Since becoming involved with CC over a decade ago, one of my observations in various travels around the United States is how the automotive environment greatly differs from region to region. To the uninitiated it would seem there would be some degree of consistency since the U.S. is simply one, single country. But there isn’t.
Compare the United States to Europe; whereas Europe covers 3.9 million square miles and consists of around fifty sovereign nations with many native languages, the United States consists of 3.8 million square miles containing forty-eight non-sovereign states (on the continental portion anyway) with one official language (although many are spoken). Differences around Europe are to be expected, so it only stands to reason similar would be the case within the U.S.
So what am I leading up to?
On a recent road trip from my current home to Fort Worth, Texas and back (a distance comparable to going from Paris to Prague), I didn’t see anything mobile that would generate much in the way of interest. It was all too new or too common – or, most likely, hidden. But if one takes the word “mobile” out of the equation, that’s a different critter entirely.
A few of our stops contained a goodly number of interesting static displays, with the cumulative outcome being worthy of a post.
Springfield, Missouri
I’ve been to Springfield countless times over the years. We left for Fort Worth late in the day and Springfield was about 2.5 hours into our 9 hours of driving.
With a current population of 170,000 Springfield saw tremendous growth during the 1960s, with every census since 1980 reflecting population growth having exceeded 5.2% in the previous decade. Sitting thirty-five miles north of tourist-centric Branson, Springfield is the home of the Bass Pro Shop outdoor stores and headquarters for O’Reilly Auto Parts.
Springfield also served as the birthplace to the infamous Route 66 although this claim is a bit confusing. A century ago there had been robust debate along the corridor on what number to use for this new highway, with Springfield being the place in which the various players met and the “66” moniker was decided upon.
Springfield has taken this distinction and ran with it.
We stayed at the Rail Haven Motel at the corner of Glenstone and St. Louis Street. While currently under the Best Western umbrella, this hotel has been around for decades. We had stayed there a number of years ago, and two mid-1950s Fords were on static display then, but someone has branched out in what is on offer.
Plus, if you can combine Route 66 with static cars and Elvis Presley, that must be a trifecta of sorts.
This particular 1955 Ford was on display during our last visit. At one time this Customline had been green but it has become blue over the years.
The interior is still green with some blue for good measure; I’m thinking the seat has been refurbished since our last visit. Daughter sat in the driver’s seat during our last stay as the cars had been unlocked for guests to sit in and enjoy. At that time there was also a blue 1956 Ford sedan, but it must currently be on a sabbatical.
It was during the prior visit we were told both Fords were licensed and operable. I’m uncertain of this one’s current status.
A two-door sedan powered by a straight six hooked to a three-speed transmission, this Ford Customline should find favor with quite a few of those reading this.
Whoever chose the cars currently on display is not only a Ford fan, but they have done a very good job of covering distinctly different time periods.
Case in point is this Ford Model A. There is something so simple yet elegant with these. Perhaps this affinity was fueled by having driven a 1929 Model A sedan many years ago.
This hotel, like many others, serves a breakfast. It was quite relaxing to sit outside, consuming a carbohydrate heavy breakfast, while gazing upon this Model A.
However, had I chosen to walk across the parking lot, there was another option for breakfast entertainment, something that is far removed from this Model A in the automotive spectrum.
A most magnificent Lincoln Mark V, the one seen in the lead photo.
I’ll be honest; this isn’t my favorite color on these, this Lincoln is of a size that would make it a real pain to drive in some locations, and the overhangs are not diminutive. Yet the overall package annihilates the various nit-picks, making this one of the best looking Lincolns of the post-war era…at least in my delightfully subjective opinion.
Ford did an outstanding job on these. I’d love to have one. When we arrived at the hotel, I quit unpacking the van to go look at this Lincoln.
While there was nothing to denote the year, it is a 1977 to 1979 model. Frankly, for being on static display, I hope it’s a ’79. Those had the puny 400 cubic inch (6.6 liter) V8 whereas the earlier ones had the unparalleled 460 (7.5 liters of awesome). It would be a shame to have a 460 languishing in this type of (non)use.
In an ostensibly non-static use was the motel’s Chevrolet Astro. It, too, was here the last time I was. If it is no longer roadworthy, it still looks great.
