What’s In Between

Today was a busy day, chock full of sights for every age and interest. There was A LOT, so buckle up and we will hit the road!

After eating my second donut from yesterday’s stop at the Donut Drive In (just as good as the first), I stopped at The Boots Court Motel. This was the most unusual motel I have ever seen. It was built in 1939 by Arthur Boots and featured the promotional slogan, “A Radio in Every Room!” Imagine- that was the selling point. To me the selling point was that you could drive right up to your door, undercover, and away from all the other cars. See the pic below:

And the front of the motel was just as cute.

It is presently being restored and there are five detached rooms in the back open for business. And with that, I left Missouri.

Welcome to Kansas with its 13 miles of Rt 66. Rt 66 goes through the tip of the southeast corner of the state and Kansas is very proud of that!

Rt 66 goes through three little towns in Kansas: Galena, Riverton and Baxter Springs. I stopped in the first and last. The town of Galena began in 1876 when Galena, a natural mineral form of lead sulfite, was first discovered there. It is the oldest mining town in Kansas, incorporated in 1877. The first stop was a facsimile of the 1949 Mercury police car that served as the Sheriff of Radiator Springs in the 2006 animated film “Cars.”

Around the corner, was an old Kan-O-Tex service station first opened in 1934. When director John Lasseter and story writer Joe Ranft were doing research for the movie “Cars”, they asked Rt 66 enthusiast Micheal Wallis to guide them on Rt 66, which he did for months. (They enjoyed him so much they asked him to voice the Sheriff in the movie, and he autographed the car pictured above). When he took John and Joe to Galena, they saw an old tow truck against the wall next to the old Kan-O-Tex station. It had a long crane because it was used in the mines. This became the inspiration for Tow Mater, the tow truck in the movie. In 2007 the old service station was purchased and restored by four local women who wanted to renew interest in Kansas’ small portion of Route 66. Today the station is “Cars on the Route,” an homage to the Pixar movie. As I was taking a picture, the daughter of one of the women came out, told me the story about Mater and showed me around. She has lived in Galena nearly her entire life and said the movie “Cars” has renewed interest in Rt 66 and thereby Galena. Her town had fallen on hard times and is now thriving.

In Baxter Springs, the Baxter Springs Station (cleverly named) was constructed in 1930 as a gas station owned by the Independent Oil and Gas Company. it is now the Kansas Route 66 Visitors Center open from May to November (not March to November as the guide book said).

What state was next? If you read the title, or really know your US geography you will know it was Oklahoma.

In 1889 settlers were allowed to race into parts of Oklahoma and stake claim to the land. Some managed to get to these spots before the territory was officially opened. They were called “sooners,” which eventually became the state’s nickname: The Sooner State.

My first stop was a former Marathon gas station built in 1927 in the city of Commerce. In the 1930s it changed hands and soft serve ice cream was added in 1951. It is now a Dairy King and sell the one and only Rt 66 shaped vanilla cookies which are trademarked and made daily by hand. I was very interested in seeing what these looked like, however, they were closed. This will be a recurring theme. Things are not always open on Sunday, or late in the afternoon, or in March.

Commerce had something to show me that was not in the guidebook. As I was leaving town, there was a tiny blue sign that said,” Mickey Mantle’s Boyhood Home” and an arrow pointing down a side street. Knowing I had my Mona endorsed pepper spray with me in case I should run into trouble going off route, I made the turn. And there it was. Did you know he was called “The Commerce Comet”? I did not, nor did Rod, nor did my mother, nor do most people who live outside of Commerce, Oklahoma, I suspect.

