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ON THE ROAD (AGAIN)
A New Museum Aims to Put Route 66 Back on the Map
by Bill Hendee

Where in the world is the Satellite Café?

When I moved to Lebanon, Missouri in 1995, this was the one question I asked everyone I met, but few people seemed to remember the Route 66 landmark. In fact, just finding the old Mother Road was a project in itself. Once America’s main pipeline from Chicago to the Pacific during the first half of the twentieth century, Route 66 had gradually faded into the background of the cultural consciousness. Although celebrated in books, in music, and on film, the road’s decline began with the creation of the interstate highway system, which bypassed most of the old two lane artery in the 1950s , ‘60s, and ‘70s. The federal government officially decommissioned Route 66 in 1985. Signs marking the highway’s path gradually came down. Some sections of the Mother Road were completely abandoned. In many communities like Lebanon, portions of Route 66 were renamed to facilitate dispatching emergency services. I eventually found the

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Satellite Café after a trip along the almost randomly named Seminole Drive, the landmark now recognizable only by the rusting mock-rocketship that once stood outside the eatery. To many who grew up on and around Route 66 in the Lebanon area, the highway has remained more than just another pop culture memory. Shortly after my arrival, it became clear that an effort was underway to recognize the Mother Road’s historical and economic impact on the region. Over the last several years, signs have been erected to recall the path of Route 66 through Laclede County from Hazelgreen to Conway, thanks in part to the state of Missouri granting the road “historic highway” status in 1990. The Lebanon-Laclede County Route 66 Society has been instrumental in efforts to keep the memory of the Mother Road alive and to harness renewed interest in its history as an economic benefit to the community. Each September, the group hosts an annual Route 66 Festival, which brings together enthusiasts from throughout Missouri and from beyond to celebrate the bygone highway. This September, the group will unveil its most ambitious project to date: a museum and research library dedicated to Route 66.

The museum will be part of the newly relocated Lebanon-Laclede County Public Library. When the library announced plans to move into a larger facility, the Route 66 Society proposed adding the museum. Library director Cathy Dame believes it’s an idea whose time has come. Dame insists that “Route 66 is something to be very proud of,” noting that “many things that made Lebanon what it is today began with Route 66.” The museum will showcase the dynamic relationship between the community and the Mother Road through a combination of exhibits and research materials. Dame likens the museum to a trip back in time, beginning with the vintage garage doors that will greet visitors at the entrance to the space.

Inside, different media highlight the history of the Mother Road in Laclede County. Eight display cases contain authentic Route 66 memorabilia on loan from area residents. The wall surrounding the display cases features a mural map tracing Route 66 from Hazelgreen to Conway, illustrated with notable, long-time-gone stopping points like Lebanon’s steel gateway arch and the Dream Village, a group of stone rental cottages. In addition, a series of vignettes will allow visitors to physically step back in time to explore old Route 66 close up. A filling station vignette features authentic period gas pumps set in gravel, as well as an antique car. Other vignettes will recreate a roadside diner and one of the cabins that were the standard lodgings along Route 66 before the advent of motels. A diorama portrays the intersection of Route 66 and Highway 5, Lebanon’s main crossroads, as it appeared in the 1940s.

One of the museum’s most unique features is the accompanying research library. Besides hundreds of books, magazines, and videos about Route 66, the library will house 650 highway maps from around the country, original documentation, blueprints, signs, and other items of historical importance. Dame says the research library was made possible through donated collections from local families and from Route 66 Association of Missouri founder Jim Powell.

Although focused on a narrow slice of history, Dame says the plan is to keep the museum “fresh and new all the time.” To that end, the displays, vignettes and vintage cars will change periodically. Dame hopes this will keep area residents coming back for more, while appealing to travelers and Route 66 enthusiasts who find their way to the museum.

Organizers hope the new Route 66 museum and research library will not only rekindle interest in the Mother Road, but provide an additional stream of tourism to the community. The newly relocated public library reopens August 16. The museum itself will have a grand opening celebration September 10 during this year’s Route 66 Festival at Lebanon’s Cowan Civic Center.