Might these be the Cockroach of Minivans?
Conway, Missouri
We are backtracking east about forty miles for this.
One should not discount the popularity of Route 66, especially if the State of Missouri is using it as a theme for a rest area / welcome center.
Even the picnic tables continue the theme in a very creative way. This particular setting was near the main building where one’s business is conducted. More of these can be seen in the background, with each having a unique facade representing some type of automotive or travel related business.
Even the sidewalk accessing them has had a centerline painted down the middle.
The lobby of the main building shows a map of the entirety of Route 66 with noteworthy locations along the way. While there is a glare blocking it, this map serves as a reminder that Route 66 touched the very southeastern tip of Kansas.
Galena, Kansas
While this is about the third name for this town, the name Galena has remained constant since 1877. Named for a type of lead ore, Galena’s population peaked in 1900 and has been in a steady contraction since and is currently at 2,761 persons. After World War II, Galena was the largest producer of ammonium nitrate fertilizer in the world. Antimony, zinc, and cadmium have also been mined at Galena, in addition to lead.
Galena sits in the very southeastern corner of Kansas, about six miles from Joplin, Missouri, and about five miles from the point at which Missouri, Kansas, and Oklahoma meet. This concrete monument is akin to the Four Corners Monument where Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah meet.
Stand there and you can claim to be in three places at once.
Around 2006 Galena garnered another Route 66 themed recognition for itself. That is when the Disney / Pixar film Cars was released, a film with the trajectory of Route 66 being a subplot.
One of the automotive characters was Tow Mater. The producers of Cars traveled Route 66 for inspiration and they had an epiphany in Galena.
Sources differ, but based upon information found on-site in Galena, this 1951 International served as the inspiration for Tow Mater.
However, it appears there may have been some other influences for Tow Mater.
This Chevrolet tow truck was also found in Galena and sits next to the International. Sources vary about which served as the true inspiration. My thought is the ultimate Tow Mater character is likely an amalgam of these two trucks with a little bit of creative liberty sprinkled in for good measure.
Both were found at this very photogenic former gas station.
Here’s a closer view of the Chevrolet fire truck seen on the left in the last picture.
Like Springfield having ran with the Route 66 connection, Galena has also ran with the Cars connection.
Sitting a stone’s throw behind this former gas station is Luigi’s Pit Stop, another Cars-themed attraction.
It was hard to determine if Luigi was still of one piece or not.
While the sheriff always seemed to have a Mercury vibe about him, it’s definitely Buick here.
In the movie there was a joke about seeing the Sheriff’s undercarriage – well, it is now on full display. Birds have built nests in the coil springs of the rear suspension. The straight-eight is still present and accounted for.
Lightning McQueen…this use for an old Camaro (or Firebird) could be preferable to the general alternative which seems to be the second through eleventh owners treating the poor car like it’s the fastest accelerating thing to have ever been manufactured by General Motors.
But there was one more stop in Galena…
The presentation would be incomplete without a Hudson.
Note the pistons holding the chain. This Hudson was sitting in a second former gas station on the opposite end of the downtown area from the International. This Hudson will be the first of these various displays one will see when coming from I-44.
It was nice to see a two-door Hudson being used. While I hate to see such a solid Hudson being used in a static display, this type of use certainly beats the alternative of languishing in some field or barn, never to be enjoyed again. Seeing this brings a smile to your face.
As an aside, that Ford van was anything but static on this trip. Never would I have ever guessed I would still own that oafish thing after thirteen years nor would have I ever guessed about having no concerns in taking a now twenty-three year old vehicle on a four state, 1,500 mile round trip. The only preparation I performed was changing the (still original) heater hoses and checking the oil. It now has just under 140,000 miles, which is no special achievement for that 5.4 liter. Fuel economy was nothing to brag about, running a shade over 16 miles per gallon, but the speed limits through Oklahoma were as high was 80 miles per hour – and that’s how fast I drove.
Fort Worth, Texas
With a population that is greater than that of Seattle (18th largest), Denver (19th largest), and Boston (25th largest), Fort Worth is now the 13th most populated city in the nation. In a conversation with a local, I mentioned how Fort Worth has always seemed like the southern equivalent to St. Paul, Minnesota – it is overshadowed by Dallas (9th largest), much like Minneapolis (46th largest) tends to grab the attention from St. Paul (67th largest).
