The Mother Road...Route 66

Towanda, IL is a fun place to experience Route 66 history

Large machinery and man continue to reshape this land today.

Fertile crop of Central Illinois corn with background of windmills.

Large agricultural machinery.

R. Henry Husemann & family @ Elkhart, IL War Memorial Park.

Illinois State Flag.

Getting My Kicks in front of Paul Bunyan statue...Atlanta, IL

Hamming it up in front of Gunner's

Make level paths for your feet and take only ways that are firm.
                                                                              Proverbs 4:26

In 1927, Chicago became the new Gateway to the West after Route 66 opened. Previously, St Louis was associated with travel westward because it was the origin of many of the covered wagon trails of the 1800's. The opening of the new road was the prelude to the Interstate System and signified the shift of mid American rail products to highway shipping. This road begins in Cicero, IL a Chicago suburb and ends in Santa Monica, CA a Los Angeles suburb.

I used the Old Road as a primary route between the Saint Louis area and Chicago. Basically, Interstate 55 has taken over as the quickest and most efficient way to get between these 2 cities for cars and trucks. The newer Interstate System officially replaced The Mother Road in 1985. Sanitation and safety were some of the reasons this road was replaced by bigger and better roads westward. Route 66 now serves as a frontage road. In some places the road is in very bad shape or doesn't even exist.  Before Route 66 was built, it was referred to as "The Pontiac Trail" named to honor a legendary Indian Chief. There is actually a town between Bloomington and Joliet  that still bears the name of Chief Pontiac.

Central Illinois is generally pretty flat due to the result of massive Ice Age glaciers that flattened this area about 10,000 years ago. Along with lakes and rivers that formed (including The Great Lakes) when the glaciers melted, the top soil in this area is home to some of the world's most fertile farmland. Corn and soybeans are popular crops around here.