U. S. 66 Route Marker

Description:

Cyrus Avery, a highway advocate in Tulsa, Oklahoma, founded Route 66 while helping to plan a national highway system in the 1920s. New, long-distance highways crossed the nation east to west and north to south, superseding short, local roads. Roadside markers with route numbers, like this example from Clinton, Oklahoma, directed motorists and replaced road names. Avery’s proposal for a route from Chicago to Los Angeles through his home state was approved and designated U. S. 66 in 1926. Route 66 became a corridor for important migrations by Dust Bowl victims, military personnel, veterans, and vacationers.

Used: United States: Oklahoma

See more items in: Work and Industry: Transportation, Road, America on the Move, Transportation, Road Transportation

Exhibition: America On The Move

Exhibition Location: National Museum of American History

Credit Line: Gift of State of Oklahoma, Department of Transportation

Data Source: National Museum of American History

Id Number: 1993.0282.01Catalog Number: 1993.0282.01Accession Number: 1993.0282

Object Name: route marker, US 66, Oklahoma

Physical Description: steel (overall material)white (overall color)black (letters color)Measurements: overall: 16 1/2 in x 16 1/2 in; 41.91 cm x 41.91 cm

Guid: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746aa-aa38-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Record Id: nmah_1212027

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.