For St. Louis resident Irv Logan, growing up alongside Route 66 in Springfield, Missouri, didn't just inspire his career working on cars, it expanded his worldview. He met all kinds of Black travelers who stayed at the family-run Alberta's Hotel — a Green Book destination owned by his grandmother Alberta Ellis — including performers on the Chitlin Circuit, the Harlem Globetrotters and people from outside the country.
"The first time that I met a person of African descent from outside of the United States was a man from Colombia. He came to stay for a few weeks doing a job somewhere in the Ozarks, and he had to stay [at Alberta's], of course, because there was really nowhere else for him to stay," Logan said. "No one ever taught us that there were [people] of African descent outside of the United States, so that was an eye-opening conversation I had with him. That was my first awareness that some of what I had learned in school didn't cover all of the bases."
A weekend-long festival at Missouri History Museum will celebrate the ways Route 66 connected Missouri to the rest of the country and the world. The Route 66 Centennial Festival runs April 30 through May 3, and it will feature artifacts from the iconic highway, a live performance of mid-century radio hits, and a series of author talks and conversations with people who lived and worked along the route.
Logan will speak as part of a panel discussion about how Black motorists traveled the highway during the Jim Crow era, when Black travelers had few safe options for places to refuel, dine and stay the night.
"Irv is one of my favorite folks in the world; I was amazed when I heard his stories," said the museum's public historian Andrew Wanko. "The Negro Motorist Green Book listed all of these places that African American travelers could find places to stay, places to eat — even something as simple as using the bathroom was something you had to plan ahead for. For LGBT travelers, you had the Damron Guide. It was made to fit in the palm of your hand so that it could be easily hidden. … All of these are very valuable and valid Route 66 stories that I think we want to shine a lot more of a light on — that this is a part of this road, its history and the history of trying to traverse the United States."
Other topics that will be discussed at the festival include how the road trip has evolved over time, the stories of the women who worked behind the scenes at roadside establishments, the paths Route 66 took through St. Louis, and the highway's origins, heyday, demise and legacy today.
For Wanko, that legacy is one of real person-to-person connection and the true exploration of a place. He said such elements are missing from interstate travel now.
"You're going to go 70 miles an hour [and] anything interesting is going to be at least 100 feet away from you on the side of the highway," he said. "If you drive Route 66, you're going to wind through these towns. You're going to see things. People are going to be five feet away from you on the sidewalks. You're going to understand these places in a way that the interstate just cannot possibly offer."
"[Route 66] is the slow road," he added. "It'll take you a little longer, but it's worth it."
For more information on the history of Route 66 in Missouri — including its role during World War II and Missourians who were instrumental in marketing the highway and its Missouri-based attractions — listen to "St. Louis on the Air" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or click the play button below.
Related Event
What: Route 66 Centennial Festival
When: April 30-May 3
Where: Missouri History Museum, 5700 Lindell Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63112
"St. Louis on the Air" brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Layla Halilbasic is our production assistant. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr.
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