Exploring Springfield Illinois

We had two reasons be be up and at um early they are Koda and Kenai.

We walked The Boys and had coffee while we waited for the sun to come up. Then it was breakfast burritos on the grill.

When I was much much younger our family would travel from the Chicago area to Bucklin, MO for family visits. We would drive Rt 66 to Springfield before turning onto Rt 36 to into Missouri. I also remember going to the Illinois State Fair as a youngster, seeing Red Skelton and the 3 Stooges perform.

So today was an exercise in “WOW things have changed”. Our first stop was the Lincoln Home. I remember just pulling up to the home for a visit. Now it is a very nice historical district run by the National Park Service. Free tours are offered thus controlling the number of visitors in the home at any given time. The tours are very well done and last about 20 minutes.

The Lincoln’s bought this home in 1844 and over time as their family grew, so did the house, with several additions. For the time, this would have been considered a house where a wealthy person lived given the number of rooms. It was in the parlor of this house where Lincoln was asked to run for president. Given the state of our Union, he did not answer right away, but took his time in saying yes after some lengthy thought.

The Lincoln’s lived in this home until 1861 when they made the move to Washington D.C. Lincoln would not return to Springfield mainly because of the Civil War and threats on his life. 

On Saturday there is a Farmers Market held near the Old State Capital. Since we were close, we took The Boys for a walk. It is a nice Farmers Market and we found a berry pie to have for dessert this evening, along with some Ted Drewes custard. Interestingly, the Donner Party started it’s journey West from Springfield, right at the Old State Capital. 

Since it was close to lunch time, we went to the Cozy Dog Drive-In, home of the hotdog on a stick. While serving in the Air Force Ed Waldmire  invented the corn dog. After WWII he started serving his creation and initially wanted to call it the “Crusty Cur”. The original Drive-In was started in 1949 and has been moved to a location just to the north on the original Rt 66. Yes, this establishment is still run by members of the Waldmire family. 

We each had a Cozy Dog and I got a pork tenderloin. The crust on the cozy dog is great. The tenderloin was bigger than the bun, we washed these down with a Cozy Dog cola and root beer.

This place is a must stop for many reasons. First, it is part of the America I think we often forget about. A person taking an idea and making to work, is exemplified here. The interior has a lot of great Rt 66 memorabilia, and the food is good. The Ed Waldmire library can be found in a large case and the eclectic selection of books surprised me. 
I cleaned up our table and went to toss out our refuse and went in search of a trash can. Soon a gentleman said he would take my tray and toss out our trash. We struck up a conversation and had a rather nice chat about how Springfield had changed and all the history of Rt 66. As the conversation progressed I sensed this gentleman had a bit of history here with Cozy Dog. He introduced himself as Buzz Waldmire one of Ed Waldmire’s sons who at one time owned the Cozy Dog. He shared bits about his brother who was an artist who traveled the country creating posters. He showed me the collection of Cozy Dog holders his father had experimented with in the dipping process for creating the Cosy Dog. I feel really blessed to have met him and to have had the chance to learn about his family.

Our next Lincoln experience was Lincoln’s tomb. This is a rather impressive monument which pays homage to Lincoln and his amazing role as president during the Civil War. 

Next we were off to find the Lincoln Statute at the Illinois State Fair Grounds. Not only was there a cat show in progress there was also a Dog Agility and Open Dog Show. Neither Koda nor Kenai were very impressed. But Koda did show interest in the dogs we saw. 

This ends our Rt 66 Journey as we head to my parents house for a visit.

Thanks for joining us on this journey and  we have another journey that should be colorful and quite interesting planned for January.

October 18, Bourbon to Springfield

October 18, Bourbon to Springfield 

We got started out driving on Rt 66 and eventually came to Pacific, MO. Here along the roadside is a cut where one can see the tunnels from old silica mines. These were discovered when the hillside was cut away. 

When in St. Louis one must stop at Ted Drews. We arrived a bit before they opened and there was already a line of customers. Here the frozen custard is mixed with any flavor imaginable to a thick consistency that is called “Concrete” . We each had a mini and and got some custard to go. Yes it was that good. 

