Eight states, three time zones and a ton of history: Take a trip down Route 66 as it turns 100

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — If you’ve ever planned to motor west and take the highway that’s the best, this might be the time: Route 66 turns 100 this year.

The Mother Road, as author John Steinbeck dubbed it, has evolved over the years from an escape for poor farmers fleeing the devastating dust storms of the 1930s to perhaps the quintessential American road trip that’s still delivering kicks.

Although there have been faster and more direct routes between the nation’s second- and third-largest cities for some time, Route 66’s neon still burns brightly and its vintage signs beckon travelers to restored motor lodges, classic diners and roadside attractions.

Each stop turns the wheels of the imagination, leaving travelers to contemplate what life was like for the people and communities that have made the road hum over the years.

Chicago has long been one of the country’s economic engines, with access to international waters and railroads that linked all corners of the country. In the 1920s, Oklahoma businessman Cyrus Avery, known as the Father of Route 66, knew it wouldn’t be long before automobiles would dominate the transportation landscape, and the Windy City would be the perfect place to start the journey he envisioned.

A member of the federal highway board appointed to map the U.S. highway system, Avery opted to go with the number 66. He knew those double digits were ripe for marketing and could be seared into the minds of motorists.

For some travelers, the journey is fueled more by the food than the scenery, and there’s plenty to choose from — slices of homemade pie, thick shakes, cheeseburgers and an assortment of fried delights.

The Cozy Dog Drive In in Springfield, the Illinois capital, is one of the many diners that sprang up along Route 66, and its breaded hot dogs on a stick have stood the test of time. Third-generation owner Josh Waldmire says the recipe is a secret.

Waldmire’s grandfather, Ed, saw the concoction’s potential as fast and convenient road food and developed a system for frying the dogs vertically.

Route 66 has its share of twists and turns, and it’s no surprise that a highway famous for its quirky roadside attractions would cross the nation’s most famous river on one of the more peculiar bridges known to modern engineering.

As the road nears St. Louis, the mile-long (1.6-kilometer-long) Chain of Rocks Bridge hovers more than 60 feet (18 meters) above the Mississippi River.

Engineers eventually built a straighter, higher-speed option, and a poor resale market spared the original bridge from the scrap heap. Today it’s reserved for pedestrians and cyclists.

A median in Missouri is home to St. Robert Route 66 Neon Park, which features orphaned neon signs that once beckoned travelers to stop at certain sites and businesses along the highway. Often handcrafted, they weren’t only markers for motels, cafes and gas stations, but were also folk art and symbols of local culture.

The Sunflower State hosts only a short stretch of Route 66, but it packs a punch with the Kan-O-Tex Service Station in Galena. A classic example of roadside fare, the station served as inspiration for the animated 2006 Pixar film “Cars.”

Director John Lasseter and his crew took road trips along the route, digging into history and looking for elements that could bring the project to life. It was in Galena where they spotted the old boom truck that served as the basis for the character Tow Mater. The plot wasn’t far off, as so many once bustling towns — like the fictional Radiator Springs — nearly faded away after being bypassed by an interstate.

Kansas also is home to the Brush Creek Bridge, otherwise known as the Rainbow Bridge. It’s on the National Register of Historic Places and is one of few remaining examples of the concrete arched bridges designed by James Barney Marsh.

There was a real danger for some who traveled the road, particularly Black motorists passing through inhospitable and segregated areas during the Jim Crow era. The Green Book — a guide first published in 1936 by Victor Hugo Green — listed hotels, restaurants and gas stations that would serve Black customers.

The Threatt Filling Station near Luther wasn’t listed in The Green Book, but it was a safe haven — not only for getting fuel, but for barbecue and baseball. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it was the only known Black-owned and operated gas station along Route 66.

Route 66 is littered with abandoned buildings and faded signs, but one example of the highway’s resilient spirit stands tall in Sapulpa, near Tulsa. The restored Tee Pee Drive-In Theater offers a step back into the 1950s, when the booming car culture helped spawn thousands of drive-in theaters nationwide.

Built in 1949, the drive-in officially opened in the spring of 1950 with a screening of John Wayne’s “Tycoon.” It was one of the few drive-ins at the time to have paved pathways. Over the years, it survived a tornado, a fire that destroyed the concession stand and break-ins before being shuttered for more than 20 years. It reopened in 2023.

