Books
Route 66: EZ66 GUIDE For Travelers
– Jerry McClanahan
The EZ66 GUIDES were developed by noted Route 66 historian, Jerry McClanahan and The National Historic Route 66 Federation to make it as EZ as possible for travelers to find and follow the various alignments of Route 66. The guides have been used by thousands from around the world. The 200 page, 5 1/2′ x 8 1/2′ guide is spiral bound, to make it EZ to use while traveling. It includes EZ to use maps you can follow going EAST or WEST. The guide also includes attractions, games and historic details. This second edition makes an excellent traveling companion with the Route 66 Dining & Lodging Guide.
Route 66 Adventure Handbook – 3rd Edition
– Drew Knowles
A guide to all the exuberance, splendor, and absurdity of Route 66, this reference includes details on the magnificent architecture, natural wonders, vintage motels and cafes, unique museums, offbeat attractions, fascinating artifacts and icons, and kitschy tourist traps that dot this famous stretch of road. Painstakingly researched, this resource provides information on how to locate unmarked portions of the old highway; contact information for Route 66 associations and local visitor bureaus; maps and other navigational aids; an index of all Route 66 towns; and anecdotes, trivia, attractions, and suggested side trips. From well-known hotspots to obscure, off-the-beaten-path destinations, this inspiring guide presents a wealth of information for both first-time adventurers and seasoned travelers. Also included is a foreword by David Knudson, Executive Director of the National Historic Route 66 Federation.
Route 66: The Mother Road 75th Anniversary Edition [Paperback]
– Michael Wallis
America’s Main Street is celebration, Michael Wallis hit the road again, revisiting people and places that made the Mother Road on American icon, and uncovering new treasures.
A love letter and a tribute, Route 66: The Mother Road takes us on an unforgettable journey through the secret corners and hidden towns of America’s most famous and beloved highway.
Route 66: Traveler’s Guide and Roadside Companion
– Tom Snyder
Fully revised and expanded
New stories-more details
-Nearly 30 feet of strip maps
-350 towns and attractions
-More highway memorabilia
-Mini-tours-rentals-discounts
-Chicago-L.A. mileage table
Route 66 (Enthusiast Color) [Paperback]
– Tim Steil
More than three decades after Route 66 went by the wayside, it remains a nostalgic signifier of a 50-year period when cross-country travel was synonomous with meeting interesting characters, absorbing marvelous new sights, and stopping to check the oil along the way. In this colorful biopic, author Tim Steil retraces the wandering path of Route 66 from Chicago to Santa Monica, returning home with a scrapbook of new color photography profiling businesses and attractions that continue to operate alongside Route 66 despite the demise of the legendary two-lane. The result is a unique look at motels, service stations, restaurants, truck stops, and museums, and the colorful folks who continue to whittle out a livelihood along Route 66 .
Road Trip USA Route 66 [Paperback]
– Jamie Jensen
Professional traveler Jamie Jensen traveled more than 400,000 miles to bring you the best-selling guide Road Trip USA. In this expanded tour of Route 66, Jamie covers the kitschy “Main Street of America,” one of the country’s first transcontinental highways. From the Meramac Caverns to the wild creatures on display in roadside menageries, this historic route survives. From the golden sands and sunshine of Los Angeles to the gritty streets of St. Louis and Chicago, Road Trip USA Route 66 highlights major cities, obscure towns, popular attractions, roadside curiosities, local lore, and oddball trivia on this unforgettable journey into America, then and now.
Route 66 Backroads: Your Guide to Scenic Side Trips & Adventures from the Mother Road
– Jim Hinckley
U.S. Route 66 is the nation’s best known highway. Once the microcosm of a culture increasingly connected by automobiles, its sights and attractions are now a fascinating reflection of a nation on the move. Travel this iconic highway through the heart of America with Route 66 Backroads as your guide. This lavishly illustrated book steers you from Chicago to Los Angeles, traveling through the lowlands of the American Plains and the high plateaus of New Mexico and Arizona, from the Great Lakes to the mighty Pacific Ocean, and through major metropolises and remote country towns.
Branch away from the Mother Road, and you encounter gems hidden beyond today’s standard motels and tourist traps – the quaint frontier communities that date back to the nation’s westward expansion; the legacy of ancient native cultures; and the awe-inspiring natural wonders that have graced these lands since time immemorial. State parks, wildlife refuges, museums, historic sites, literary landmarks, and much more are there to be explored within a few hours’ drive from the path of Route 66. The fifty trips included here offer new travel opportunities for the thousands of road-trippers who follow this legendary route, looking for something more.
Legendary Route 66: A Journey Through Time Along America’s Mother Road
– Michael Karl Witzel
It started in the heartland and originally ended in Los Angeles. It carried truckers crossing the country, Okies fleeing the Dust Bowl, vacationers seeking the sun. It was America’s Main Street, the Mother Road, the Will Rogers Highway, and, at its dangerous curves, Bloody 66. Get your kicks on Route 66 with this wonderfully illustrated tribute to the best-loved highway in this car-loving nation. Michael Witzel shares his expertise and wealth of personal, archive, collector, and contributing photographer images in these pages, offering a nostalgic tour of the charms and oddities of this road through American cultural history.
