Will Rogers Highway - Afton, Oklahoma, USA
N 36° 41.985 W 094° 56.735
15S E 326201 N 4063329
A 'Will Rogers Highway' / 'Route 66' monument & Historic Marker, has been placed alongside the nine feet wide, so called 'Ribbon Road' or 'Sidewalk Highway' located in Afton, Ottawa County, Oklahoma.
Waymark Code: WMR1MP
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 04/28/2016
Views: 4
'Ribbon Road' or 'Sidewalk Highway' is the original Route 66, Nine feet wide roadbed, now just gravel, & cracked asphalt, You get a real feeling for the past when you drive this section of the historic Route 66.
Route 66, has many names, The Mother Road, Will Rogers Highway, the Ozack trail, to name a few.
The Afton section is one of only two short sections of the original, 13 mile long, nine feet wide, Original Route 66 roadbed that remains intact. The other is a 3 mile section south of Miami.
The text on the Marker reads:
"In 1922 a new 9 foot wide roadway was completed between Miami & Afton OK. Because no standards existed & so few roads were paved, it's width was not unusual for the era. It consisted of a concrete base& edges of rock asphalt in 1926 the sidewalk highway was adopted by US 66.
RT 66 was paved piecemeal from 1926 -1937 since the Miami to Afton section was paved it became the last segment upgraded to the standards established in 1930. it was also re aligned& included a new bridge on the Neosho river.
On Sept 11 1937 the opening of the bridge completed the last segment of RT 66 paving in Oklahoma. The Sidewalk thus became one of the early stretches of Mother road paving to be bypassed, and today is the only RT 66 roadway of its type in existence"
"Columbus discovered the New World, but the Tin Lizzie has made us discover America." Will Rogers
Erected 2010 by the Oklahoma RT 66 Assoc.
From the Legends of America Website:
"This section of the road predates Route 66, having been built in the early 1920's. Legend has it that when the road was built, Oklahoma's budget was tight, so rather than covering half the mileage, they covered half the width. This remarkable piece of vintage pavement zigzags for 13 miles between Miami and Afton. Amazingly this original stretch of pavement is in extremely good shape for its age, but take care along this stretch for oncoming vehicles. If you plan to travel this short stretch of the Mother Road, use caution if it’s been raining or if you have an oversized vehicle." Text Source: (
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