Birthplace of Route 66 Roadside Park

1200 W. College St., Springfield, MO
Phone:

East < GO > West

In 2014 the first phase of the Birthplace of Route 66 Roadside Park was dedicated. It included a replica of the Red's Giant Hamburg sign, landscaping, a park driveway and sidewalk improvements.

Apparently Red miscalculated how tall the sign needed to be to fit the word hamburger, at any rate his restaurant was apparently the place to get a giant hamburg! Legend has it that Red's was the first drive thru restaurant.

There's a pretty cool bike rack at the park.

Just across the street from the park is the College Street Great Mosaic Wall. Having been dedicated in 2001 the mosaics are older than the park. And the retaining wall is much older than either the mosaics or the park.

A historic marker was placed on this wall in June 1929. It reads

"ABOUT FEBRUARY, 1830, WILLIAM FULBRIGHT ERECTED, NEAR THIS SPOT, THE FIRST CABIN BUILT ON THE SITE OF THE PRESENT CITY OF SPRINGFIELD. AT THE SAME TIME, A. J. BURNETT BUILT A POLE CABIN NEAR THE NATURAL WELL. AND JOHN FULBRIGHT ANOTHER NEAR JONES' SPRING. THE FIRST CHURCH SERVICE WAS HELD AND THE FIRST CHURCH (METHODIST) ORGANIZED IN THE CABIN OF WILLIAM FULBRIGHT. THIS STREET WAS ORIGINALLY NAMED FULBRIGHT, AND THE SETTLEMENT WAS CALLED CAMPBELL AND FULBRIGHT SPRINGS. UNIVERSITY CLUB HISTORICAL MARKER NO. 15 JUNE 1929"

Photo(s): 2016