Cheryl Jett - Route 66 in Springfield

By the early 1900s, both federal and state officials, not to mention farmers, rural residents, and other travelers, realized the need to pave roads and move beyond the conditions seen in these two photographs. In 1900 there were 200,000 cars produced in the United States. Yet out of the nearly 100,000 miles of gravel or macadam roads in the country, Illinois only had about 8 percent. The State of Illinois began serious efforts to improve road conditions in the early 1900s. In 1905, a commission to study the Illinois road system was established, and in 1910, state licensing of vehicles was required, with the fees to go toward road construction. The Tice Road Act, which approved state bonds for roadway improvements, was passed in 1913. (Both courtesy of Library of Congress.)

A contemporary photograph of the preserved highway rest area at Sherman probably does not look much different than a vintage picture would. Early rest areas did not have modern conveniences like restrooms, coffee vending machines, and wall-mounted highway maps like 21st-century motorists enjoy. An early Route 66 traveler would count himself lucky to find a picnic table under a shade tree. (Photograph by Cheryl Eichar Jett)

The Carpenter Park segment is an abandoned quarter-mile section of roadbed that has not been in use by automobile traffic since 1936. Located north of Springfield in Springfield Township, it is a two-lane, 16-foot-wide example of 1922 highway engineering. Like other sections of highway, this was an existing road redesignated as Route 66 in 1926. (Photograph by Cheryl Eichar Jett.)

Known today as the Auburn Brick Road, this 1.53-mile section was originally part of State Route 4. It is a well-preserved example of early highway construction and contains two original single-span concrete bridges that were constructed in 1920. Another section of this historic segment was constructed in 1921, consisting of 1,277 feet of 16-foot-wide Portland cement. (Photograph by Cheryl Eichar Jett.)

In 1930, Route 66 was directed down South Sixth Street out of town to the south. In this view, roadwork is being done to prepare the new section of highway that curved around Copps Corner. The Copp family was busy building a half-dozen new businesses to serve travelers as they rounded the corner of the new Route 66. (Courtesy of Sangamon Valley Collection, Lincoln Library.)