Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo, Texas

Photo byNguyen

In 1960, R. J. “Bob” Lee opened The Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo on Route 66, the “Mother Road. Its distinctive architecture soon became recognized across the Mother Road as a good stopping place for great steaks grilled over an open flame.

The towering sign of a long-legged cowboy that Bob erected next to the building became a major landmark on Route 66. From the beginning, the Big Texan welcomed weary travelers and migrating families whose roots spread all across America.

The now World-famous FREE 72-oz. steak came to life not long after Bob opened the doors to the Big Texan Steak Ranch.

Info: http://www.bigtexan.com/

Wigwam Village Motel in Rialto, California

Photo by: Horizon

The California Wigwam Motel was built within the city limits of San Bernardino in 1949, a period when citrus groves flourished. The motel would later acquire a Rialto postal address, creating confusions as the property actually sits in San Bernardino. This Route 66 Motel is fun for all, located only minutes from Colton, Grand Terrace, Redlands, Big Bear, Highland, Rancho Cucamonga, Fontana, and Bloomington, CA. This location would mark the final of 7 Wigwam Motels that were constructed. The motel's village-style arrangement of nineteen 30-foot-tall tepees made from wood framing, concrete and stuco draws much admiration from all generations. Each individual wigwam is carefully equipped with all the traveler's essentials with grounds that includes of grass area, an outdoor barbecue grill and kidney-shaped swimming pool.

The mastermind behind this retro motel was a clever man by the name of Frank Redford, who was heavily influenced by the native Indian culture. He would bring his imagination to a reality in the early 1930s explained in the following section.

Info: http://wigwammotel.com/index.html

The town of Tucumcari in New Mexico

From Route 66 memorabilia to dinosaurs to larger-than-life size murals, Tucumcari offers something for everyone! Don't miss the Mesalands Community College Dinosaur Museum, a first-class museum housing the world's largest collection of spectacular full-scale bronze dinosaur skeletons cast at our local foundry. To know the history of Tucumcari and Route 66, stop by the Tucumcari Historical Museum with its story-telling like exhibits, including a Route 66 exhibit. Get your picture taken in front of the Route 66 Roadside Attraction at the Convention Center or the world's largest mural devoted to Route 66 in the United States. Tour the town during the day to see the other wonderful murals located all over the city and at night to see those famous Route 66 Neon signs. Take a trip to nearby Ute Lake or Conchas Lake State Parks and go picnicking, hiking, boating, water skiing, scuba diving, swimming, sailing, wind surfing and fishing for bass, walleye, catfish, perch and crappie. Travel along the numerous Scenic Byways to see the unique landscape and a variety of wildlife, including herds of antelope and deer, flocks of wild turkey, geese, and other rare birds.

Info: http://tucumcarinm.com/index.php

Totem Pole Park in Foyil, Oklahoma

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and claiming the title of the World’s Largest Concrete Totem Pole, the park features a 90 foot totem pole that towers over the park in a vivid array of folk art colors.

Ed Galloway built the totem pole over an 11 year period from 1937 to 1948, utilizing some 28 tons of cement, six tons of steel, and 100 tons of sand and rock. His tribute to the American Indian features 200 carved pictures, with four nine-foot Indians near the top each representing a different tribe.

The centerpiece totem pole, rising from the back of an enormous turtle, sits in the midst of a beautiful nine acre park. The park also features Galloway’s eleven-sided "Fiddle House" that previously housed his hand-carved fiddles. Artifacts made by Ed Galloway and visuals of the park development are also on display in the museum. Throughout the park are numerous of colorful totems that display a variety of Indian Folk Art.

Read more here: http://www.legendsofamerica.com/

Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo, Texas

Photo by:Dan SanDonkey

The Cadillac Ranch, located along the tatters of historic Route 66, was built in 1974, brainchild of Stanley Marsh 3, the helium millionaire who owns the dusty wheat field where it stands. Marsh and The Ant Farm, a San Francisco art collective, assembled used Cadillacs representing the "Golden Age" of American Automobiles (1949 through 1963). The ten graffiti-covered cars are half-buried, nose-down, facing west "at the same angle as the Cheops' pyramids."

Info: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2220