We crossed the Mississippi River into Illinois.

First up was Henry’s Rabbit Ranch in Staunton, IL. Here there are seven VW Rabbits placed in the ground Cadillac Ranch style. Henry was out to lunch and the station was closed and we did not see any rabbits in the pen. No pets were allowed so we hit the road. 

In MT. Olive we found a restored Shell gas station. I was going to change the trucks oil but there was a problem with the drive on ramp. 

In Illinois Rt 66 is off and on I-55 so we made our way into Springfield and the Riverside Park for the next two days. We will get to many Lincoln Sites as well as Cozy Dog tomorrow. 

Many old gas stations, rough roads, Hubble Telescope, A frog, a really big rocking chair and many many Murals.

10/17/2019

Many old gas stations, rough roads, Hubble Telescope, A frog, and many many Murals. 

We left Carthage, MO passing many an old dilapidated gas station as we journeyed on Historic Rt 66. There were some sections of this road which had recently been resurfaced and many more sections which were very rough and bouncy.

Our first stop was at Gary’s Gay Parita Sinclair Station. This is a re-creation of a station owned by Fred and Gay Mason in the 1930’s. There is a cobble stone garage built in 1926. The garage and the main station contain many automotive artifacts as well as a lot of Rt 66 memorabilia. Friendly stop that can be sensory Rt 66 overload. 

Further down the road in Marshfield, MO at the Marshfield County Court House, one finds a 1/4 scale replica of the Hubble Telescope. This is the home town of Edwin Hubble, the creator of the Hubble Telescope.  Amazing all the famous  folks from Missouri. 

Soon we enter Lebanon, MO where we find the Munger Moss Hotel, and took some pictures of the big sign. Across the way we saw Wrinks Market.  Glen Wrinkle started this market in 1950 and it is still in operation to this day. 

Just east of Waynesville, Mo, there is a rock out cropping which looks like a frog. Local residents eventually have painted this rock to fully resemble a frog. 

Stuckey’s of Doolittle still sells Stuckey’s Pecan Logs and a midwest road trip would not be complete without a Stuckey’s Roll.


The area around Rosati, MO was settled by Italian immigrants  who planted grapes which became wine. This area is steeped in Italian Immigrant wine making tradition. There are several wineries in this area.

Who would not want to sit in the Worlds Largest Rocking Chair located in Fanning, MO? This location hosts not only the worlds largest rocking chair,  but there is also a nice Rt 66 shop/feed store/general house hold items store. They have a great selection of various sodas and some really good flavors of popcorn. 

Soon we are in Mural City or Cuba, MO. These murals are definitely worth a visit as they highlight the history and significant events of the town of Cuba. It was interesting to learn of the Civil War  history of this area. One seems to think of the Civil War taking place further East. 

We learned many of the local campgrounds had already filled up and a camp sites were in high demand. The folks in Fanning were kind enough to offer us overnight parking at the big Rocking Chair. We decided to head further east to see if we could find a comp ground. We knew we could stay at the Walmart in Sullivan, MO.  Soon a highway sign came into view advertising the Blue Springs Ranch. We made a call and they had a space for us for one night. This is a nice place and we are here for the night.  Sadly need quarters for the shower.

Old Stations, Whales, Cafe’s, DISNEY Cars, Baseball Legends, Wild Kingdom, Well Lots and MUCH MORE was experienced Today

Old Stations, Whales, Cafe’s, Cars, Baseball Legends, Wild Kingdom, Well Lots and MUCH MORE was experienced Today

October 16, 2019

Well, we traveled in three states during today journey on The Mother Road. 

We started in Chandler, OK and headed East on Old Rt 66 making a quick stop in Davenport, OK, where we took a few photos of a vintage Texaco Station. 

Continuing east bound, we stopped in Stroud, OK to see the Rock Cafe. The owner Dawn Walch is a long time supporter of Rt 66 and was the inspiration for “Sally Carrera” in the Movie Cars. Looked like a great place, but sadly it was closed. This seems to be the pattern for us on this trip.

