ROCK THE CAFÉ Oklahoma Sandstone Created this Route 66 Pop Culture Icon

Oklahoma is the birthplace of Route 66, and Cyrus Avery, of Tulsa, is known as the "Father various of Route 66." Avery served on road-associated commissions. And in 1925, he nabbed a seat on the committee of highway officials who were creating a proposed national highway system, as well as a numbering scheme to go with the map.

- CAROL MOWDY BOND

PLANNING ROUTE 66 

A major promoter of a highway from Chicago to Los Angeles, Avery formed the U.S. Highway Association, and he also coined the term “Main Street of America” in reference to that Chicago-to-LA highway - Route 66. A businessman, Avery operated the Old English Inn and Service Station on the outskirts of Tulsa. So, when Route 66’s 2,448 miles of roadway launched, Avery made sure travelers couldn’t miss his establishments.

In tandem with U.S. highway creation, the 1920s and 1930s left gargantuan, permanent footprints on Oklahoma. The Great Depression (1929-1933) plunged the nation into a suffocating vice grip with intense aftershocks. And things worsened in Oklahoma because of the Dust Bowl (1931-1939) which brought historic and unbelievable killer dust storms. Oklahoma historian and award-winning author John J. Dwyer said drought, worn-out land, and land ownership issues were worsened by unpredictable market fluctuations, making Oklahoma’s situation overwhelming.

Despite a great exodus, many Oklahomans hung on and endured. With their pluck and grit, they created a phenomenal list of enterprises that included a menagerie of shops, service stations and motels.

THE ROCK CAFÉ