To a Springfield
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Day 6: December 26, 2022 To a Springfield Comment via blog |
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As the sun was rising behind the Jasper County courthouse, I decided that
30 ° F was warm enough to walk to the
Pancake Hut where I had a
"Hut Special". A big attraction for me
was the Chicago Coins Band Box which had returned to the restaurant in
October after a full restoration. Band Boxes were designed to be connected
to jukeboxes but nothing like that exists at the Pancake Hut. There will
likely be some sort of music system installed to accompany the moving
figures but for now it is a visual only attraction.
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Of course I took photos as I walked back to my room.
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About fourteen miles east of Carthage, I made a short off route excursion
to see a famous Christmas display. To be honest, it isn't so much the
display itself that is famous; it's the Thanksgiving Day hoopla associated
with it. Thanksgiving Day is when essentially all 114 residents of La
Russell attend or participate in the lighting of the town pump complete
with parade and fireworks. Joplin's KOAM did
a great report on this year's event and the pump does
have its own Facebook page. I could see La Russell being the target
of a future Thanksgiving Escape Run.
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These are basically drive-by photos of Spencer and Gay Parita with a
coating of snow.
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Almost from the instant that I pulled onto the street, I regretted leaving
the Boots as early as I did. Maybe two nights in the same place made me
extra eager to be moving. With a short drive to my next night's lodging
and without the summertime activity at Gay Parita to slow me down, I was
in Springfield, MO, way ahead of check-in time. It was a situation
seemingly made for a visit to the Route 66 Car Museum.
The museum contains an impressive number and variety of cars. I think I've longed for a Studebaker Hawk most of my life. This one is a 1957 Silver Hawk. The pair of Bantums are from 1930 (yellow) and 1934 (blue). The pair I picked in the sports cars section consists of a 1963 Morgan +4 and a 2005 Morgan Aero 8. |
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Also in the interest of burning time wisely, I paid a visit to the
Wire Road Brewing
Company where I was super impressed with their Special Release of Elk
Horn Porter with coconut. Porter with coconut and/or vanilla will almost
always get my approval but this one also gets my praise.
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At this point, I decided to go for my second and final meal of the day.
That way I'd be spared the need to go back out in the cold until morning.
The first picture is of a reproduction sign in a small park on Historic
Route 66. It is explained here. The sign in the
second picture is also a reproduction but it is in front of a real
restaurant. The original Red's closed in 1984. David Campbell bought the
brand and, in partnership with Greg Iott, opened this version in 2019. It
is about two miles off of a US-66 alignment.
At the original, "Red" Chaney made his own root beer. Campbell and Iott have theirs made by Springfield Brewing Company. Most drinks are self-service at a beverage kiosk like all the fast food chains. Root beer is dispensed with care by an employee. It's great. And so was the hamburg and the fries. Classic popular music plays steadily with synchronized images of the performers displayed on a wall facing the front door. I was face to face with The Strawberry Alarm Clock when I entered. Mid-meal I got a little taste of home when Cincinnati's Casinos came up in the rotation. |
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With my daily needs now satisfied, I could check into a warm room at
Rockwood Motor
Court. I'm in room #7 in the far
corner in the second photograph. I did, as can be seen, venture out once
to ge a picture of the brand new reproduction of the court's original
sign. This one was officially lit on August 13 in conjunction with
Springfield's annual Birthplace of Route 66 Festival.
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