America's Biggest Road Trip 07 May 2003

	America's Biggest Road Trip!
	Route 66 Caravan Road Log: May 07, 2003


	Seligman Arizona a Route 66 Town

		People of Route 66
		The Delgadillo Brothers have put Seligman back on the Route 66 Map but there's a lot more Route 66 adventure to be found in this great town. In Seligman you will find many more neat people that love the Mother Road.

		Ola's Gift Shop is one of many that line Seligman's Route 66.		Local Route 66 Historian Larry Murphy proudly stands by one of his vintage gas pumps.

		Seligman, Arizona is a Route 66 town all the way. This delightful town retains all the flavor of the old road. A trip down Route 66 in Seligman is a trip back in time to the days when Route 66 was the Main Street of America. Founded in 1895 after the completion of the "Peavine" Railroad, the railroad camp known as Prescott Junction officially became Seligman and was an important railroad stop along the line. Seligman embraced Route 66 wholeheartedly upon its arrival in the late 1920’s. The railroad and tourist traffic from Route 66 became Seligman's main source of economic security. In the late 1970's Seligman was bypassed by the Interstate and the Santa Fe Railroad ceased its operations in the town in 1985. Many old towns with similar histories would have faded away once they were bypassed, but not Seligman. Spend some time in Seligman and discover what Route 66 was all about.

		One of my favorite old motel signs in Seligman is the Supai. It looks great at night but there are plenty more cool signs in this Route 66 town.

				Route 66 Treasure Hunt: Find the Survey Marker. Route 66 was repaved in 1966 and this Survey Mark records the event. If you look closely along the road just next the Copper Cart Cafe you might just find this little treasure of Route 66.

		Copper Cart Restaurant
				Not long ago I was browsing through an antique shop in Shamrock, Texas, with my good friend Becky Ransom, President of The Old Route 66 Association of Texas, when she spotted an old post card of the Copper Cart in Seligman from 1963.
		"Look Guy," she said as she showed me the postcard. "You've been to Seligman, is this place still there?" I was excited. Not only is the Copper Cart still there but I've eaten there a number of times. What's more, the 1963 picture of this classic Route 66 cafe looked pretty much like the restaurant does today ~ minus the vintage automobiles in front of course. The inscription on the back was priceless too: "We ate here last night - good food. We're doing fine but didn't like the mountain driving."
		Of course now that the Route 66 Caravan was approaching Seligman at lunchtime I mentioned to Jim and Kevin that I had a good place for lunch if they were game. They were. We were all hungry. We stopped at the Copper Cart for lunch and we were not disappointed. In fact we had a great Route 66 experience to boot thanks to the great people inside! You know what, the food is still good too.

		Our server was Charlotte Solberg and she is a Route 66 survivor. She has worked at the Copper Cart for 33 years and has seen a lot of Route 66 in her time. She even brought out an old menu from the 1960s (see right). I was quite impressed with the prices from back then and inquired if the prices were still good at the Copper Cart. She just smiled sweetly and laughed. Somehow I didn't take that as a yes answer.

				Jim Conkle with Daniel Solberg (who is holding a Hampton Save-A-Landmark toy), Donna, Lonni, Charlotte Solberg and Larry Murphy in front of the 66 Caravan RV.

		An excited Daniel poses with Jim in our RV. He even got to toot the horn! Don't you think he'll remember this day the rest of his life. This is what Route 66 is all about to me.

		*Previous Log*	Road Log pages read like a book: Follow the Route 66 Caravan down the Mother Road ~ select the Route 66 direction you would like to go.		Grand Canyon




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