Britannica
Sources used in this answer
Who is known as the Father of Route 66?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Route 66
A final plan for the construction of Route 66 was approved in 1926, and it was built in segments, often discontinuous ones. Route 66 was not entirely paved until 1938. This map shows how the highway connected Chicago and Los Angeles through cities in Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California.
Cyrus Avery of Tulsa, Oklahoma, is widely recognized as the "Father of Route 66." He was instrumental in promoting the idea of a great highway linking towns across the continent and was a key figure in its designation and development. Avery, along with John Woodruff of Springfield, Missouri, sent a telegram proposing the number 66 for the route in 1926. Route 66, one of the first national highways in the United States, became an iconic symbol of American culture and a vital artery for commerce and migration.12