Documentarians and historians working to share the history of U.S. Highway 66 celebrated the 100th anniversary of the “Mother Road” at an event just a few blocks away from the storied route.
May 7 marks the final day of the free display at the Wheels Museum in downtown Albuquerque; but a more permanent display will be stationed in the Rex Museum in Gallup until the end of the year.
The exhibit, supported by a grant and partnership with the National Parks Service and New Mexico Tourism, works to tell the stories of New Mexico’s 535-mile portion of the eight state highway using archival photos, donated items and short documentary screenings of oral histories.
“This exhibit is celebratory, but also explores topics that have been frequently challenging, such as segregation or atomic history,” Katrina Parks, a Los Angeles-based documentarian who has been collecting oral histories of Route 66 for the last decade, told Source NM. “Route 66 is a pop culture icon and draws you in, but just keeps revealing the more you look.”
Kari Kussman, a producer on the documentary, told Source NM the exhibit aims to highlight stories that have gone untold, notably women’s stories.
“The things that drove people to the West, opening businesses, fresh starts, adventure, road travel, appealed to women as well,” Kussman said. “The West wouldn’t be what it is without the women who came here and started families, started businesses. The truth is Route 66 wouldn’t exist without these women’s stories, and yet, they can often go unknown.”
Kaisa Barthuli, who directed the National Park Service’s Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program for more than two decades, said she hopes the exhibit can help people explore “the literal bridge between our past and present” that the road represents.
There’s a century of literature, history and more on the road, she said, but also plenty to find in the here and now.
“If you want the best ugly crust pie, that’ll be Midpoint Cafe in Adrian, Texas,” Barthuli said. “As for onion rings, that’ll be Del’s Restaurant in Tucumcari.”
