By Brian Dulle
Publication Date: 2026-04-30 19:49:00
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — If you’ve been on Google Thursday, April 30, you might have noticed a special Route 66 theme on the homepage.
So why Route 66 on April 30? Well the answer actually links to Missouri 100 years ago.
Route 66 and Hollywood: Movies, TV shows that captured the mystique of the road
On April 30, 1926, entrepreneurs Cyrus Avery of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and John Woodruff of Springfield, Missouri, sent a telegram to Washington D.C. from the Colonial Hotel in Springfield, suggesting the name “66” be given to their new highway going from Chicago to Los Angeles.
Avery discovered the number 66 was available and sounded better. A return telegram came on Nov. 11, 1926 confirming the name Route 66.
Springfield, Missouri, later became known as the “Birthplace of Route 66.”
Avery lobbied for the route because it would redirect traffic from Kansas City, Missouri, and Denver and boost the state’s prosperity.
On Thursday morning, the TODAY show broadcasted its third hour live at…
