cards than views, and I particularly
enjoy the old ones with inset pictures showing a furnished room.
There are quite a few post cards with individual maps of the states; the older ones how
Route 66 and points of interest along the way. My favorite Missouri card is a black and
white photo of Gerwe’s Log House Café on Highway 66, Eureka. One wall features a
large Coca-Cola sign, and at the bottom of the card "good food at all hours."
Incidentally, as many collectors know, there is fierce competition between 66 collectors
and Coca-Cola collectors. The price of these cards goes up and up. My latest Missouri card
is one put out by the Missouri P.C. Co. showing a large route sign, a red Corvette and a
view of Devil’s Elbow Cutoff, underneath are the words "America’s
Mainstreet – 66th Anniversary." It is interesting to note that in
July of 1990 Governor John Ashcroft signed legislation that made his state the first to
give nostalgic Route 66 historical status.
Oklahoma has good map cards of the route across the state. In an article in Golf
Digest for December 1992, we’re told that Route 66 passes right in front of the
Vinita (Okla) Country Club, and on the second hole a small section of the road serves as a
cart path. A part of 66 also sits on the Tucumcari (NM) Golf course. I’m still
looking for cards of both those courses.
The Baxter Lane Co. has issued some nice new cards for Texas: Shamrock, the Texas State
Line, all showing route numbers, and of course some great views of the "Cadillac
Ranch".
Volume I ends with New Mexico. A favorite is a black and white photo of the Longhorn
Ranch on Highway 66 near Moriarty. Captain and Mrs. Bill Ehret were the proprietors (see
Wallis, p. 159). Plastichrome, #P63454, is a charming twilight panoramic view of
Albuquerque approaching from the West on 66. A Curt Teich Co. linen (8BH1283) shows a
long, long stretch of 66 entering the Rio Grande Valley with a few mail boxes and a route
sign. Just looking at the card makes me weary… a long, long drive.
Time to pick up Volume 2, Arizona to California. L. H. "Dude" Larsen has
published a map card of northern Arizona taken from an original oil painting of his. Route
66 and sites to be seen are shown in color, dated 1941. A modern card from McGrew Color
Graphics shows a painting of the Camel Corps route being surveyed on the trail west from
Albuquerque. Has anyone checked their route (in 1857) to see how much of it is similar to
66?
A favorite Arizona card is an old one showing Wigwam Village No. 6 in Holbrook. Cards
like this are hard to find and often expensive. A black and white photo on a card of the
Union Auto Court in Winslow advertises rates $1.50 and up. There is a very colorful card
of "The Black Cat Café" in Flagstaff. (See Wallis, p. 195). Aerial views of
some of the western towns are striking — with plainly visible straight stretches of
Route 66. I have a nice one of Williams by Petley, and another of Kingman. Another
favorite, by Tichnor, is of Ted’s Fountain and Trading Post on 66 in Seligman. There
are two Coca-Cola signs and old cars of the 30s parked out front.
A rare card I was lucky to find is a black and white photo of the Peach Springs Trading
Post with 14 mounted Hualapi Indian cowboys out front. But my prize Arizona card is a
black and white photo, by Frashers, of Foothill Garage and Auto Court in Oatman. The
garage and gasoline pump with lady attendant are easily seen. With a magnifying glass one
can find a sign advertising Foothill cottages with running water and lights. There are
four small cabins to one side. The card is post-marked from Oatman on 5 June 1932 from
Pauline and Paul who were staying the night there, written to a friend in Fresno. They
said they made good time in spite of a cloudburst and were very happy that the car was
running well.
On to California. An old card, dated 18 December 1919 shows the Needles bridge before
there was a Route 66! The Albertype Co. of New York has published several cards showing
views on Highway 66 near Needles. Issued in the 30s and 40s they are delicately colored
and show the wandering, unpaved highway. Another California oldie shows the Wayside Café
at Essex, with the garage, the café, and four or five cottages and an open field across
the highway crowded with tumbleweed. The café is advertised as "one of the cooler
places on the desert". Houck of Corona has a great street scene of Victorville with
the Stewart Hotel on a corner and a large U.S. 66 sign with arrows pointing left and
straight ahead. Several old cars are parked on the shady side of the street. There are a
lot of good motel cards from San Bernardino, but not always easy to find.
One unusual card I have is a double one: one side a place for message and address with
the other side a map of California on which to draw your trip route. The other connected
card has a map of LA County showing routes and on its opposite side sketches of routes and
towns in Southern California, giving mileage. It is very rare to find a perforated double
card still attached.
That finishes my trip for now. But every day finds me looking for more Route 66 cards
and when I find them they are placed in their proper location in my notebooks and each new
one adds that much more pleasure on my next rocking chair trip from Chicago to Santa
Monica.
ROUTE 66 MAGAZINE COMING SOON! The first, slick, four-color publication devoted to
"The Main Street of America".
Howard and Marilyn Armstrong, proprietors of historic Two Guns, Arizona, and The Main
Event in Quartzsite, Arizona, have announced that they will publish a new magazine that is
written expressly for people who yearn to explore historic Route 66. This magazine will
editorialize businesses that are associated with traveling this route, along with
interesting stories about the road and people. Paul Taylor, publisher of Frontier
Chronicals, a monthly magazine, has been named Associate Publisher and Managing
Editor, Sandi Taylor will eit the new publication. Tom Snyder, founder of the National
Route 66 Association has been named Editorial Advisor. It will be available on the
newsstands in December. They want your stories as well.
REMEMBER OUR STORY ON THE OLD PALMS MOTEL?
Now it’s Old Trails Bed and Breakfast Inn. It opened for business on
June
1st 1993. This charming inn in located on historic Route 66 at 304 W. Broadway in
Needles, California.
Old Trails Inn is family operated in the tradition and spirit of the old highway. It is
owned by the Wilde family who include Hank and Edna (Mom and Dad), sons Richard and Casey,
and daughter Emily with their families.
Old Trails Inn was built in the early 30s and was known as the Palms Motel. The Wilde
family bought this historic old cabin court in 1991 and renovations include furnishings in
a style reminiscent of the 30s.
Classic porcelain pedestal sinks and claw-foot bathtubs adorn some of the bathrooms.
Antique and classic furniture add charm to three of the 14 rooms that are presently open
for guests. The remaining rooms will be open within the next year.
The old motel’s common rooms are of special interest to history buffs with large
photographs of the Needles area in the 1900s and other memorabilia for guests to enjoy.
The buildings of the old cabin court encircle a beautiful palm-shaded courtyard
featuring a meandering tile walkway leading to each individual room.
Rates are $50 for two persons, and include a continental breakfast served from 7:00 to
10:00 a.m. (Senior and group rates are available.)
Local attractions include boating and fishing on the Colorado River, golf,
rockhounding, exploring ghost towns and museums, hiking and enjoying the beautiful desert.
Those interested in trying their luck at vaious games of chance may visit Laughlin,
Nevada, 25 miles up river, or Las Vegas, 100 miles north.
Having lived in the vicinity for nearly 40 years, the Wildes are knowledgeable about
the area’s history and attractions, and enjoy
