Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
This fried chicken is one of Bangkok’s most famous.
Gai Tord Jae Kee
Chefs Aruss Lerlerstkull and Atcharaporn Kiatthanawat lean into regional traditions.
Charmgang
The khao soi at Gedhawa comes with a rich, coconutty broth.
Gedhawa
At Nai Mong Hoi Thod, the oyster omelet is worth waiting for.
Nai Mong Hoi Thod
In this deceptively simple dish, top-quality ingredients are paramount.
Kor Panich
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States Illinois Chicago Beginning (and End) of Historic Route 66

Beginning (and End) of Historic Route 66

A journey begins with a single step, and for many, the road-trip of a lifetime started at this Chicago intersection.

Chicago, Illinois

Added By
Denver Applehans
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
The sign before it was covered in stickers.   Gorup de Besanez / CC BY-SA 4.0
Historic Route 66 Begin sign, stickered over.   DenverApplehans / Atlas Obscura User
End sign.   Bex Walton / CC BY 2.0
Historic Route 66 End Sign   DenverApplehans / Atlas Obscura User
Historic Route 66 End Sign   DenverApplehans / Atlas Obscura User
I took this photograph last year in Santa Monica   Julius Spada / Atlas Obscura User
  marytyska / Atlas Obscura User
  mocchiatto / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
Another sign marking the route in Chicago.   Lorie Shaull / CC BY 2.0
Route 66   IronQueen / Atlas Obscura User
  marytyska / Atlas Obscura User
  aerocavalier0600 / Atlas Obscura User
  aerocavalier0600 / Atlas Obscura User
  Julius Spada / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

The “Mother Road” that helped define America’s love affair with the road trip is now decommissioned, but key parts of historic U.S. Highway 66 remain, and aficionados still trace the route from its origin near the shore of Lake Michigan in Chicago to its unofficial terminus in Santa Monica, California. And though it’s always been understood as a journey heading west, it does go both ways, both beginning and ending in Chicago on the Midwest Coast.

U.S. Highway 66 was officially created by the U.S. Bureau of Public Roads in 1926 as one of the highways that would make up the network of America’s first Federal highway interstate system. The new system redesignated existing roads in many areas to piece together a coordinated interstate system.

According to the Route 66 Association of Illinois, Route 66 began in Chicago in 1926 at the intersection of Jackson Boulevard and Michigan Avenue. This initial portion of the highway was renamed Illinois State 4, which ran from Chicago to East St. Louis. With this pre-existing state highway, the Illinois portion of Route 66 was the first to be completely paved and was also the first to replace the existing road with the U.S. highway. In the mid-1950s, the starting point of Route 66 was moved over a block due to a change in Chicago traffic patterns that made Jackson Drive a one-way street.

Today, Historic Route 66 begins in front of the Art Institute of Chicago, with a sign on the south side of the street that is almost completely covered in stickers. It ends where it originally began at East Jackson Boulevard and Michigan Avenue with a sign on Jackson Boulevard that is less covered in stickers and much more easily identifiable.

As exemplified in John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, the route is about more than transportation, it’s about people, their stories, and our collective history.

Related Tags

Signs Geographic Markers Highways Roads Route 66

Community Contributors

Added By

DenverApplehans

Edited By

Collector of Experiences, marytyska, mocchiatto, Michelle Cassidy...

  • Collector of Experiences
  • marytyska
  • mocchiatto
  • Michelle Cassidy
  • IronQueen
  • Julius Spada
  • aerocavalier0600
  • caitlinleavesboston

Published

September 1, 2023

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://www.il66assoc.org/route-66-history/
  • https://national66.org/pages/route-66-history
  • https://www.nps.gov/articles/route-66-overview.htm
  • https://www.il66assoc.org/route-66-history/
  • https://www.route66roadtrip.com/route-66-illinois-road-trip.htm
  • https://national66.org/pages/route-66-history
  • https://www.nps.gov/articles/route-66-overview.htm
Beginning (and End) of Historic Route 66
200 Michigan Ave
Chicago, Illinois, 60604
United States
41.879523, -87.624611
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Thorne Miniature Rooms

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

Pritzker Military Museum & Library

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

Palmer House Hilton

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Chicago

Chicago

Illinois

Places 160
Stories 54

Nearby Places

Thorne Miniature Rooms

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

Pritzker Military Museum & Library

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

Palmer House Hilton

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Chicago

Chicago

Illinois

Places 160
Stories 54

Related Stories and Lists

Get Thee to Totality: Chicago

List

By Atlas Obscura

Related Places

  • National Route 66 Museum

    Elk City, Oklahoma

    National Route 66 Museum

    An Oklahoma museum that celebrates the history of the "Mother Road."

  • Alaska Highway Mile 0 sign

    Dawson Creek, British Columbia

    Alaska-Canada Highway Mile 0

    The arch marks the beginning of the road for northbound travelers.

  • The final marker

    San Francisco, California

    Western Terminus of the Lincoln Highway

    The United States' first transcontinental automobile road came to its end at this spot in San Francisco's Lincoln Park.

  • Marker at the end of National Route 3, Bahia Lapataia.

    Ushuaia, Argentina

    Bahia Lapataia at the End of the World

    The most southern point you can drive to in the Western Hemisphere.

  • Green Belt sign in Emsworth.

    Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

    Allegheny County Belt System

    Color-coded signs direct drivers on a network of routes designed to avoid Pittsburgh traffic.

  • Musical Road Ahead

    Palmdale, California

    R. Lee Ermey Musical Road

    The road plays 30 seconds of the Marine’s Hymn when driving over the grooved pavement.

  • Pointe de Almadies sign

    Dakar, Senegal

    Pointe de Almadies

    This beach in Senegal marks the westernmost point on the African continent.

  • Sign at the Cape of Good Hope

    Cape Town, South Africa

    The Most Southwestern Point of Africa

    The Cape of Good Hope is not quite as low as you can go on the African continent, but it's still geographically significant.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.