Flagstaff takes pride in its city and Route 66 that runs through its heart and history. In 1992, a group of citizens, led by Martin Zanzucchi, petitioned for the name of its main street, Santa Fe Avenue, to be changed back to its original name, Route 66.

Route 66 not only instills a sense of pride for the locals, it is a draw for tourists from across and nation and around the world. The highway is truly an American icon that has earned an indelible place in our history and culture.

Referred to as “The Mother Road,” in Steinbeck’s “Grapes of Wrath,” it moved a generation of desperate but hopeful migrant farmers west, seeking better lives for their families. Bobby Troupe penned the song “Get Your Kicks on Route 66,” in 1946 and Nat King Cole originally recorded it. Between 1960 and 1964, it became the third star along with George Maharis and Martin Milner, who drove a Corvette cross-country seeking adventure on the television show “Route 66.”

It is not easy keeping the spirit of this truly American icon and its colorful history alive, but a small group of people is working diligently to do it. The Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona was founded in 1987. It is dedicated to the preservation, promotion and protection of both the surface and memories of the highway.

“We got word (last month) one of the grants we applied for was awarded to create a new corridor management plan for Route 66,” said Sharlene Fouser, a Flagstaff business owner and member of the association. “It will be like a business management plan, which will allow us to determine how best to preserve, protect and promote the road in the future.

She said the grant was through the Federal Highway Administration, with matching funds from the Arizona Department of Transportation, totaling $70,000.

“We are losing our Route 66 icons daily,” said Fouser, who has worked part time as the National Scenic Byway leader in Arizona since 2006. “Hotel owners are finding it is cheaper to demolish then restore. In Northern Arizona, Route 66 is the thread that ties us all together. Tourism in Northern Arizona is one of those threads. Losing those icons, you can never get them back.”

If someone is intent on following Route 66 across country, many parts of it are under the freeways.

“We need to give them a reason to get off or the freeway or they will just stop getting off,” she said.

Legislation for public highways was first considered in 1916, but it was not until 1925 that a national plan for highway construction was put into place. The numeral 66 was assigned to the Chicago to Los Angeles route, connecting main streets to urban centers across the nation for the first time on the principal east-west artery. Trading posts, filling stations, diners and villages sprang up along the highway.
Its length was about 2,400 miles, traveling through eight states including Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California. An ordinary vehicle can still travel on 85 percent of it today.

Fouser said that during the Eisenhower administration, Interstate-40 was built, bypassing many of the small towns on Route 66. Many of the shops and stores went out of business and some of the towns died, but some of the communities decided to reinvent themselves.

“They decided to build on the American experience of Route 66,” Fouser said. “People still want to find the America of the 1950s and 1960s. They want the American experience. If the hotels and roadside attractions are closing up there is no reason to come and stay.”

Americans are not the only ones who appreciate this road that is steeped in American history.

“Route 66 is a tourist draw for the European market. The Germans and other travelers want to see the classic American vacation and Route 66 is one of those classic vacations that are well known throughout the world. Revitalization of the corridor is appealing to tourists as well as our residents who drive it daily,” said Heather Ainardi, public relations manager for the City of Flagstaff.

In 1988, the road was granted the Historic Road designation. Most recently in 2003, it was named a Historic Scenic Byway.

Fouser said this is significant because it is a program of the Federal Highway Administration and there are only 126 roads in the United States that carry that designation. That opens doors to all kinds of grant money. She said this allows them to identify the treasures that are disappearing and gives aid to revitalization efforts.

As a result of the designation, she was hired part time to try to unite the cities and towns along Route 66 in Arizona.