Old Route 66 meanders westward out of Springfield on Missouri Highway 266 through rolling hills situated along the western edge of the Ozark Plateau. Some of the settlements along this section still have a few people living in them, but almost every one of the dozen or so towns that once thrived here have become ghost towns or don’t exist at all anymore. Though large farms and ranches still populate this old road, this slice of the highway has long passed its prime. The Yeakley Methodist Chapel west of Springfield, Missouri, was established in 1887. By 1965, all of these towns were bypassed entirely. However, their fight was in vain, and highway officials responded by building the new four-lane farther south. At this time, the other towns along the road between Springfield and Carthage fought to keep the designation of US 66 and threatened to sue. Unfortunately, in 1961, portions of the old road between Spencer and Paris Springs were realigned in anticipation of the new Interstate-44 planned. Along this stretch were several towns, including Halltown, Paris Springs Junction, Spencer, Avilla, and more, that thrived when the new highway came through. When Route 66 was created in 1926, the old Ozark Trail was utilized as the new alignment from Springfield to Carthage. It made its way from St Louis, Missouri, across Oklahoma, Texas, to Romeroville, New Mexico, where it met the Old Santa Fe Trail. When automobiles became more common in the early 1900s, the Ozark Trail was developed in 1915. This stretch of the road was once the Springfield to Carthage stagecoach road.

Heading west from Springfield, Missouri, on old Route 66, travelers will make their way through a scenic stretch of the Mother Road that provides numerous peeks at the past along this almost abandoned piece of payment. Route 66 in southwest Missouri by Kathy Alexander.

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