Starting in Chicago and running to Santa Monica, this book highlights the sights along the highway with historic and current photos in then-and-now pairings, and includes Route 66 postcards, road signs, trinkets, maps, brochures, and advertisements. Here we see Route 66 as it was in its heyday and as it is now, the neon glamour of yesterday versus the ghost towns of today. Witzel and his wife, Gyvel Young-Witzel, recount the highway’s history, its role in popular culture, and its demise, as well as the individual stories of famous sights.
Route 66 Dining & Lodging Guide
– National Historic Route 66 Federation
The new 14th Edition guide has been enlarged to 120 pages; it now includes photos inside and it is a larger 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 format with spiral binding – like the EZ66 GUIDE. These unique guides have been used by thousands around the world to find the best places to stay and eat along the Route. It lists over 500 dining and lodging establishments objectively reviewed by Federation Adopt-A-Hundred members. No advertising is allowed. It concentrates on the vintage properties that made the Route famous. Price ranges, amenities, credit cards accepted, must stops and other specialty features are included. The guide covers all 8 states comprising several major alignments. An excellent traveling companion to the EZ66 GUIDE For Travelers.
Roadside Attractions: Cool Cafes, Souvenir Stands, Route 66 Relics, & Other Road Trip Fun
– Brian Butko
Hit the open road for fun and wackiness as the Butkos visit offbeat attractions from coast to coast – dinosaur parks, miniature golf courses, populuxe motels, vintage amusement arcades, classic diners illuminated in neon, and even the world’s largest ball of twine.
More than thirty fellow authors and artists offer their favourite attractions or recall memorable trips. Visitor information is included to help plan quick visits or an entire road trip.
Greetings from Route 66: The Ultimate Road Trip Back Through Time Along America’s Main Street
– Michael Karl Witzel
John Steinbeck famously christened Route 66 America’s “Mother Road” in The Grapes of Wrath, and that chapter about Tom Joad’s exodus is just one of the classic pieces collected in this ultimate anthology. Here’s history, roadside attractions, pop culture, ghost stories—even recipes from famous greasy spoons. And it’s all illustrated with the largest collection of vintage art, postcards, travel decals, collectibles, and other memorabilia ever amassed. This is a truly a worthy tribute to the Main Street of America.
Motorcycle Guide to Route 66 [Paperback]
– Kirk Woodward
The complete resource for motorcyclists in search of America’s most famous highway . . . Route 66, The Mother Road.
You’ll have everything you need to make a safe, enjoyable trip down Historic Route 66 on two wheels. Three turn-by-turn guides to the old road.
See exactly how to do it from Chicago to Los Angeles or from Los Angeles to Chicago. A complete listing of motorcycle dealers along the Route.
Laws regarding motorcycles in each of the 8 states the Route passes through. And much, much more.
Hogs On 66: Best Feed and Hangouts for Roadtrips
– Michael Wallis
Here is the ultimate Hog ride down 66. This book is filled with history, factoids, travel information and recipes. Every thing you need to know to ride the Mother Road. Michael Wallis and Marian Clark team up to celebrate two beloved American icons, Harleys and Route 66. Hogs on 66 mixes food, fun and the freedom of the road in colorful photographs, stories, and information about Hog-friendly Hangouts, where to buy your Harley stuff, road tips, profiles from the road, biker wedding spots and several hundred favorite recipes from towns along the Route. Road, machine and rider have enjoyed a long, colorful history together, a story chronicled here in vintage photographs and reminiscences. You’ll learn all about butt darts in Vega, Texas and other behind-the-scenes tales from Harley tours down the Route. Some eat to ride, but those who ride to eat will especially appreciate this compendium of favorite sights, stories, personalities, restaurants and recipes from the 8-state strip of pavement that connected Chicago with Los Angeles before the Interstate era and still welcomes riders today. Stay home and try out the recipes or hit the open road with book in hand. Either way, you’ll find Hogs on 66 a delightful and essential equipment for the road warrior in you.
Route 66 Quick Reference Encyclopedia [Paperback]
– Drew Knowles
With this handy reference, novices and seasoned roadies have quick and easy access to essential information about this famous highway. Providing a list of important terms accompanied by descriptive articles and illustrations, the guide details the route’s history—including the origin of the slogan “Get your kicks on Route 66″—commemorative festivals, useful highway terms, maps, and its most famous and quirkiest attractions. A Question & Answer section with trivia questions and their unexpected and fascinating answers provides further information that will allow road warriors to impress friends and fellow travelers with their knowledge of the route, while a supplemental list directs dedicated fans to more detailed information on one of the most historic and beloved drives in America.
Route 66: Images of America’s Main Street [Hardcover]
– William Kaszynski
Route 66 is a fixture of American culture. For the truckers, salesmen and vacationers who have traveled it and for the people who live along it, the road is a reminder of the bygone days of the American motoring experience. Despite time, neglect and progress, Route 66 endures. Almost all of its 2,448 miles are still intact and drivable.
