Robert’s Routes

Dr. Andrews Ismay Smith, Ph.D., ( a remotely related descendant of the family of a captain of an ill-fated ocean liner and whose first and middle names were for those of ancestors who were connected with ocean liners in the 1910’s) is a Professor at the Northern University of Time Studies. ( N.U.T.S.) Together with a staff of scientists, engineers, technicians and experts in the fields of construction of electronics equipment and computers, he had developed in the year 2012 a Time Machine and had traveled back to the fateful nights in April , 1912 and was aboard the RMS Titanic, busily recording the events aboard that ship on a specially designed state-of-the art video recorder, disguised in a wooden case resembling an old-fashioned crank operated movie camera. He had obtained permission from Captain Smith , J. Bruce Ismay , Thomas Andrews and the rest of the officers and crew to roam about the ship at will in all areas. On the fateful night of April 14, 1912, at 10:40 PM ship’s time, there was an incident which of course was the climax to Smith’s efforts. After the collision and the aftermath, as the water slowly rose to the bridge. Smith muttered under his breath to himself, “Time to get back to the year 2012.”A red light flashed on the indicator screen of his control box and the display read “Battery power too low to activate controls. Can not activate command.. Can not ………can not………………………..not.” and the screen went blank………….

Epilogue:

Fear not for Smith. Clinging to wreckage and floating near a strong -willed eighteeen year old girl who was also clinging to some wreckage and had somehow managed to retrieve and blow a whistle to which the officer on the rescue lifeboat heard , he was one of the few who was rescued and eventually returned to New York aboard the Carpathia. Addled by his experience, he searched his brain for some method to recharge the batteries during the entire length of the return trip on the Carpathia, It was not until he reached New York , disembarked and roamed the streets until he finally thought of contacting a wizard of electricity in nearby Menlo Park, New Jersey, managed to recharge the batteries and return to the year 2012., So all’s well that ends well. When asked later why he did not think of re-charging the batteries by solar power during his stay that sunny morning on the Titanic, Smith laughed. “I don’t see what’s so funny !”, a friend replied. Smith answered, ‘It was cold that morning on the deck of the Titanic so I put on my overcoat. I put the Remote Control Unit in the pocket of my overcoat,in the deep dark pocket of the especially constructed hermetically sealed , waterproof and most of all light proof pocket !”

P.S. Dear Reader. :
In case you are wondering how we know all about Professor Smith’s adventure, considering this is being written in the year 2005 and the time machine was not invented until 2012 ? That’s very simple. Professor Smith was as easily able to get back to the year 2005 as it was to get back to the year 1912 and he did us the favor of a visit to give us the story.

In the far distant past, say around the year 1915, rail travelers to and from Dallas, Texas faced a bewildering problem of getting to and from the trains, especially if they had to transfer from one line to the other. For example, if you arrived on the Texas and Pacific from El Paso and wanted to catch a train on the Southern Pacific to Houston, you would have to take a taxicab (or maybe even a horse drawn carriage in 1915 !) across downtown Dallas between the two stations. The city had hired George Kessler to come up with a master plan for the city. Part of that plan was a central or Union Station to consolidate all passenger rail traffic at one location. This was acomplished with the completion of the Dallas Union Station in 1916.

The station faces Ferris Plaza, which was intended as an attractive gateway to the city. The Plaza and fountain have been restored recently. In the background may be seen Reunion Tower and the Hyatt Regency Hotel. The station is built in the classic style of the grand union stations of that era, with gleaming white brick,which was especially made for the construction of the building.

There are no longer 33 long distance trains into and out of Union Station daily as there were in its heydays, but Union Station today serves a total of around 375 trains daily of the combined AMTRAK, DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transit ) Light Rail Electric Trains, and the diesel powered double deck or single level Rail Diesel Car trains of the TRE (Trinity Railway Express) .
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AMTRAK has 2 trains per day: The Texas Eagle, northbound to Chicago and southbound to San Antonio.

