Celebrating 100 Years of the U.S. Numbered Highway System
I’m Lynn Boitano.
Climb aboard. We're returning to America's Mother Road.
Today marks 100 years since America adopted its US numbered highway system. That's the network that includes familiar roads across HPPR country, US Highway 50, 54, and 83, along with legendary Route 66.
To celebrate, HPPR's Radio Readers Book Club is revisiting our Route 66 festivities from May and June.
We'll hear memories recorded at Chapter House Books in Amarillo, Texas, followed by Kansas author Max McCoy. Thanks for riding along.
Hello, my name's Jasmine Velasquez. 'm Amarillo native. Growing up, I didn't really get to come to Route 66, but as, but as I started to get into high school, I got the unique experience of really getting to come down here for the first time.
And while those memories are kind of a blur, now that I'm older, I've also gotten to come here recently, and I will say that I feel like the experiences you get here on Route 66 are something that you can't replicate anywhere else – one of which is like coming Chapter House Bookstore.
It's such a unique, different experience. I've always had good experiences with the sellers. They're super nice. They're always down to help. They're knowledgeable about anything you want to know, and it just creates this atmosphere of genuine community and warmth.
One of my bucket list goals actually is to eventually travel all of Route 66, and I wanna get to see what that is like. It's kinda crazy. I mean, Route 66 was built whenever, at a time before I was born. And getting to see that it's still here and it's still going strong and there’re so many people that are still so supportive of this community is such an amazing thing to see. And I hope that this continues to be something that everyone gets the chance to experience.
I came about two years ago with all my cousins. They're from California, and I know that Route 66 runs through California. It goes through the Santa Monica Pier. And having them come here and showing them all these things -- well, they really enjoyed it, and my cousin actually bought an antique teacup set from one of the shops here.
If people do get the chance to drive through Amarillo or anywhere else that Route 66 is, I hope you take the time to just come down. Slow down, and, you know, explore. Get to see what the, um, everyone's about.
Young kid: I remember on Route 66, I, I saw Route 66 on Lightning McQueen, and I saw a car that looked like Lightning McQueen. And I thought Lightning McQueen was real until I was, like, 10.
These memories were recorded at Chapter House Books in Amarillo, Texas during last spring's Route 66 festivities. As America's US numbered highway system turns 100 today, thanks for celebrating its famous Mother Road with HPPR's Radio Readers Book Club.