He liked the analogy.
The growth of Fort Worth has been tremendous; the US Census Bureau estimated the population of Fort Worth to be 535,000 in 2000; their 2022 estimate is 957,000 – a 79% increase, making it one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. While some cities are shrinking, Fort Worth certainly isn’t.
While cattle is what built Fort Worth, and there is still a longhorn cattle drive at the stockyards twice daily, local industry now extends far beyond cattle. In addition to the ongoing cattle industry, GM Financial is headquartered in Fort Worth as is American Airlines and the BNSF (Burlington-Northern Santa Fe) Railway.
Yet it is in the old, historic stockyards in which my Fort Worth automotive sightings occurred.
Found outside a store within the covered shop area of the stockyards, this Cadillac was a sight to behold. The longhorns up front only add to its already indelible aura.
For whatever reason, whenever my wife and I travel, we invariably encounter someone from the United Kingdom. Such happened again here. As I was waiting for a clear shot of this Cadillac, a gentleman of about sixty walked up to this Cadillac and gave it the once-over. He then yelled out to his wife “It’s bloody enormous – I love it!”.
It is always great fun to see people reacting to cars in which they have likely had little exposure.
As an aside, I found a store selling horns similar to what is on this Cadillac. I briefly entertained the idea of mounting a pair on the hood of my Ford van – why not?
The gentleman was right – this is a big car. For whatever reason these Eldorado’s have always reminded me of Hector the Bulldog from Warner Brothers cartoons – massive upfront and it all tapers off toward the back.
Despite the weathering on this old girl she looks ready to be fired up and driven wherever.
The Fort Worth Stockyards is more of an area than a specific location. It contains shops, restaurants, bars, and hotels. One of the hotels owns this Chevrolet.
Parked on the sidewalk, my guess is this old girl is there as a landmark, so people know where to turn to get to the hotel as it is located behind the main thoroughfare of the stockyards. They chose well in mobile landmarks.
Which leads us to our last find, this flatbed Chevrolet. It is marked as belonging to a maintenance crew – those lucky guys. It was licensed as recently as 2022 and I saw it sitting in two different locations, so maybe it’s only static-y.
Normally static displays bother me. Yet none of these did. Why is that? Perhaps it is because being on display has extended their useful lives, similar to what I mentioned about the Hudson. Many people would shy away from driving many of these – too big, too thirsty, too slow, lacking safety equipment. But to see them is to enjoy them.
I am glad I discovered them.
All were seen June 20 to 26, 2023
Great story, Jason. Really enjoyed reading it!
Thank you. It was fun learning what I did when diving into some of the specifics about these various places.
Being only 12 miles long, the Kansas stretch has to be the most consciously-traveled stretch of Route 66. That is, not the most heavily traveled overall – that would go to various alignments within Chicago, Los Angeles, and maybe St. Louis and OKC – but most traveled by people who aren’t “doing 66” but find themselves in either Joplin or northeastern Oklahoma and decide to drive the Kansas stretch and at least touch wheels on the other side to say they visited another two states.
Likely so. For the unaware, it sounds pretty good to hear “yeah, I drove all of Route 66 in Kansas”.
Nice narrative. Having routine business in Dallas, I’ve driven the route you describe many times. Sad to say, I never took the time to see the sights you’ve described. Next trip, I’ll take that extra time now that you’ve pointed out the error of my ways.
Maintained and functional beats static by a mile, but that’s not to say that static displays aren’t worth the effort. I think they can enrich a place, adding an element of interest and history.
” It is always great fun to see people reacting to cars in which they have likely had little exposure.”
This is especially the case with children. Things kids see on a trip have the potential to make lifelong impressions, and being exposed to classic cars like this can give them a taste of the appeal of old cars with their different proportions and chrome and effusive styling.
I’ve never taken the opportunity to drive Route 66, but I’m not surprised there would be a lot of static displays along there. Seems like the ideal place given the history.
I have been to the Ft. Worth Stockyards. There’s a passenger train for tourists that runs from Grapevine (Dallas suburb) to the stockyards. Takes about an hour. You board in Grapevine with a choice of closed or open train car, get off in the stockyards and spend a couple hours toodling around there, then take the hour ride back. It’s a lot of fun, especially with young kids or if you just love trains.
