Google Doodle: Celebrating Route 66

[kinupanda]

Today's Google Doodle is Celebrating Route 66 and features a montage with the classic song dedicated to the route.

[CtrlAltDel]

In a move sure to annoy the Route-66-is-overrated crowd here at AA Roads, I present Google's doodle for today:

[bing101]

Here is Route 66 Doodle video.

[Mr. Matté]

Even the little forced searchbar on my Android phone home screen is sorta roady, but in a much more horrible fashion especially to us:

[JoePCool14]

Even the little forced searchbar on my Android phone home screen is sorta roady, but in a much more horrible fashion especially to us:

The design of the shield could be worse, but the red and blue on the other hand...

[Max Rockatansky]

Okay, why today of all things?  Would this not be better suited for November 11th or something when the US Route System actually came into existence?

Also, what is Google Doodle?

[CNGL-Leudimin]

Google is showing its standard logo in the .es mirror. So perhaps it's a USA-only thing.

[Rothman]

Also, what is Google Doodle?

You see, we have this thing we call the Internet now...

(What rock have you been living under since the end of the 20th Century? )

[Max Rockatansky]

Also, what is Google Doodle?

You see, we have this thing we call the Internet now...

(What rock have you been living under since the end of the 20th Century? )

Apparently a rock that doesn't have an explanation as to what the purpose of a Google Doodle is?

Amusingly my Dad created my current Yahoo email right as the 20th Century (1997 I think) was closing out. 

[brad2971]

Speaking of today's Google page, if there ever was a part of this country that makes a mockery out of assumed patterns of growth and development after the start year of the Eisenhower Interstate System, it would involve a town that was not only squarely on the original Route 66, but was memorialized in literature for its mere presence on the Mother Road.

Think about it: Needles (CA) was incorporated in 1913, after being founded in 1883 on the original Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe railroad, along with being on the original Route 66 AND having I-40 go through its city limits. Kingman (AZ), 60 miles east on I-40, wasn't incorporated until 1952, and as recently as the 1960 census had FEWER people than Needles. Nearby Laughlin (NV) and Lake Havasu City (AZ) didn't even exist until later in that decade, and Bullhead City (AZ) was nothing more than a few small man-camps bui.lt for Davis Dam construction workers.

Fast forward to the 2020 census: Kingman has 32869 residents, Lake Havasu City has 57144 residents, Bullhead City has 41348 residents, and Laughlin (still unincorporated) is estimated to have 8658 residents. Except for Kingman, the other cities are not within 15-20 miles of I-40. How many people does Needles have? Maybe around 4950 residents.

They're all in the same retiree-magnet Sunbelt. Needles has been a crew-change point for BNSF and its predecessor railroads since the railroad was constructed. Any thoughts as to why this state of affairs is?

[Max Rockatansky]

Being on the fringe of California certainly doesn't help Needles compete with Bullhead City, Kingman or Laughlin.  You have a super high income tax in California and then you get into things like the price hikes associated with high cost freight fees for things like California blend gas.  There has been some local movements in Needles to try to get the city absorbed into Arizona and Nevada given they can't compete economically with their neighbors.  Basically Needles is in a position where it can't compete economically and would be in serious trouble without the BNSF. 

[brad2971]

Being on the fringe of California certainly doesn't help Needles compete with Bullhead City, Kingman or Laughlin.  You have a super high income tax in California and then you get into things like the price hikes associated with high cost freight fees for things like California blend gas.  There has been some local movements in Needles to try to get the city absorbed into Arizona and Nevada given they can't compete economically with their neighbors.  Basically Needles is in a position where it can't compete economically and would be in serious trouble without the BNSF. 

I can definitely see your point on that. But then if you were to go 95 miles south on US 95 to Blythe and I-10, there would still be some more questions regarding Needles. Blythe, on I-10 is nearly the same distance from Palm Springs as from Buckeye (AZ), on the western edge of the Valley of the Sun. Even factoring out the California state prisons in Blythe's city limits, the population of Blythe at least doubled from 1960-2020. Nearby Quartzsite (AZ), which is basically one big RV park with truck stops, lost more than a third its population in just the 2010s!

[Max Rockatansky]

Being on the fringe of California certainly doesn't help Needles compete with Bullhead City, Kingman or Laughlin.  You have a super high income tax in California and then you get into things like the price hikes associated with high cost freight fees for things like California blend gas.  There has been some local movements in Needles to try to get the city absorbed into Arizona and Nevada given they can't compete economically with their neighbors.  Basically Needles is in a position where it can't compete economically and would be in serious trouble without the BNSF. 