Southbound to San Antonio Departing from Dallas at 1:40 PM and arriving at San Antonio at 11:45 PM. There are connections with the Sunset Limited at San Antonio to Florida and California. Connections at Fort Worth are also available to the Heartland Express to Oklahoma City.

Northbound to Chicago Departing from Dallas at 4:30 PM and arriving Chicago at 2:19 PM (Next Day)
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DART operates trains to and from the south and southwest parts of Dallas to Garland and Plano.

RED LINE: Total of 176 trains daily during the week:
85 Southbound to the Westmoreland Station in Southwest Oak Cliff from 5:10 AM to 12:47 AM
91 Northbound to the Parker Road Station in Plano from
3:48 AM to 12:16 AM

BLUE LINE:Total of 155 trains daily during the week:
74 Southbound to the Ledbetter Station in South Oak Cliff
from 5:16 AM to 12:49 AM
81 Northbound to the Downtown Garland Station
from 4:00 AM to 11:43 PM

DART trains run on reduced schedules on the weekends and holidays. Not all the trains are through trains between the northernmost and southernmost stations.

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TRE operates a total of 42 trains daily during the wek for commuter service between Dallas and Fort Worth , with stops at intermediate points along the line.

21 trains eastbound from Fort Worth and arriving Dallas from 6:05 AM to 8:33 PM

21 trains westbound to Fort Worth departing from Dallas from 6:20 AM to 8:45 PM

TRE does not operate on Sundays and holidays and on a reduced schedule on Saturdays. Not all of the trains are though trains between Dallas and Fort Worth

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When Union Station was opened in 1916 and for many years thereafter, passengers had the daunting task of ascending a long line of stairs to an upper floor waiting room and concourse and then back down to the trains. Escalators have since been added on either side of the restored grand staircase. The upper floor is no longer used as a waiting room and is currently rented out for private parties and other gatherings. Today’s rail passengers waiting for the trains have to be content with park benches arranged around the AMTRAK ticket counter. There are also vending machines nearby.

In 1947, the problem was finally eliminated when a tunnel was put through under the tracks with stairs and ramps connecting with the trains. A recent addition has been a small elevator for wheel chairs and the physically handicapped. The doors at left lead to stairs to the AMTRAK loading platform. A ramp is on the opposite side of the tunnel, and the elevator is located nearby. In the background, the tunnel may be seen leading to the main floor of Union Station. The tunnel connects the main lobby of Union Station with the tracks, Hyatt Regency Hotel and Reunion Tower. An interesting collection of pictures of early Dallas and Union Station are on the walls of the tunnel. Celebrities from the past including comedians Bud Abbot and Lou Costello are included in the photographs, and a sound recording of songs, speeches and other memorabilia is presented continually as a background to accompany the pictures.
The tunnel was proposed when the station was first built, but there was the ever present danger of flooding from the Trinity River. This problem was eliminated with the re-channeling of the river and construction of the levees in the 1930s, but it was not until 1947, as previously mentioned, that rail passengers were finally spared the ardous journeys of upstairs and downstairs to get to the trains.

There were originally 10 tracks at Dallas Union Station; today there are only 5. The tracks behind the station are normally busy with AMTRAK, which occupies the track to the right of the picture; TRE, the next two tracks; and DART, two tracks to the left of the picture. The picture catches a a rare moment when only the TRE, waiting for its departure to Fort Worth, was at the station and there were very few if any people in view. In the background may be seen the Reunion Tower, and Hyatt Regency Hotel.

The color and style of the brick supporting structures for the shelters over the waiting platforms have been copied from the original style and color of the bricks and trim of the 1916 architecture of Union Station. There are also murals set in the shelters which depict historic events of different eras in Dallas.
All of the stations on the DART Light Rail Lines also have distinctive themes in connection with the neighborhoods adjacent to the stations.

