Chicago moved the eastern terminus of Route 66 (US-66) on Mar 25, 2026

Original Terminus: (Satellite)

New Beginning: (Satellite, the beginning was moved from Jackson to Adams when the streets were made one-way.)

2026 Terminus: (Satellite)

US-66 Overview

2 of 25 photos posted by The Launching Pad with the comment:

What an amazing time this morning on Navy pier for the unveiling of the new starting point of Route 66.

I bumped into so many people I felt like I was at a high school reunion.

Every time I took a step, somebody was tapping me on the shoulder saying hi or wanting pictures or wanting just to talk about the good old days.  It was such a warm feeling this morning.

Route 66 it’s such a warm and inviting community.

To celebrate such a historic event and to be there and witness it even better.

Long Live Route 66!

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Jessica Lynn commented on the above post
It was nice to see you. Wish I had posed with ya.

The Launching Pad used to be in Wilmington, IL.

20160603 3347 via Dennis DeBruler

In this day and age of selfies, you have to have a big sign.

Facebook Reel
https://www.choosechicago.com/route66/

All Things Chicago posted

The new starting point for the historic Route 66 was unveiled today at Chicago’s Navy Pier. Route 66, also known as the “Mother Road,” is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. The iconic highway stretches more than 2,400 miles through eight states before ending at Santa Monica Pier in California. (WBBM News Radio) 🏙️🎡6️⃣6️⃣ 

📸: @theelginphotog

Brent Barron: This was done so a restaurant at Navy Pier could cash in on the 100th year anniversary crowd. The actual starting point was Jackson and Michigan Av, but was moved to Adams and Michigan Av, when the streets were made one-ways. Adams goes west, so it is the beginning point for those travelers going to California. For the travelers coming from California, the end point is Jackson and Michigan Av. There were signs at both intersections, but knuckleheads, plastered them over with stickers, obliterating them.

Richard Wynkoop: I have traveled route 66 73 times. 74 will happen on April 9th, 2026.

Lou Mitchell's Restaurant & Bakery in Chicago, Illinois, is widely recognized as the iconic starting restaurant on Route 66, serving travelers since 1923 near the historic start of the Mother Road at Jackson Boulevard. It is famously known as the first stop for breakfast before embarking on the westward journey.

[This comment was in the context of comments pointing out that the Navy Pier location has restaurants.]

James O'Neill posted
Chicago, right now.— at Navy Pier.

Dale Findlay commented on James' post

Metha Mogel commented on James' post
Emmmmm, I thought it starts downtown. E. Adams St at S. Michigan Ave. What’s this Navy Pier sign?

James O'Neill: Netha Mogel Speakers at the ceremony unveiling the new sign said it marked a “symbolic” starting point. Same thing Santa Monica did in 2009. Neither pier ever was a real stop on Route 66.

I wonder what the name of Jessica's character is. She and Gemini Giant are on the left in this video of the signs unveiling.

Facebook Reel

The Chicago Tribune had an article with the headline: "Get your Kicks ... on Navy Pier?". It explains that the western terminus was moved from Lincoln and Olympic Boulevards to Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier. Now one can do a pier to pier road trip.

1925 1mw Ela Dam on Oconaluftee River near Bryson City, NC

(Satellite)

Street View, Jul 2024

MainSpringConserves, 1939 TVA photo

Sara Raxter posted

The Ela dam on the Oconaluftee River, then and now.

This dam is slated for demolition.

fws, Ela Dam under construction, Kelly Bennett. Courtesy of Western Carolina University Hunter Library./Western Carolina University Hunter Library, Copyrighted, All Rights Reserved - Used by Permission, https://www.fws.gov/media/ela-dam-under-construction
"Nearly all land upstream of the dam is either part of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians’ Qualla Boundary or Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There isn’t another dam in the watershed – Ela Dam is the only thing keeping the Oconaluftee River from being a completely free-flowing river....The dam came online in 1925, with the capacity to produce 0.98 megawatts."
The 1mw capacity could be replaced by a 10-acre solar farm.

fws, Ela Dam under construction, Kelly Bennett. Courtesy of Western Carolina University Hunter Library./Western Carolina University Hunter Library, Copyrighted, All Rights Reserved - Used by Permission, https://www.fws.gov/media/ela-dam-under-construction-0

AmericanRivers, photo by Erin McCombs

AmericanRivers, courtesy of Mainspring Conservation Trust
After an accidental sediment release in Oct 2021, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) and other partners purchased the dam so that it could be removed.