Very true – I enjoy seeing my kids’ reactions to oddball cars. Sometimes they’re unimpressed; sometimes they love it, and there there’s the GM Dusbuster vans.
Recently, I came across an Olds Silhouette in a parking lot. My daughter was with me and thought it was absolutely bizarre looking – which surprised me a bit, since “weird” car designs are much more common now. But she said “Something that weird shouldn’t be allowed to exist!” I’ll now think of that whenever I encounter one of those GM minivans. Very amusing.
I stayed at the Rail Haven last summer. I like old motels that allow you to drive right up to your door, when they are as well maintained as this one. The Lincoln was there, but the Model A is a new addition since then.
We may be one country with one official language, but reading this reminds me how very different the many parts of the US are, both in their natural qualities as well as the human aspects.
I’m an advocate for traveling as far and wide as one can go; but I will say that if necessary, one could spend a lifetime traveling just the U.S. and they could discover something new and unique and fascinating everywhere they went.
The sheer number of things to see in any given state is amazing. Things that can be found in the least likely of places are generally the most satisfying.
Plus, whenever I visit various places, be it Fort Worth, Galena, or even Los Angeles about six weeks ago, I invariably ponder what it would have been like to grow up there (or even live there now) and how my life would be different had I done so.
Here’s another data point from a few hours ago to add to the human aspect…
In a rural area, I stumbled upon a small bank. The building was rather new, perhaps ten years at most, of a modest size but quite nice. The large gravel parking lot contained both a hitching post and a watering trough. This was an area populated with Amish, so it obviously serves them.
Lived in the SEK/Tri-state area for several yrs. Loved it, mostly. Thank you for an entertaining post and fun pics.
I can relate to this post, since I just returned from a road trip to Wisconsin and Michigan, and of course similarly kept an eye out for unusual vehicles, signs, or geographic markers.
Overall, I came across more interesting cars during that trip than I had expected, and resultantly became a bit picky about what I’d stop and photograph (largely to reduce eye-rolls from my patient traveling companions). The Travelall I posted yesterday made the cut, as did a Pontiac limousine that I found on static display in Wisconsin. Static car displays typically annoy me, but I make exceptions for some oddball car that I’ve never seen before.
Some random comments:
Tri-State Marker: I’m glad you stopped at the Tri-State Marker – I stood on that exact spot a few years ago, being the sucker for geographic oddities that I am. I also recommend the KS-CO-NE Tri-State marker, if you’re ever out that way.
Galena: I didn’t know that Galena was a type of lead ore. I was just in Galena, IL recently, and I’ve been to Galena, MD as well – I just assumed it was a generic name.
Cars: Am I the only one who’s never seen that movie?
Ft. Worth: Ft. Worth’s population has grown a great deal in recent decades, though to be fair, some of that has to do with annexations. The City has annexed 61 sq. mi. of land since 2000, which is where much of that new development went. Still a lot of growth, but cities in many states can’t annex at all, so that’s helpful for perspective.
Longhorns: Even if you chose not to buy a set of horns for our van at the store there, don’t worry, there’s plenty of online retailers as well. I know this because one of my daughters loves taxidermy, so we bought her a pair of longhorns for her room. I declined to mount a pair on our minivan, however.
Your Van: Congratulations on making good use of the van. “Oafish” – great description.
Oh no! You can’t get picky about what you photograph also…but welcome to the club!
I did see a fairly original looking ’57 Chevrolet wagon in Oklahoma but did not photograph it. Why? I didn’t feel like stopping plus it was in a carport, so I skipped it.
Some other thoughts…
Cars: My child is older than yours are. She was in the prime demographic at the time.
Fort Worth: The annexation element does help explain part of it. The city limits extended a goodly distance north along I-35W.
Longhorns: A set may look better on my Dodge pickup.
The Van: I suspect I’ll still own that thing in another 13 years. It’s starting to show its age in small regards (such as the front stabilizer bar bushing popping out) but it’s still cheap to own.
That sounds like and looks like a great trip.