Blink and you might miss it, but a stop at the Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo is a must for any Route 66 journey. For decades, visitors have been spray-painting the 10 vintage Cadillacs at the site and mulling the transitory nature of time as Bruce Springsteen did in his 1980 song of the same name.

It’s not a ranch, but rather a public art installation created in 1974 by the art and architecture collective Ant Farm. At first, the cars — which were half-buried front-down at a 60-degree angle — were used for target practice. Others would scratch their initials into the metal. The spray painting started later.

Arrive in Adrian and you’re halfway through your trip. Steps from a white line marking the midpoint of Route 66 is the Midway Cafe, where the “ugly pies” are anything but.

If you’re still hungry, head back to Amarillo for a 72-ounce (2 kilogram) steak and all the sides at The Big Texan. If you can finish the meal in an hour or less, it's free.

More than half of Route 66 cuts through sovereign Native American lands, often tracing routes used by tribes long before settlers arrived. Much like the railroad in the 1800s, the highway opened the door to a new era of commerce, but it also fueled stereotypes about cultures along the way.

There are still faded and crumbling references to tipis and feathered headdresses at some stops along the historic highway. The symbols were easily appropriated for marketing by roadside vendors but weren't indicative of the separate and distinct Native American cultures in the area.

Today, tribes are telling their own stories and showcasing their creations, whether it be pottery, fruit pies or poems.

Albuquerque boasts the longest intact urban stretch of Route 66. Those 18 miles (29 kilometers) pass through several neighborhoods and business districts, from historic Old Town to Nob Hill.

Some of the old motor lodges and neon signs along what is now Central Avenue have been restored. Other signs are being reimagined using hubcaps, elaborate lowrider-inspired paint jobs and New Mexico’s classic yellow and red license plates in a nod to the car culture that is very much still alive in the city.

Musician Jackson Browne was taking his own road trip in the early 1970s when his car left him stranded in Winslow. The experience inspired the lyrics to the Eagles’ hit “Take it Easy.” But it’s certainly not the only song that is a must-have for a Route 66 playlist.

Bobby Troup created a classic American road anthem in the 1940s with “(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66.” Nat King Cole, Chuck Berry, The Rolling Stones and Depeche Mode carried it through the decades, each covering the song with their own flair.

While standing on a corner in Winslow, don’t be surprised if someone saunters up with a guitar and starts strumming favorites from their own road trip playlist.

Before leaving the state, the one-time gold mining town of Oatman features a Wild West atmosphere, daily staged shootouts and beloved burros. Oatman was a destination along one of the original alignments of Route 66 via a treacherous path through the Black Mountains, but it was later bypassed as part of improvements made in the 1950s.

Once a desert oasis, Roy’s Motel & Café in Amboy is a quintessential Route 66 landmark. The towering neon sign is one of the most photographed spots along the road. Inside, foreign currency left by international visitors lines one wall. Across the street, a clothing post decorated with shoes, shirts and other items juts up from the desert floor.

This stretch of the highway through the Mojave Desert offers a special kind of solitude. The pavement gets rough in spots and the landscape takes charge, showing off Joshua trees, wide-open spaces and the remnants of ancient volcanic activity.

Much of the area is undeveloped, meaning it looks a lot like it would have when Route 66 was commissioned in 1926.

After making it through oft-congested Los Angeles, the iconic Santa Monica Pier marks the end of the line, and it’s nothing short of a perpetual party with a steady stream of spectators and performers. Although many stretches of Route 66 have lapsed into decay, the breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean are a reminder of the pursuits made possible by the road over the last century.

Associated Press writers John O’Connor in Springfield, Illinois, and Sean Murphy in Oklahoma City contributed to this report.

Motorists cross the historic Colorado Street Bridge in the foreground, a Route 66 landmark in Pasadena, Calif., Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Edward Threatt, speaking in front of a photograph of his grandfather Allen Threatt Sr., is interviewed at the Threatt Filling Station along Route 66 in Luther, Okla., Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Terry and Christie Partee visit Route 66 Neon Park inside George M. Reed Roadside Park along historic Route 66 in St. Robert, Mo., Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

A customer picks up their order at the Cozy Dog Drive In, in Springfield, Ill., Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Customers at Cozy Dog Drive In have lunch in Springfield, Ill., Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Traffic passes under a neon Route 66 sign on the west end of Albuquerque, New Mexico, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

An Israeli strike killed at least four people in northern Gaza, including two children, hospital officials said Thursday. The Israeli military said the attack killed a militant.

