Centennial of Roads that are Criss-crossing

The USA set out on a new course 100 years ago when the US Congress commissioned a series of numbered routes across the country on November 11, 1926.

These routes are so embedded into the fabric of our country.

I think about the way US 20 encmopasses the breadth of the country after visiting its western end in Newport Beach, OR, and its eastern end in Boston, MA.

And I work along it, as my workplace in Addison, IL, is just south of Lake Street.

In Illinois, US 20 is named the Ulysses S. Grant Memorial Highway, since it passes right by Galena, where he once lived.

Another person who made his mark in Illinois has his name on another route.  US 34 in Illinois is named the Walter Payton Memorial Highway.

US 34 is one of many routes that are shorter stretches, but still cover so much ground.  I follow it when riding the California Zephyr train from Chicago out to Denver, which includes Ottumwa, my Grandpa Martin's hometown.

One of the most famous routes no longer officially exists, but Route 66 is having quite an afterlife.

I'm fortunate to live close to its starting point.  I've also visited other spots along it, with some of the most memorable places including Pasadena, CA, near the end point and Miami, OK.  One repeated enjoyable Route 66 experience I've had is dining at Dell Rhea's Chicken Basket in Willowbrook, IL.

I've also driven stretches of it, including the 13.1-mile stretch in the southeast corner of Kansas, and most of its length in Illinois from Lombard Avenue to the Chain of Rocks Bridge on the Mississippi River.

The Illinois State Museum organized a special exhibit to celebrate its centennial, drawn from stories people shared in an Oral History Project, in which I contributed a video sharing about my trip on the Illinois portion of the route.

All the routes encompass distinct swaths of the USA and its culture, some over thousands of miles.  Route 66, even now in its afterlife, strongly evokes Americana culture, and is a draw even outside of the USA.  I once met a couple from the UK at the State Capitol in Springfield who said they planned to drove the entire route.  Another time, I met a group of ladies from Greece who rode the Amtrak Southwest Chief route from Chicago to Albuquerque and then planned to ride Route 66 from Albuquerque west.

Route 66 encompasses a distinct down-to-earth culture of people who followed the land on their journeys, for necessity or for pleasure, served by a mom-and-pop culture of businesses that sought to make a living and connect with people passing on the road.  Those values are still being kept alive with some effort and they still have something to speak about what's best about the USA.

I once convinced my parents to go on a day outing from Oak Park to Pontiac and drive there on Route 66, which was very well-marked by brown signs.  When we reflected at dinner after our Pontiac visit, my Mom noted that people used to travel at a much different pace decades ago.  That reminds me of what Sally says in Cars: "People didn't drive to make great time. They drove to have a great time."

Route 66 still evokes a sense of a bygone era and provides an opportunity to travel at a different pace that's down-to-earth, in which we appreciate we can experience along the way.