I can definitely see your point on that. But then if you were to go 95 miles south on US 95 to Blythe and I-10, there would still be some more questions regarding Needles. Blythe, on I-10 is nearly the same distance from Palm Springs as from Buckeye (AZ), on the western edge of the Valley of the Sun. Even factoring out the California state prisons in Blythe's city limits, the population of Blythe at least doubled from 1960-2020. Nearby Quartzsite (AZ), which is basically one big RV park with truck stops, lost more than a third its population in just the 2010s!

The thing with Quartzsite and Parker is that they are Snow Bird oriented communities.  They cater hugely to retirees that come in during the winter months to live on RV plots out in the desert.  When I had a store in Quartzsite we did about 90% of our business during the Snow Bird season, we might as otherwise just shuttered the rest of the year.  I seem to recall the town (Quartzsite) projected to have a typical seasonal population which exceeded 20,000.  Parker is a little different due to the Colorado River Reservation but it has similar Snow Bird seasonal population patterns.  Blythe does have a fairly decently sized agricultural foot print which can mostly be observed from CA 78.

[US71]

Today's Google Doodle remembers Route 66.

https://www.google.com/webhp?hl=en&ictx=2&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj97LvQvbz3AhVAomoFHb3OCA4QPQgJ

[SkyPesos]

https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=31441.0

[Rothman]

Being on the fringe of California certainly doesn't help Needles compete with Bullhead City, Kingman or Laughlin.  You have a super high income tax in California and then you get into things like the price hikes associated with high cost freight fees for things like California blend gas.  There has been some local movements in Needles to try to get the city absorbed into Arizona and Nevada given they can't compete economically with their neighbors.  Basically Needles is in a position where it can't compete economically and would be in serious trouble without the BNSF. 

I can definitely see your point on that. But then if you were to go 95 miles south on US 95 to Blythe and I-10, there would still be some more questions regarding Needles. Blythe, on I-10 is nearly the same distance from Palm Springs as from Buckeye (AZ), on the western edge of the Valley of the Sun. Even factoring out the California state prisons in Blythe's city limits, the population of Blythe at least doubled from 1960-2020. Nearby Quartzsite (AZ), which is basically one big RV park with truck stops, lost more than a third its population in just the 2010s!

The thing with Quartzsite and Parker is that they are Snow Bird oriented communities.  They cater hugely to retirees that come in during the winter months to live on RV plots out in the desert.  When I had a store in Quartzsite we did about 90% of our business during the Snow Bird season, we might as otherwise just shuttered the rest of the year.  I seem to recall the town (Quartzsite) projected to have a typical seasonal population which exceeded 20,000.  Parker is a little different due to the Colorado River Reservation but it has similar Snow Bird seasonal population patterns.  Blythe does have a fairly decently sized agricultural foot print which can mostly be observed from CA 78.

Back when my grandparents were snowbirds in the early 1990s, I visited them one year where Quartzsite boasted a total seasonal population of 100,000 (that was just the town, so who knows how true it was ).

[US71]

My family travelled Route 66 in the 60'a and70's  before the Interstates made it redundant.

[Highway63]

Like above posters, I wonder about the rationale for picking the day.

The cover of the Route 66 song is not one I'd recommend. I did enjoy picking out the landmarks I've been to.

[mrsman]

It's a great tribute.  Hopefully people can still access the links after midnight if they haven't had a chance to see it today.

It's also on youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=ZoPJVcHYlU0&feature=emb_logo

Trying to do a run-down for the types of things that I couldn't see a direct connection to Route 66, and perhaps others have comments.  Many of what I point out was stuff that I wasn't aware of before doing some google searches:

Gumball machine?  Maybe a motorhome at 0:23?  (Illinois portion)

Buried treasure in the Missouri part of the video at 0:42?

Devil's Elbow Bridge at 0:43.

They do acknowledge KS at 0:49, but a little hard to read.

I suppose 0:54 is Galena, KS and Rainbow Bridge, but it could be any place in that era.

1:02 acknowledges Totem Pole Park in OK.

