Historic Route 66 Begin Sign

Route 66 is affectionately called "Mother Road" by Americans. Route 66 runs diagonally from Chicago to Santa Monica, California. Route 66 total length: 2448 miles (about 3939 kilometers). Construction of Route 66 began on November 11, 1926, and was only announced as complete in 1938. It begins in Chicago, Illinois, and runs through Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Arizona, and diagonally across the U.S. territory to Los Angeles, California (later extending to Santa Monica). ), spanning eight states, three time zones, and a total length of 2,450 miles, or about 3,943 kilometers. In John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath, this road is called the "Mother Road". So the name was used. Route 66 was informally named The Will Rogers Highway by the US Route 66 Organization in 1952. A sign honoring the humorist is still standing in Santa Monica, California.