One of the things I love finding are towns like Galena that truly lean into something that can make them special. I’ve never seen the whole Cars movie (so, no Eric, there’s at least 2 of us), but I will give Galena credit for making the most out of their connection. I hope it’s paying off for them.
I really believe that it would be possible to chart out a nearly infinite number of road trips in the U.S. where on most days several such locations/stops could be visited.
If a person stays off the interstate, there is a lot to see. We ventured off the interstate at a town in Oklahoma about fifty miles east of OKC. It was a terrific small town and it gave an entirely different presentation of Oklahoma than does I-44 or I-35.
One of my goals is to start traveling around the country, finding these less publicized but still fascinating places to visit. There are an abundance of them, such as the vacuum cleaner museum about an hour south of me. They even admit the museum sucks!
Wait!?! So there’s TWO vacuum cleaner museums in the US? Last year when we were in Idaho, I had wanted to go to this one, but sadly our time there ran out (got sucked up?) before we could make it:
https://museumofclean.com/exhibit/vacuum-collection/
Oh, and if you do start traveling around the country to obscure places, I highly recommend creating an account here:
http://www.mob-rule.com
…where you can map your travels by county. With 3,144 counties in the US, it takes a while to fill the map up.
Well, there had been two. The one in St. James closed. So now the one in Idaho is operating in a vacuum.
https://www.vacuummuseum.com
I think I’ve been to most of the 20 most visited counties at mob-rule. Not sure if that’s good or not. I can safely say I’ve been to none of the 20 least visited.
So, I just checked out the mob-rule site…and I’ve been to #20 in the least-visited list! Boonesville, KY is in Owsley County. I’ve visited the high school (Owsley County High School). 🙂
Figured I’d go back and check, and I’ve been to 4 of the least-visited 20 (3 in ND and 1 on Montana).
I’ve been to 17 of the Most-Visited counties, with the exceptions being Los Angeles, Clark NV (Las Vegas) and Suffolk, MA.
Jason, one of my goals as well.
Very much so.
Great write-up. Enjoyed all the pics along Route 66. Love history. The old cars made up to look like the characters in the “Cars” movie are super!
Jason, I super-enjoyed this post! It brings to mind many things I look forward to when traveling by car. I’ve purchasing a few pictures books recently about roadside attractions, Americana, and the like.
It’s interesting to learn that Route 66 didn’t originate in Chicago. I used to pass Route 66’s terminal point in The Loop (Jackson & Franklin) regularly while in the way to and from the office. I suppose terminal point does not equal origin.
The Lincoln Mark V is still my all-time favorite Lincoln. We are in agreeance.
And the Rail Haven is just the kind of place I would seek out.
Just a great post as we hurtle toward the weekend…
Thank you. Having all these various pictures this just seemed like the way to provide some continuity and flow among them.
Perhaps you need a Mark V to keep your future Matador company. 🙂
Wait…you mean that it didn’t start in the Loop in Chicago?
Dang, I was really counting on that after I took this pic in March of this year 🙂
From that floor map of Route 66, I realized that I had thought the route was a more northerly passageway, at least in the Missouri/Illinois area. I do think that it ran all the way to Los Angeles. Interesting story, great read.
Former hockey coach and (former because he said the wrong thing at the wrong time one too many times) broadcaster Don Cherry had one of those Lincolns, possibly still does. I’ve seen him driving it around here.
Please move sir, so we can see that car…
Excellent travel report! And the moment I read “Fort Worth, Texas” I thought of Johnny Dowd’s song with that title.
Hi Jason!
Nice story and photos!
I’m the PR manager at the Springfield, MO, Convention & Visitors Bureau and would like to discuss another story idea with you.
Hope to hear from you soon!
I feel some connection to the early part of your Route 66, in 1993-94 we lived in Joplin Missouri and regularly drove to Springfield and Tulsa for things Joplin lacked. We also broke in our new Ford Ranger by getting shakes at the Sonic on Route 66 as the most all American act we could think of. We never got to Galena but a coworker in Joplin was form Galena and was memorable for both poor automotive decision making and describing almost every adult male of his acquaintance as “mean”.
I’ve never been to Ft.Worth but I have seen seen several Longhorn herd in Oregon and those horns really are that wide and I’ve seen them for sale
Fun fact: the USA does not actually have an official language. Everyone assumes it’s English, but there is no national/federal language.