Separately, Iranian-backed Houthi rebels seized Yemen's strategic Red Sea port city of Mokha, according to Houthi and Yemeni officials, bringing the rebels closer to controlling a critical waterway to the Red Sea.

Here’s a look at the latest news in the Middle East. Full coverage can be found here.

Two children were among the dead after Israel carried out a new strike in the northern Gaza community of Beit Lahiya, according to Shifa Hospital, where the bodies were taken.

The strike killed a husband and wife, alongside their two daughters, aged 8 and 12.

“There is nothing that can justify Israel attacking this home,” said Zuheir al-Heisami, a neighbor of the family, at the hospital. He said the strike happened at around 2 a.m. “These were two children and their parents that were killed while they were asleep.”

The Israeli military in a statement said the strike in Beit Lahiya “eliminated” a militant who had taken part in attacks against its forces. It did not give details.

Israel’s military in the past has said it carries out strikes in response to threats against its forces under the fragile ceasefire that has been in place since October.

The Iran-backed Houthi rebel group on Thursday took over Yemen’s port city of Mokha, Houthi and Yemeni officials said.

Mokha is about 80 kilometers (50 miles) from the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a strategic waterway between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden through which about 12% of the world’s oil and other goods are shipped.

The Bab el-Mandeb has become even more important for global energy supplies since shipping through the nearby Strait of Hormuz was disrupted by Iran after it was attacked by the United States and Israel in February.

The Houthis’ takeover of Mokha was confirmed to The Associated Press by Ahmed Baash, a commander with the National Resistance Forces allied with Yemen’s government, and Hazam al-Assad, a member of the Houthis’ political bureau.

Algeria's government announced on Thursday that it’s severing diplomatic ties with the United Arab Emirates.

An Algerian Foreign Ministry statement read on state television gave no specific reason for the decision, but cited alleged “provocative and hostile actions” by the Gulf Arab state and “regrettable and unjustified behavior.”

The UAE’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it hoped Algeria’s decision ends up being temporary, and that ultimately their "fraternal ties” will be preserved.

Lebanon’s mission to the United Nations has accused Israel of committing nearly 2,000 “land, air and sea violations” of Lebanon’s sovereignty during the month of July, according to a letter to the U.N.

The letter, published Thursday on the U.N. website, did not give details of the alleged violations. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Israel occupies a large swath of southern Lebanon it seized during a ground invasion after Hezbollah militants began firing rockets across the border into Israel in March.

Lebanon and Israel reached an agreement in June that calls for Israel to withdraw from occupied areas in exchange for Hezbollah’s disarmament. Implementation has largely stalled, with Israel continuing airstrikes as it accuses Hezbollah of attacking its forces.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned Iran of a “powerful response” if Israel is attacked, saying it would “inflict severe damage on Iran of a kind it has not yet suffered, including on its central energy facilities.”

Katz's video statement came after Iran launched missiles at U.S. targets earlier this week in Jordan, Israel’s eastern neighbor, in response to U.S. strikes on Iranian oil tankers.

Palestinians gather around the bodies of members of the Ahmed family, including the parents and their two children, who were killed in an Israeli army strike, at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Palestinians sit beside the bodies of members of the Ahmed family, including the parents and their two children, who were killed in an Israeli army strike, at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

A Yemen's Houthi rebel chews Qat as he marches during a mobilization campaign in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo)

Yemen's Houthi rebels gather during a mobilization campaign in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo)

Yemen's Houthi rebels march during a mobilization campaign in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo)

Yemen's Houthi rebels walk carrying weapons during a mobilization campaign in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026.(AP Photo)

A fighter with Yemen’s Houthi rebels carries a rocket-propelled grenade launcher as they march during a mobilization campaign in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo)

A worker prepares gas cylinders for refilling at a gas station in Mahra, Yemen, Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdulnasser Alseddik)