Background Information

As the automobile was introduced into American life, motorists began to take political action to lobby for the creation of paved roads. The first steps were taken in 1916, when President Woodrow Wilson signed into law the Federal Aid Post Road Act to purpose roads for improved mail transport and military use.1 On November 11, 1926 the federal government designated US Highway 66, spanning 2,448 miles and crossing eight states from Chicago to Los Angeles. The US highway 66 association was founded to assist the states with paving their sections of the road as quickly as possible, but Illinois had already paved a road from Chicago to East St. Louis that was able to serve as the Route 66 designation. About 40 miles of the highway stretched through Madison County, entering through the northeast and exiting across the Mississippi.2 With the introduction of the US interstate system in 1956, the popularity of Route 66 began to decline, as motorists had an increasing number of other options to cross the Mississippi throughout the 1960s. Route 66 was decommissioned by the state of Illinois in 1977, and eventually the entirety of the route had been decommissioned throughout all eight states by 1985.3

As the centennial of the federal government’s designation of Route 66 approaches, there has been a resurgence of interest in the history and culture of the former national highway. Bills have been passed at the state and federal levels of government for the purpose of celebrating the 100 year anniversary of America’s most culturally significant highway. The Route 66 Centennial Commission Act, sponsored by Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth, was passed into law in December 2020. The bill formed a commission to provide a report to Congress on the importance of the road to America’s heritage and the proper way for it to be celebrated in 2026. Similarly, the Illinois general assembly has passed the Illinois Route 66 Centennial Commission Act, establishing a similar provision at the state level.

  1. Weingroff, Richard F. “Federal Aid Road Act of 1916: Building the Foundation.” Federal Aid Road Act of 1916: Building The Foundation | FHWA. Summer 1996. https://highways.dot.gov/public-roads/summer-1996/federal-aid-road-act-1916-building-foundation.
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  2. Jett, Cheryl, E. “Route 66 in Madison County.” Route 66 in Madison County – Madison historical, February 14, 2019. https://madison-historical.siue.edu/encyclopedia/route-66-in-madison-county/.
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  3. “Demise and Resurgence of Interest in Route 66 (U.S. National Park Service).” National Parks Service, May 5, 2020. https://www.nps.gov/articles/demise-and-resurgence-of-interest-in-route-66.htm.
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