Between 1937 and 1963, Ed Galloway (1880-1963) built a visual art environment as a monument to the American Indian. He constructed 12 structures found at the Ed Galloway’s Totem Pole Park almost entirely with his own tow hands. The Native American motif speaks to the history of the land of Oklahoma which was known as Indian Territory before the state of Oklahoma was established in 1907 as well as the shifting social realities of western expansion. It was here that the Trail of Tears terminated, depositing tribes from the south eastern United States in Oklahoma. Ed believed that the original inhabitants of this land should be honored and remembered, and he set out to do just that. The largest totem rises from the back of an enormous turtle which was carved from an outcrop of sandstone evoking the indigenous term ‘Turtle Island’ or North America. It features over 200 hand sculpted bas-relief creatures and Native American portraits. It is estimated that 28 tons of cement, 6 tons of steel, and 100 tons of sand and rock comprise the 90 foot tall structure that took Ed 11 years to complete. What was more amazing to me is that he collected the sand for the cement from the creek bed running on the west side of his property and used a hand crank drill to cut the rocks to be shaped. (Information sourced from Erin Turner, Site Curator & Restoration Artist, 2021)

I moved on from this inspiring place to one which was sweet but rather silly – the Blue Whale. Hugh Davis built this Blue Whale in July 1972 as a surprise anniversary present for his wife, Zelta, who collected whale figurines. The Blue Whale and its pond became a favorite swimming spot for both locals and travelers. It is still owned by Davis’ daughter, but swimming is no longer permitted. You can walk through the whale and once upon a time could slide down his fins (looks like litigation waiting to happen).

In Tulsa, in the former site of a 1950s PEMCO gas station, was Buck Atom’s Cosmic Curios. If you want to celebrate the “magic of Route 66 with apparel, toys, souvenirs, art, jewelry, and more” this is the place for you. So that you don’t miss it, there are two giant statues, Buck Atom, the Space Cowboy, and Stella, the Space Cowgirl. There is also Piggy Stardust, but he is not giant. Route 66 loves giant things.

If you were hoping I would see a giant gas pump…

John Lasseter and the research team for Pixar’s movie “Cars” visited the Rock Cafe in 2001 and upon meeting owner Dawn Welch began developing the character Sally Carrera. They made multiple visits from 2001-2005. It was built in 1936 from the stone excavated during the paving of Rt 66 and opened in 1939. The neon sign was installed in the late 1940s. I was so disappointed that it closed at 2 pm and I was there at 3: 15, I forgot to take a picture of the entire cafe. You can see some of the stone behind the information sign, though. I was also hungry as I had planned on eating there. I am sure this added to my forgetfulness.

As I had missed the open window of the Rock Cafe, I decided to check the times for the next stop. When I plugged it in the GPS, I was informed I would arrive 10 minutes before it would close. So instead of using Route 66, I got on the interstate, knowing it would be quicker. Apparently, folks in Oklahoma need to get from here to there at speed. The interstate speed limit is 80, so I decided to go 85, and people were zipping past me. It is 65 in construction zones! Needless to say I arrived at Round Barn before it closed. Round Barn was built by local farmer William Harrison Odor in 1898. He made the rounded walls and roof rafters by soaking green native bur oak boards and bending them into curves. It is 60 feet in diameter and 43 feet tall. William figured if the barn was round, the extreme winds of tornadoes would strike and flow around it instead of through it. In the early 20th century, round barns were said to be “cyclone-proof”, but there is no scientific evidence to support this. However, the barn is still standing, it can be rented for events, and every week it hosts Saturday Morning Music Sessions.

As I was heading to Oklahoma City, I came upon my last stop of the day, Pops Soda Ranch. The specialty beverage maker offers a signature collection of 700 kinds of soda, sparkling waters, and ice-cold refreshments. The structure, which opened in 2007, incorporates a cantilevered truss extending 100 feet over the gas pumps and a parking area. The roadside sign is a 66 foot tall soda bottle. Alas, the main area was closed for renovations so I was unable to purchase a bottle of bacon flavored soda, which I thought would be “Eww, Munger Moss”, but fun to have. I did however, purchase a hat with the soda bottle logo on it so all was not lost.

The rain was just starting as I left Pops Soda Ranch. I am now tucked up in my hotel looking forward to another day. I wonder how many more giant things I will see?