Dealey Plaza is named for George Bannerman Dealey, founder, editor and publisher of the Dallas Morning News. Young “G.B.” was a member of the large Dealey family which came to Galveston, Texas from England. He served as an office boy for the Galveston News and rose quickly through the ranks. In 1885 he was sent to the then relatively small community of Dallas to establish a new branch of the Galveston News. Galveston was the chief port and largest city in Texas at that time. In addition to his journalistic achievements, in later years Dealey was known for his contributions to philanthropy and education and was founder of The Dallas Historical Society in 1922, which has been headquartered in the Art-Deco Hall of State at Fair Park since 1938. (See the posting on this website for more details and information on the Hall of State. )

The picture was taken from the observation deck of Reunion Tower. The tower in turn is named for La Reunion, an early communistic experiment by a group of French settlers. Although their proposed wine producing efforts proved unsuccessful, the members of the colony were skilled artists and and craftsmen and were absorbed into and greatly contributed to the cultural life of early Dallas.

Descendants of the Dealey Family and the La Reunion Colony are still prominent in Dallas Civic affairs.

Elm Street is the curving street, while Main Street is the straight street at the lower edge of the photo, and the street crossing running from top to bottom is Houston Street. Commerce Street, the third street which funnels into the Triple Underpass is out of view on the lower edge of the picture. These feed under the railroad tracks and eventually lead to the Commerce Street Viaduct, a crossing of the Trinity River. On the extreme left (the small building with the red roof) is a former railroad switching tower, the exterior of which has recently been restored. Tracks for the Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) Light Rail electric trains may be seen above the switch tower and parking lots. The colonnade amidst the grove of trees on the left side marks the approximate site where John Neely Bryan built his log cabin in 1841. There is some discussion as to whom the City of Dallas was named, as Bryan once remarked “I named the town for my friend Dallas.” There are many probable and improbable persons on the lists of Bryan’s “friends”. Dallas County is officially named for George Mifflin Dallas, Vice-President of James K. Polk, but even this is questioned by some historians.

A statue and plaque in memoriam to George Bannerman Dealely stands on the west side of Houston Street between Main and Commerce Streets.

On the west side of Houston Street between Elm and Main Streets is a bronze plaque illustrating the events of the John Fitzgerald Kennedy assassination.

President John Fitzgerald Kennedy was assassinated here on November 22, 1963. “Lone Assassin” theorists maintain the fatal shots were fired from the window on the sixth floor of the the then Texas Schoolbook Depository Building, on the upper right of the photo. “Conspiracy” theorists insist they were fired from the so-called “Grassy Knoll” behind the Bryan Colonnade and/or from the Dal-Texas Building, just to the right of the Depository.

The Sixth Floor Museum, devoted to the JFK assassination, now occupies that part of the building, the rest of which has been converted into office space.

Many of the old restaurants along Old Route 66 are no longer in operation, but happily there are some who have survived and are doing quite well, thank you !

One of these is Joseph’s Restaurant along the main street in Santa Rosa, New Mexico. It advertises itself as being in operation since 1956. The old Club Cafe, which was a few blocks down the street from Joseph’s is unfortunately no longer in business, but Joseph’s has resurrected the famous picture of the smiling “Fat Man” which was posted on the advertising billboards along Old Route 66 in the heydays of the Club Cafe. A fairly good choice of food is available on the menu and there are many items of Route 66 memorabilia on display inside Joseph’s Restaurant – just one more “must stop-must see” on Route 66. Exit I-40 at Mile 275 westbound; Mile 273 eastbound to Historic Route 66 through Santa Rosa.