Blue whale and a big teepee that were part of the kitsch, but don't know where they were (1;06)

Golden Driller statue in Tulsa (1:12)

Leaning Tower of Britten

Cadillac Ranch

Midpoint Cafe (1:25)

La Bajada (1:34) [amazing that something so steep was once part of a major national highway]

No ackwnowledgement for Winslow, AZ? {I know Eagles came about well after 66's heyday.}

Kitschy random dinosaurs at 1;58.

And of course, Colorado Street bridge in Pasadena, CA and a very symbolic representation of Broadway in Downtown LA, and then the sign in front of the Santa Monica Pier.

[Max Rockatansky]

Fairly certain the dinosaurs are a reference to Grand Canyon Caverns which was formerly known as Dinosaur Caverns:

https://flic.kr/p/RJ4BLy

[ozarkman417]

Buried treasure in the Missouri part of the video at 0:42?

This is a reference to Meramec Caverns. It is rumored that the famous bank & train robber Jesse James would sometimes hide out here, hence the treasure chests.

[SEWIGuy]

Apparently, April 30 was the date that the number 66 was first proposed for the route.

https://www.ky3.com/2022/04/30/get-your-kicks-google-celebrates-significant-date-route-66-springfield-mo-history/

"On this date 96 years ago, the name "U.S. 66″ was first proposed for the cross-country route. Historians say Springfield, Missouri is recognized as the "Birthplace of Route 66″ based on activities and events that happened that day.

Route66News.com cites research from Missouri State University's Thomas Peters that offers insight from that date. Based on the research, on April 30, 1926, a telegram was sent from the Colonial Hotel in Springfield to federal officials in Washington D.C., saying they would accept "66″ as the number for a new highway."

[Max Rockatansky]

Apparently, April 30 was the date that the number 66 was first proposed for the route.

https://www.ky3.com/2022/04/30/get-your-kicks-google-celebrates-significant-date-route-66-springfield-mo-history/

"On this date 96 years ago, the name "U.S. 66″ was first proposed for the cross-country route. Historians say Springfield, Missouri is recognized as the "Birthplace of Route 66″ based on activities and events that happened that day.

Route66News.com cites research from Missouri State University's Thomas Peters that offers insight from that date. Based on the research, on April 30, 1926, a telegram was sent from the Colonial Hotel in Springfield to federal officials in Washington D.C., saying they would accept "66″ as the number for a new highway."

Alps posted something similar regarding yesterday in the CA 66 thread.  I never bothered to track the entire back and forth over US 60/66 in the AASHTO but in theory it ought to be straight forward to do.  It might be worthwhile to grab the entire series of exchanges out of there for posterity sake. 

[US71]

Apparently, April 30 was the date that the number 66 was first proposed for the route.

https://www.ky3.com/2022/04/30/get-your-kicks-google-celebrates-significant-date-route-66-springfield-mo-history/

"On this date 96 years ago, the name "U.S. 66″ was first proposed for the cross-country route. Historians say Springfield, Missouri is recognized as the "Birthplace of Route 66″ based on activities and events that happened that day.

Route66News.com cites research from Missouri State University's Thomas Peters that offers insight from that date. Based on the research, on April 30, 1926, a telegram was sent from the Colonial Hotel in Springfield to federal officials in Washington D.C., saying they would accept "66″ as the number for a new highway."

The 1926 Missouri official shows US 60 from St Louis towards Springfield.  Subsequent maps corrected the "error"

[Max Rockatansky]

Apparently, April 30 was the date that the number 66 was first proposed for the route.

https://www.ky3.com/2022/04/30/get-your-kicks-google-celebrates-significant-date-route-66-springfield-mo-history/

"On this date 96 years ago, the name "U.S. 66″ was first proposed for the cross-country route. Historians say Springfield, Missouri is recognized as the "Birthplace of Route 66″ based on activities and events that happened that day.

Route66News.com cites research from Missouri State University's Thomas Peters that offers insight from that date. Based on the research, on April 30, 1926, a telegram was sent from the Colonial Hotel in Springfield to federal officials in Washington D.C., saying they would accept "66″ as the number for a new highway."

The 1926 Missouri official shows US 60 from St Louis towards Springfield.  Subsequent maps corrected the "error"

Every 1925 Rand McNally Junior I've seen had US 60 over what was to become US 66 come November 1926.  Even the California Highway Commission published US 60 in their list of approved routes in the January 1926 California Highways and Public Works:

https://archive.org/details/california192427highwacalirich/page/n339/mode/2up?q=Crescent+City