Soon a big Blue Whale appears in a lake, so we must stop. Located in Catoosa, OK one finds this quirky roadside attraction. This was built in 1972 and then restored in 2002. It is a feature for a swimming hole where one can slide down slides or dive off the tail of this monster. The owner Hugh S. Davis’ wife collected whale figurines and as an anniversary gift he built her this whale. 

Three miles further down the road we found a curio shop/deli called The Nut House. Here they sell the basic curios as well as fudge, jams, coffee and other food items. They also have a small deli where you can get a sandwich to order. I found an American cheese with bacon which is very good, but anything with bacon is good.

In Claremore, OK we stop at the Will Rogers Memorial. He had purchased this property as a place to settle after his acting career played out. After his death in Alaska, he was buried in Forrest Lawn Cemetery. It was in 1944 his body was moved to this property.

Will Rogers was an American Original, a Cowboy, newspaper columnist, vaudeville and radio and film star, and aviator. He had a way of making American laugh as and take a look at ourselves. I feel many a truth said in jest was his way of doing just that. This trip reminds me of one of his quotes “But if you want to have a good time, I don’t care where you live, just load in your kids, and take some congenial friends, and just start out. You would be surprised what there is to see in this great Country within 200 miles of where any of us lives, I don’t care what State or Town.”

In Foyil, OK there is a statue of Andy Payne. WHO WAS ANDY PAYNE you ask. First, lets talk about the “Bunion Derby” a foot race across America, created by Lon Scott and promoted by Charles C. Pyle ( the P. T. Barnum of sports). 

The attention of America was captured by this event and it took place during the Jim Crow era, and it was racially integrated with five African Americans, a Jamaican from Canada, American Indians, Pacific Islanders and Latinos all participating.

On March 3, 1928, Andy Payne wore bib #43 and along with 275 other runners, started in Los Angles and set off running to New York City. Running in desert heat and freezing mountain tops it was 84 days later Andy Payne had covered 3,423.5 miles in 573 hours, 4 minutes and 34 seconds, with an average speed of 6 miles an hour, crossed the finish line in FIRST PLACE!!!!

His prize was $25,000, which he used to pay off the mortgage on the family farm. He then went on to be elected as the Clerk of the Oklahoma Supreme Court.

We then made a side trip to see Totem Pole Park.

In Miami (pronounced MY-Am-Uh), OK, we found the Coleman Theater. This is an elaborate venue built just before the depression. Elaborate is only one adjective one can use to describe this amazing theater. It opened in 1929 and was part of the Vaudeville circuit and saw the likes of Will Rogers, Tom Mix, Sally Rand, and the Three Stooges. The pictures do not do this wonderful venue justice, this is not to be missed.  

As we drive towards Commerce, OK, I am hoping for an ice cream cone at the Dairy King, where you can also get Rt 66 cookies. When we arrived we found it closed due to a funeral. Across the way is an old station named Conch Hole in the Wall. Here they cater to Aliens. We had plenty of time for photos as the High School band was marching down the street. Commerce is also the home of Mickey Mantel. 

 

Her comes the Band 

 

Baxter Springs, KS is a location where the Buffalo Soldiers were heavily involved with the resistance against Quantrill’s Raiders. Here is where the Buffalo Soldiers got their nick name for the local Indian Tribe who likened their hair to coarse hair of the American Bison.

The Route 66 Visitor Center in Baxter Springs, KS is a wealth of information. It is housed in a 1930’s cottage style station. 

Outside of Baxter Springs, KS is the Marsh Arch Bridge, it seems to go by several names. 

While the Mother Road is only 13 miles long in Kansas, there is plenty to see.

“Cars on the Route” is the home of Cars on the Route. This is where one finds “Tow Tater” the old wrecker from which “Tow Mater” is modeled. Just a bit down the road is a welcome center which is under construction. Here we met the President of the Kansas Route 66 Association who is developing this welcome center.

Next we head strait to our camp ground in Carthage, MO and get set up before going into the town of Carthage for fuel.

In Carthage we find the Boots Court Motel, nice but not the Blue Swallow. We also find the city park where there is a statue to native son, Marlin Perkins of Wild Kingdom fame.  

Heading back to our campground we passed the 66 Drive in Theater. 

It was a long day filled with many an interesting sights.