“http://www.mob-rule.com”
Gee thanks, just killed an hour and I’m sure more to come.
On the static cars, I enjoy seeing them. Ranging from a black and white, perhaps Bluesmobile 20 feet up on a pole, to a Motel in I forget, AZ or NM, on old 66 of course, where every room had a vintage car parked outside, not running. That would have been worth a few extra bucks to me to stay at if I’d known in advance. I’m sure I’ve got a pic somewhere, but I can’t find it at the moment.
I spent so much time on that mob-rule.com site a couple of years back, trying to color-code all my various travels over the decades. But I never finished the job; it got too complicated!
Maybe the motel you’re referring to is the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook, AZ? Below is a photo I took back in 2007, featuring a Hudson, a ’52-’54 Ford, and a VW Beetle.
And here is a link to website of the motel, still operating today, with the same Hudson featured: https://sleepinawigwam.com/
Thank you for a great travel log. I took a month long, solo motorcycle trip around the country in 1979, which was the height of the gas crisis. I figured if gas rationing ever became law, I might never get another chance!
Seeing so many different parts of the country, actually going through them, gave me a very interesting perspective on being an American. The country is so big, so varied in geography and history, but we are united in our identity as Americans. We are all a bit chauvinistic about our home towns and states. Travelling by car, but especially by motorcycle, leads to a lot of encounters with the real people that make up our country. Sure beats flying over huge areas of the country to get to your destination, though I realize that can’t always be avoided.
I’d been over some of Route 66 back in the ’70’s though it wasn’t as big a deal back then. It hadn’t enjoyed the revival that came after the Millennium. Many towns had abandoned areas with fenced off motels and restaurants. About six years ago, My Wife and I went from Phoenix AZ up through Jerome then headed west at Flagstaff. We followed 66 through Seligman as I had to stop at Delgadillo’s Ice Cap and Angel’s barber
shop/ museum. Same name, but no relation, at least as far as I know. We left at San Bernadino to head north. I explained to my Wife that at one time there was constant heavy traffic on this road, even on the now remote portions, though that is hard to believe that when you drive it Today.
Route 66 is a great piece of Americana that can be enjoyed by everyone. It is really more about a state of mind than the actual place.
Earlier this year, I took a detour on old 66 through Seligman. Headed west into the town, I got a blast from the past noticing a series of new looking Burma Shave signs along 66 headed into town.
Curious about the signs, I looked them up on the internet once I reached my destination of Boulder City, Nevada. I remembered seeing Burma Shave signs as a kid on car trips to visit the Grandparents in Minnesota. At some point, they just all disappeared.
According to the Arizona Highway Department, the signs outside of Seligman are recreations.
https://azdot.gov/adot-blog/our-signs-then-youll-love-original-highway-message-masters
Also, here’s a compilation of the old jingles for those of us that might remember these iconic signs.
http://burma-shave.org/jingles/
I made a stop at the MI-OH-IN tripoint a few years ago. There is a small marker in the middle of a very quiet country road.
The corn is Michigan, the empty field is Ohio, and everything behind me is Indiana.
I agree with t he guy from the UK – that Cadillac is enormous, but I guess it fits Texas.
Nice tale – looking forward to your next trip
Thank you for sharing your road trip and stories .
I learned in the 1960’s that traveling the “blue roads” is usually more interesting although it takes more time .
I enjoy all the ‘CARS’ tributes .
I’ve worked with more than a few immigrants whose first major purchase in the U.S.A. was an American car, usually the biggest one they could afford .
It’s Summer so take ’em out and drive the wheels off ’em . .
-Nate
I always enjoy your travelogues. At your first stop, I love the Model A – someone must have used it to drive because it employs the mid 30’s Ford wire wheels and big balloon tires. And like you, that color is not all that flattering on the Mark V.
The less said about the Eldorado the better. It’s big, I’ll give it that.
Probably 15-20 years ago we had friends/family in both Dallas and Ft. Worth. I was told that Dallas was for transplants chasing affluence while Fort Worth was Dallas for Texans. I don’t know if that is true or not, but your pictures look very different from my experiences in Dallas.
And I am glad to hear that the old E-series is still up for a road trip.