Aug 27 2008
Route 66 and World War II
Several years after the end of the Great Depression, the United States found itself immersed in World War II.
Again, while travel was scarce on most of the US highways during the war, mostly due to tire and gasoline rationing, travel on Route 66 continued. However, instead of families, this time it was primarily soldiers traveling Route 66. Some civilians were migrating west to get jobs in industries that were supporting the war effort, but the majority of traffic along Route 66 during World War II was military. Troops, supplies and equipment traversed the highway since it was still the only fully-paved east-west road in existence.
While businesses and establishments along Route 66 fared ok during this time, the road itself did not. Because of the weight of the military equipment that was moved along Route 66, the road began to crumble.
However, interest in the route did not.
Next: Route 66 after the war and into the 1950s