StoryMaps, this webpage has a lot of information about the Cherokee culture and the rare fish & wildlife in the area.
The dam was sold to the Ela Dam Project, LLC (EDP) in Mar 2025 and disconnected from the grid.

StoryMaps
"Over the years, the Bryson Project has experienced considerable sedimentation above the dam, resulting in the need to periodically draw down the lake and mechanically remove sediment, as shown in these photographs below taken by Swain Soil & Water Conservation District (SWCD)."
The accidental sediment release was caused by a glitch in the software that "caused the unexpected opening of the dam's two tainter [Parker] gates."
"The drawdown resulted in heavy sedimentation of the one-half mile of the Oconaluftee River between the dam and the Tuckasegee, causing severe impacts to aquatic habitat and faunal diversity. Sediment removal began on December 23, 2021 using hose suction and sediment bags to filter sediment. No mechanical dredging was conducted in order to minimize the disruption of the riverbed."

1819,1984 National Pike and 1936 US-40 Wilson Bridges over Conococheague River at Wilson, MD

1819: (Archived Bridge Hunter; Bridge Hunter; Historic Bridges; Satellite)

1936: (Historic Bridges; Satellite)

US-40 Overview

1819 National Pike Bridge

In 1926, this bridge would have been US-40 as well as the National Road because that is when US highway numbers were assigned.

Bob Dover posted

Wilson Bridge is one of only two original National Road bridges remaining in Maryland. Because it is on the Baltimore-to-Cumberland segment, the bridge was more accurately located on the National Pike and not the official National Road. It was constructed in 1819, a few miles west of Hagerstown. It ceased to be used as part of the main highway in 1937 when US Route 40 was realigned onto a new bridge about 200 feet downstream. The original bridge continued to carry local traffic until 1972 when it was damaged by flooding from Hurricane Agnes. The bridge sat damaged for several years, but was eventually restored and became the centerpiece of a small county park with parking spaces, picnic tables, and historical markers. While it is pleasurable to walk over Wilson’s Bridge, it is recommended that you also walk over the Route 40 bridge, as it is a little higher in elevation and provides a good vantage point from which to view the older bridge.

I have posted several photos of the Wilson bridge, as well as the Casselman bridge, onto www.bridgespotting.com. There is also a detailed description of a tour of all of the National Road bridges, including Wilson and Casselman, in Chapter 9 of my book, Bridgespotting: A Guide to Bridges that Connect People, Places, and Times.

Street View, Oct 2019

Advanced Aerial Imaging Concepts, Nov 2024

The 210' (64m) long bridge has five spans. It was rehabilitated for non-vehicular use in 1984 after Hurricane Agnes damaged it in 1972. [HistoricBridges_1819]

2010 photo by Jodi Chritman via BridgeHunter

Street View, Sep 2013

MarylandMemories
"Wilson’s Bridge was the first of the stone bridges built in Washington County. Its purpose was to carry the state-chartered, privately funded ‘Bank Road’ over Conococheague Creek to join the National Road at Cumberland, providing a pivotal link between the eastern seaport cities and western markets and suppliers. Silas Harry contracted with the county to build this 210-foot. five-arch span at a cost of $12,000. It was considered a “modern marvel” upon completion. Its design and very fine workmanship served as a model for the 30 more bridges that quickly followed. Today, it is a popular fishing and picnic spot, with easy accessibility, convenient parking and a boat ramp."

1936 US-40 Bridge

Postcard via BridgeHunter

HistoricBridges_1936
This 370' (113m) long bridge has a main span of 102' (31m).

Broke Aban/Big Four/Peoria & Eastern Bridge over West Fork Sugar Creek west of Danvers, IL

(no Bridge Hunter; no Historic Bridges; Satellite)

Abandoned Illinois Railroad Bridges posted five photos with the comment:

The bridge failure that put a rail line permanently out of service:  This unique double-arch concrete culvert carried the Peoria and Eastern railway (Later New York Central, then Conrail) over the West Fork of Sugar Creek.  It is located just west of Danvers in rural McLean county.  It is clear from the attempted repair/bracing of this bridge using lengths of rail bolted to its sides above the arches, that it was known to be in danger of failure.  This bracing was not enough to prevent it's partial collapse, however.  Heavy rainfall in early December 1982 caused massive flooding in Central Illinois and resulted in the wash-out of the center support of this bridge.  Late in the evening on December 2nd, a Conrail freight train derailed while attempting to cross this washed out bridge, likely damaging it beyond repair.  This put the section of the P+E between Pekin and Deere permanently out of service, never to be used again.  

