Day Two – Chelsea

Leaving Foyil we headed north to Chelsea. Since Route 66 is now a four lane highway, we could only imagine what it was like in its early days. Some of the remains of the early days were waiting for us in Chelsea.The Chelsea Motel, in its heyday, was a stop over for many tourist. The motel opened in the mid to late 1930s and operated for approximately twenty years. In 1947, a neon sign was added and is still standing. The motel is a wooden structure, 75’ x 16’, and had six rooms. It closed in 1957 when I-44 opened and bypassed Chelsea. Today the property is privately owned.

Another remnant of Route 66 early days is the Pryor Creek Bridge. It was built in 1926 and Route 66 crossed Pryor Creek using the bridge until 1932. The bridge is 123 feet long and 19 feet wide. Like most old bridges, there is a weight limit. Now that we have a small car instead of our big truck, we were able to cross and enjoy the view of the creek. An interesting fact regarding the Pryor Creek Bridge, it is Pratt Through Truss Design and is the only unaltered example in Oklahoma.

Although not necessarily related to Route 66, the Hogue House in Chelsea has an interesting history. The house was built in 1912 and has been in the Hogue family since then. It is the first Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalog home in Oklahoma and east of the Mississippi River. Mr. Hogue saw one on display at a Sears store in Chicago in 1911 and paid $1,600. The home is listed on the National Register of Historical Places.

Having had all the kicks we could get on Route 66, we headed home thinking about the many travelers who drove Route 66. Wonder what their kicks were on Route 66?