The Route 66 Museum in Clinton, Oklahoma

Why would a museum be dedicated to a highway? Because Route 66 is no ordinary highway.

Route 66 was built in 1932 and it runs from Chicago, Illinois, to Los Angeles, California, then known as the "Promised Land." That's 2,400 miles of road! It is different from most other highways because it takes a diagonal course instead of going in a straight line. 

It was designed this way so that small towns would have access to main roads, giving farmers the ability to transport grain and produce. This two-lane road passes through eight states and three time zones.

During the Great Depression, Route 66 was the road from Oklahoma and the Dust Bowl to California and a better life, so it became known as the "road to opportunity." Author John Steinbeck wrote about Route 66 in his classic The Grapes of Wrath, calling it the "Mother Road."

The Route 66 Museum was built in Clinton, Oklahoma, because Route 66 passes through 400 miles of Oklahoma. Dozens of artists have recorded the song "(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66." Have you ever heard it?

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