Massive thanks to legendary central Illinois railfan David Jordan for assistance in gathering the historical information about this incident!

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1930/30 Danvers Quad @ 62,500

1903 401.5' (122.4m) Aban/B&O/B&S Cottage Hill (Highland Street) Tunnel in Du Bois, PA

(Archived Bridge Hunter; Bridge Hunter) 

West Portal: (Satellite) 

East Portal: (Satellite)

B&S = Buffalo & Susquehanna

The tunnel is 401.5' (122.4m) long. [centralpahistory, this reference provides a history of the B&S.]

One of the portals has the date.

2019 photo by Steve & Judy Yordy via BridgeHunter

The other one does not have the date. This view shows that the tunnel has a slight curve.

centralpahistory, cropped

This image makes it easier to determine where the portals were than the current Google Maps satelilte image.

Google Earth, May 2022

1922 Du Bois and 1929 Penfield Quads @ 62,500

Three different sources, including this reel, show both portals but none of  them say which one is west (geographic south) and which is east (geographic north). But images of the portal without a date show that there is a slight curve in the tunnel at the other end.

Facebook Reel

And topo maps show that the slight curve is at the west end. So the portal with the date is the West Portal.

1966/68 Du Bois Quad @ 24,000

Aban/B&O/Hempfield Finney (#6) Tunnel

(B&T)

West Portal: (Satellite)

East Portal: (Satellite)

B&T (source)
The tunnel is roughly 3.5 miles west of Washington. It still has rails because this segment was used for car storage after B&O abandoned the route in Nov 1985.

B&T

Facebook Reel
Linda walked on the rail to get over all of the muck in the approach to the tunnel.

The tunnel is between Claysville and Washington on this map.

Rumsey, 1958

Pennsy Bow Ridge Tunnels near Conemaugh Dam, PA

1864 West Portal: (Satellite)

The east portal is normally inundated by the Conemaugh Dam Reservoir.

1907 West Portal: (Satellite)

1907 East Portal: (Satellite)

Both tunnels now have concrete plugs. The 1907 east portal is inundated only when the dam is above normal pool level.

The 1864 tunnel was signal tracked. When Pennsy added a second track, they also relocated the track to higher ground to remove some of the curvature of the track.

The 1864 alignment:

1900/58 Latrobe Quad @ 62,500

The 1907 alignment is the OLD RAILROAD GRADE on this map. This map also shows how the 1952 alignment was built even further up the hills to avoid being inundated by the Conemaugh Dam Reservoir. Also, it shows that the tunnels are named after the peninsula that they bored through.

1964/66 Blairsville Quad @ 24,000

I've seen photos of two different portals, but I've also seen the same portal identified as 1864 and 1907. So beware, some sources are wrong. I'm using these two photos that have a sign and a portal to definitively document that the partially gated portal is 1864 while the fully gated tunnel is 1907.

Jftravels, Jun 2025

Note also that the 1907 portal is double tracked.

joe billy, Oct 2025

A readable version of the 1907 sign.

Jftravels, Jun 2025

Linda has other views that show that the pile we see in the tunnel goes all the way up to the ceiling. She says that her previous video is of the 1907 tunnel. Unfortunately, I have not been able to figure out how to access previous or subsequent Facebook Reels.

Facebook Reel

These two HAER photos must have been taken before the large gate was installed in the west portal of the 1907 tunnel.

"DESCRIPTION: The second of two tunnels cutting through Bow: Bend of the Conemaugh River, the Bow Ridge Tunnel measures approximately 630* in length, cut through the predominantly shale ridge. The west portal is 30' in height, 42' in width, and has a single span semicircular arch opening." [HAER_data]

HAER PA,65-NEWAL.V,1-
1. GENERAL VIEW OF WEST PORTAL OF TUNNEL, SHOWING KEYSTONE AND PLAQUE ABOVE ARCH - Pennsylvania Railroad, Bow Ridge Tunnel, Through Bow Ridge, 0.3 mile South of Conemaugh Dam, New Alexandria, Westmoreland County, PA Photos from Survey HAER PA-269

HAER PA,65-NEWAL.V,1-
2. GENERAL VIEW OF EAST PORTAL OF TUNNEL

I presume this is the eastern portal of the 1864 tunnel that was taken when the dam's reservoir was low.

Malinda Dunmire, Aug 2025

There used to be a canal tunnel between the two Pennsy tunnels.

Jftravels, Dec 2023