Travel from Chicago to Los Angeles and experience Route 66 through this richly illustrated book. It presents pictures of many of the historic landmarks and longtime businesses which have become roadside institutions to several generations of Route 66 travelers, plus some places that are relatively unknown to the average traveler. Nearly all of the places shown can be visited today.
The Complete Route 66 Lost & Found [Hardcover]
-Russell A. Olsen
Route 66 Lost & Found: Ruins and Relics Revisited, Volume 2
– Russell A. Olsen
Much more than a ribbon of crumbling asphalt, Route 66 is a cultural icon revered the world over for its nostalgia value—an east-west artery pointing America toward all the promise that the great West represented. But as stretches were bypassed and fell into disuse, so too did most of the bustling establishments that had sprouted up from Illinois to California to cater to weary travelers and hopeful vacationers alike.
Motor courts, cafes, main streets, filling stations, and greasy spoons—all are represented in this second volume of Lost & Found images from photographer Russell Olsen. Each site is accompanied by a capsule history tracing the locale’s rise and fall (and sometimes rebirth), as well as an exclusive map pointing out its location along Route 66.
Lonely Planet Road Trip Route 66
– Sara Benson
Get your kicks! Leave the interstate behind and explore this classic American drive with its vintage roadside attractions and stunning natural beauty.
* Eclectic Americana - see the Gemini Giant, the Cadillac Ranch, the Jackrabbit Trading Post and countless other Route 66 icons
* Natural Treasures - explore the Painted Desert, the Petrified Forest, the Grand Canyon and the Mojave Desert
* Historic Sights - visit Civil War battle fields, presidential homes, Native American pueblos and Old West towns
* Where to Stay - bed down in a wigwam, a 1930s motor court or a room fit for the King
* Road Food - load up on apple pie, BBQ, fried chicken, milkshakes, chili and gigantic steaks
* Trusty Maps - find hidden stretches of the old road with our detailed maps and directions
Route 66 Souvenirs [Paperback]
-Alan Rose
A book of memorabilia commemorating the USA’s best-known highway, complete with 24 easy-to-assemble die-cut buildings, classic postcards and two sheets of license plate slogan stickers.
Route 66: The Empires of Amusement [Hardcover]
– Thomas Arthur Repp
Route 66: The Empires of Amusement is, quite simply, the first book ever written to examine in detail the lives of the most overlooked group of people on America’s favorite highway: the tourist attraction operators. From Whoopee Coasters to show caves, snake pits to trading posts with piano-playing chickens, Route 66: The Empires of Amusement goes to the families themselves for their stories, and then tells those stories in full. It tells tales of Blue Whales and prairie dog towns. Sweethearts who smooched between buffalo burgers. Route 66: The Empires of Amusement showcases these stories with over 200 color and vintage photographs – many taken from the personal collections of the old entrepreneurs themselves. Their discovery completes a package guaranteed to take you back to those days when happiness was a rubber tomahawk. And getting there was all the fun.
The Man who put the Lights along Route 66
– Edna Jacquelyn Stiles Kirkis
James Harland Stiles was the man who put the lights on Route 66 when America was beginning to find herself again.
He built a business in an era of American progress with light, paint, and design. His artistry lit up the highways with glowing, innovative signs.
The gleam of his neon glass acted as a beacon for travelers searching for a good meal, or for respite at one of the new ‘motor hotels.’
Route 66: 2,297 Miles from Chicago to LA [Hardcover]
– Nick Freeth
“Route 66: 2,297 Miles from Chicago to LA” leads you from Illinois to California, presenting narratives that trace the course of the highway across each state, with an overview of the road’s early history & construction in the 1920s. An odometer-map timeline at the top of the page ticks off the miles traveled as you read and see featured sights. Recent photography and entertaining text highlight the road’s many colorful landmarks, people, & places. Although eclipsed by interstate freeways in the 1970s, the magic and mystique of Route 66 has never died. The impact of Route 66 on American culture rekindles the magic of the road and the spirit of times gone by.
Roadside USA: Route 66 and Beyond
– Shellee Graham
Roadside USA: Route 66 and Beyond is a collection of 30 detachable color postcards. With heritage tourism now among the fastest growing industries in America, motorists in search of adventure are hitting the road in greater numbers than ever before. Along the way, the fun of sending postcards provides a great opportunity to share the journey in real time and to create personalized souvenirs. The images in Roadside USA represent a grab bag of roadside vignettes from around the country – everything from forgotten motels and classic cars to dazzling neon.
Route 66 Road Trip Family Fun [Paperback]
– James H Roche
Route 66 Road Trip Family Fun: Fun Places to take the Kids on Famous Route 66.
‘Kid Friendly’ attractions in all 8 States on Route 66.
Many attractions on Route 66 complete with photos and websites.
Fun Route 66 facts and pictures for the kids to color.
Road Trip Down Route 66 [Paperback]
– Angie Crosser Matt Crosser
This book of photos represent a journey on the great american road trip down one of the most famous highways in the world, Route 66. There are more than 100 photos of ghost towns, old towns, landscapes and more. You can smell the travel dust as you view the pictures and you will be inspired to see these sights for yourself in person.
