SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CAPITOL CITY NOW) – Route 66 is more than a road, it’s a symbol. A leading Route 66 expert shared some history and some predictions with the audience Wednesday at the Illinois Route 66 Scenic Byway Statewide Conference at Motorheads in Springfield. Nov. 11, 1926, marks the creation of the Mother Road.

Rhys Martin is Preserve Route 66 manager for the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the president of the Oklahoma Route 66 Association.

What’s the best way for a town to promote its Route 66 connections?

“Anybody can put a gift shop in their town,” he responded. “But if you embrace what makes you unique and what your story is, that’s what gets people’s attention, and that’s what gets them to stay.”

Martin says Route 66 is the opposite of an interstate.

“Route 66 encourages people to slow down, to visit with folks that they meet, whether it’s a business owner or a fellow traveler,” said Martin, “and it really shows you that there is more in this country that unites us than divides us and really encourages you to look at your surroundings, stop, spend a while ,and appreciate all of the wonders that you get to see in this country.”

Author John Steinbeck coined the phrase “Mother Road” for Route 66 in his novel The Grapes of Wrath.