Route 66 Caravan

America's Biggest Road Trip!

Route 66 Caravan Road Log:
May 26, 2003
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2003 Route 66 Caravan Schedule

Donley County Safety Rest Area

A Route 66 Destination
  Donley County Safety Rest Area Everything is just a little bit bigger and better in Texas! And that includes the rest rooms. The newest addition to the Texas DOT Safety Rest Areas is this fantastic Route 66 theme stop on east bound Interstate-40 at mile marker 129. To say I was impressed is putting it mildly. This is NOT a restroom but rather a Route 66 ATTRACTION that just so happens to have some public facilities.
     
  What is really great about this stop is that it has interpretive computer programs, exhibits, and Route 66 history for the traveling public to enjoy. What better way to get the word out! Plan to stop and spend some time here, you won't be sorry you did. This newest rest area is located a short distance west of Alanreed, Texas on I-40.

Rest Area Caravan
      
  Texas Rest Area Grill  

This Route 66 playground would delight any child. The interpretive Route 66 history around the playground just might be an educational experience too. But don't tell your kids, they'll be having too much fun on old Route 66!
            
Rest Area Playground

Rest Room Tile Work
       
High Tech Rest Area

Roadside comfort stations have never been this luxurious before! What happened to the shade tree, trash can, and if you were lucky - a picnic table?
     

Route 66 Caravan Gang

Route 66 Caravan gang at the playground.

 

Shamrock Tower Station
Shamrock got its name from the first postmaster of the town; an Irish immigrant named George Nickle, in 1893. I guess he saw the wide open spaces, the vast and seemly endless sky and wanted to confer upon the new town his best wishes for good luck and courage, which the shamrock symbolizes.

1936 Tower Station Postcard
The New Tower Station in 1936
      
Perhaps one of the most famous businesses, a holdout of old Route 66 in Shamrock, is the Tower Service Station and U-Drop Inn. This has been a Texas Route 66 landmark since 1936. The builder and owner, J.M. Tindall used a design drawn up by his friend with a nail in the dirt to create an eye-catching Art Deco tower intended to lure the Route 66 traveler in for a great home cooked meal.

Shamrock Tower Station 2003

The Newly Restored Tower Station in 2003
Shamrock Tower From the very start the Tower Station and Restaurant received rave reviews. A local newspaper described it as "the swankiest of the swank eating places and the most up-to-date edifice of its kind on U.S. Highway 66 between Oklahoma City and Amarillo."
         
After the demise of Route 66 when the Interstate came through in the 1970s, the old Art Deco masterpiece fell on hard times. Thanks to the dedication of local citizens this wonderful icon of Route 66 is being restored to its former grandeur and will live again, reminding future generations of the hey-day of Route 66. Shamrock is proud of its Route 66 heritage for sure.

Shamrock U Drop Inn
      
 

1950 Tower U-Drop Inn
1950s Route 66 in Shamrock

 

West 66
Previous Log
Go West down the Mother Road

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.

East 66
Oklahoma!
Go East on the Mother Road

 

 

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