Route 66 at 100: A Kansas Road Trip Plan

Route 66 turns 100 in 2026, and you don't have to leave Kansas to mark the occasion. The name was first proposed in Springfield, Missouri, on April 30, 1926, and that anniversary has been the focus of celebrations all year. The big centennial gatherings are behind us now, but many of the old roadside stops along the Kansas stretch are still open, and a loop starting in Kansas City makes a nice way to spend a fall weekend.

A good first stop is West Mineral, where the Big Brutus museum sits beside the world's largest electric shovel. The machine stands 16 stories tall, weighs more than 11 million pounds, and dates to 1962. The museum, at 6509 N.W. 60th St., is open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm through November, and it closes at 4:00 pm from November through March. Adults pay $10, seniors and military $9, children ages 6 to 12 $5.50, and kids 5 and under get in free. It's closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Farther south, the road gets more small-town. Galena has a cluster of Route 66 shops, including Cars on the Route and Gearhead Curios, along with Nelson's Old Riverton Store, which was built in 1925. Baxter Springs is home to the Kansas Route 66 Visitor's Center and is also linked to Dean Walker, who inspired the character Tow Mater in the animated film Cars. Coffeyville has more history to take in. It's the site of the Dalton Gang ambush on October 5, 1892, and you can walk through Death Alley, look over Isham's Hardware Store from 1870, and tour the Brown Mansion, which was completed in 1904.

If you want something a little different, Chanute's Safari Museum is dedicated to Martin and Osa Johnson and the photographs and artifacts they brought back from their travels. Fort Scott National Historic Site, with its 11 historic structures, is free to enter. Back near Kansas City, the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes runs exhibits on people whose stories are less well known.

To finish the trip, head toward the Flint Hills. Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve covers about 11,000 acres and is home to a bison herd. The Flint Hills National Scenic Byway, K-177, runs 48 miles from Cassoday to Council Grove and passes through the preserve's landscape. In Cottonwood Falls, the Chase County Courthouse from 1873 is worth a stop, and Emporia offers the Red Rocks State Historic Site and the National Teachers Hall of Fame.