The Route 66 Chick

The cast of Aprons Away:  Women's Work on the Mother Road salutes the audience and crew at the end of a performance at the Eagle Performing Arts and Conference Center in Pontiac, Illinois, during the June 22-23, 2019, weekend. Photo by Mitchell T. Fransen, courtesy of the City of Pontiac. Aprons Away: Women's Work on the Mother Road , my stage play had its world premiere in a one-act version October 28, 2018, at Blackburn College in Carlinville, as part of the fourth annual Miles of Possibility Route 66 Conference. But the new two-act, theatre-length version with original music and lyrics debuted in Pontiac, Illinois, on June 22-23, enjoying a successful two-day run at the Eagle Performing Arts and Conference Center! The performances were sponsored by Pontiac Tourism and the Route 66 Association of Illinois. The Eagle Performing Arts and Conference Center in Pontiac, Illinois. Photo by Cheryl Eichar Jett. With the tag line “The most famous highway in the world....

As I've been working on my forthcoming book, tentatively titled Women of 66 and Their Contributions to the Culture of the Mother Roa d, two program opportunities have arisen. These two programs will be the first based on the new book (unless another opportunity arises before the second scheduled one). The first is coming up on Tuesday, March 7, at 7:00 pm, at the Missouri History Museum at Lindell and DeBaliviere in Forest Park, St. Louis. The title of the program is "Dreams, Designs, and Dastardly Deeds:  The Women of Missouri Route 66." I'll share remarkable tales of some of the women along Missouri's 300 miles of Route 66. The program is free, and we'll be located in the Lee Auditorium.  The second program is scheduled for Monday, October 2, at 7:00 pm, at the Macoupin County Historical Society's library at 920 W. Breckenridge St. in Carlinville, Illinois. The title of the program is "Adventurers, Crusaders, and Entrepreneurs:  The Women of ...

Here's this year's press release about our 2nd annual Blue Carpet Corridor festival weekend! It's BCC II ! Visit the Blue Carpet Corridor on Saturday-Sunday, June 11-12, and experience Midwest Americana on 100+ miles of Illinois Route 66! From Chatham to Collinsville, 13 communities will be welcoming visitors to their events, attractions, and Passport Stops. Joining in the fun for this second annual event are the following communities: Chatham, Virden, Girard, Carlinville, Gillespie, Staunton, Hamel, Edwardsville, Glen Carbon, Litchfield, Mt. Olive, Troy, and Collinsville. From internationally-known attractions like the World's Largest Catsup Bottle, Henry's Rabbit Ranch, and Soulsby Station, to long-running festivals like Chatham's American Legion Homecoming and Edwardsville's Route 66 Festival, Blue Carpet Corridor weekend is the perfect weekend family trip. From vintage stops like Doc's Soda Fountain and Weezy's Route 66 Bar and Grill ...

The inaugural Blue Carpet Corridor rolled out June 13-14 and we're leaving it unrolled! Part of the idea behind the BCC was not just to celebrate once a year, but to help our communities celebrate 66 and attract visitors all year long. To that end, we're asking our communities to have their passport stamps and extra passports at a designated spot all year which we'll list soon on the website. And we'll add news of events and attractions in our communities all year. You can see photos of our first event weekend on our scrapbook page at  www.bluecarpetcorridor.org A few thoughts about our first annual event - despite the rain and the threat of rain, and some kinks to work out before next year's event, the consensus of opinion is that the first-time event was a rousing success! Check out Geoff Ladd's blog on the Illinois Route 66 Scenic Byway site.  http://www.illinoisroute66.org/Stories-of-the-Road/Details/ArticleID/4748/Traveling-the-Very-First-Blue-Carpet-Corri...

The only problem that Route 66 roadies should be facing in Illinois June 13-14 is how to fit everything into one weekend! An amazing array of activities and attractions await! When a handful of us gathered in Carlinville in November 2014 to establish the Blue Carpet Corridor, one of the first decisions to make was choosing the date. We eventually concluded that the second weekend in June made the most sense. We could build visitation onto two established and long-running festivals that weekend - Chatham's American Legion Homecoming and Edwardsville's Route 66 Festival. It also meant that the Blue Carpet Corridor would coincide with the Route 66 Association of Illinois' annual Motor Tour! And on alternate years, the Illinois Motor Tour begins in Edwardsville! This year's Illinois Motor Tour - the 26th annual! - kicks off on Friday evening with dinner at Solerno's in Hodgekins, leaves the Berwyn Car Museum on Saturday morning, and ends its first full day with the ...

Feeling pretty blue this week in Illinois, but it's a good thing. This coming weekend (Sat.-Sun., June 13-14) is our first annual Blue Carpet Corridor festival weekend! Our theme is "Miners, Mobsters and the Mother Road" honoring our heritage in this part of the great state of Illinois. After all the months of discussing, planning, getting quotes, designing things, writing things, a gazillion emails and phone calls, and ironing out a few kinks, the event is nearly here. Your BCC Pres. (me) and fellow officers Dave Tucker (VP/Webmaster/Master of Supplies), Suzanne Grey (Secretary), and Jim Wreath (Treasurer) have been pretty busy. If you've been asleep or under a rock during my nine million Facebook posts and numerous blog posts about the BCC, here's the scoop:   Unlike an organized motor tour, on BCC weekend you may start at any town, stay as long as you like, and visit as many or as few communities as you wish. Of course you will probably want to visit the P...

Now don't get me wrong, I do love a road trip. In fact, I love multiple road trips. But when I've got tons of work waiting for me at home, and somehow three trips end up scheduled in less than a two-week period, even I get tired out. The first trip (April 21-22) was a two-day retreat for all the Illinois Scenic Byways (we have seven!) directors, board members, and associated stakeholders, including, of course, the Illinois Route 66 Scenic Byway. The event was held at the scenic Pere Marquette Lodge on the Great River Road up north of Grafton, Illinois. Not a far drive for me at all, but I wanted to try out the lodging there (it was excellent) plus we had a scheduled soiree at the Grafton Winery (never to be missed!), and so I just stayed there overnight. The retreat sessions provided us with updates on Illinois tourism funding - or lack thereof - partnerships, byway programs, and a great chance to network with other Illinois tourism folks. Next up was a three-day trip (Apri...

Announcing the Illinois Route 66 Blue Carpet Corridor! And the theme, appropriate for our region's history between Springfield and the Mississippi River, is "Miners, Mobsters and the Mother Road!" The first annual Blue Carpet Corridor weekend is scheduled for the second weekend of June 2015. But you don't have to wait a whole year to experience events, activities, and great Route 66 destinations. Some communities, including Gillespie and Edwardsville, already have long-running festivals in June. And other towns along the Route 66 alignments are planning "preview" events for June 2014, so there will be lots to do along the Blue Carpet Corridor already th is year on the weekend of Friday-Saturday-Sunday, June 13-14-15. More to come on all of that in a forthcoming post. Close to a decade ago, the Red Carpet Corridor in the northern part of Illinois was begun. Well-known Route 66 preservationists/authors John and Lenore Weiss were firmly behind the effor...