Here is a list of just a few of some of the other recommended old favorites for dining along Route 66 :
Del’s Restaurant – Tucumcari , New Mexico
Cafeteria and Restaurant – Cline’s Corners, New Mexico
Route 66 Diner- Albuquerque, New Mexico
Four B’s Restaurant- Grants, New Mexico
El Rancho Hotel Dining Room – Gallup, New Mexico
Turquoise Dining Room at La Posada Hotel – Winslow, Arizona
Little America Coffee Shop – Flagstaff, Arizona
JB’s Restaurant – Kingman, Arizona
California Pantry Restaurant- Needles, California
Marie Callender’s Restaurant – Victorville, California

If you really want to see some of the old historic landmarks along old Route 66, you will have to get off the Interstate occasionally. In this case if you are headed westbound on I-40, exit at Mile 53 at Kingman, Arizona; eastbound tourists can exit at Mile 48.

Historic Route 66 through Kingman, Arizona has been named Andy Devine Avenue. Andy was a comic side-kick in many a western movie along with Gene Autry and all the other stars. His whining, raspy voice was said to be the result of any early childhood illness.

Andy’s father , Thomas Devine, was one of the early managers of the Historic Hotel Beale, which is still in operation along Historic Route 66. Andy Devine was born and raised in Kingman and no doubt spent much of his childhood life at the hotel.

Across the street from the Hotel Beale is the equally historic Santa Fe Railroad Station. The Spanish Mission Architecture was the design for many railroad stations along the Santa Fe Mainline. They were said to be an inspiration from the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco. The station was in the process of being restored on the last trip through Kingman. This is a regular stop for the AMTRAK “Southwest Chief” which now supplies passenger service between Los Angeles and Chicago.

“All Aboard ” Times: (See the AMTRAK site for updates)
11:46 PM – Westbound from Chicago to Los Angeles
2:03 AM – Eastbound from Los Angeles to Chicago
There were no attendants or waiting room at last visit (the station was in the process of restoration.)
Tickets may be purchased on board the train without penalty, however.
There are also bus connections to and from Kingman and Laughlin and Las Vegas, Nevada.

There are many of the old motels and restaurants still in operation along Andy Devine Avenue

Midway along the old route is Lewis Kingman Park. The park is named for a railroad engineer (the Civil type engineer and not the Locomotive engine driver type engineer, that is) who planned the Santa Fe Railroad right-of-way in this area. There are shaded grounds, picnic areas and interesting metal cutouts of trains and railroad scenes decorating the park.This is definitely a recommended place to take a “rest stop” while you are exploring Route 66. Nearby is another small park with an old Santa Fe steam locomotive (you can climb aboard and inspect the cab) and a caboose.

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Old Route 66 between Needles and Barstow, California is also designated as The National Old Trails Highway. The old route from the turnoff at the exit west of Needles to the return to Interstate Highway 40 at Ludlow, California is about 75 miles – only about 9 miles longer than the direct route on I-40. The old road is in reasonably good condition except for a very rough stretch of paving from about 10 miles east of Ludlow and just about as good time may be made on either route.

However, if you take the old road, you will no doubt want to stop along the way and take pictures, so allow at least a little extra time. The scenery isn’t all that spectacular except for the desolateness of the Mojave Desert.

The Amboy Crater, a cinder cone from an extinct volcano, is just to the south of the highway. The lava is very sharp and heavy, strong boots or shoes are recommended if you are interesed in climbing or inspecting it more closely.

There are no services of any kind along the old road and the view looking west along Route 66 is typical of the way you will most likely see the road…lonely , desolate and deserted. It is recommended that you check on the fluids, both with an ample supply of drinking water for yourself and party …cool or cold is recommended..and an ample supply of fuel, oil and water for your car,too.

Temperatures can reach into the 110F range from mid- morning to sunset. An early morning crossing is recommended. You’ll be able to cross this part of the Mojave Desert in less than two hours and if you get an early start-Kingman, Arizona or Needles California are recommended for an overnight stop if you are headed westbound- Victorville or Barstow, Californnia if you’re eastbound-.you’ll be able to make the crossing before it gets unbearably hot….Of course you could make the crossing in the (relative) cool of the night as the Joad Family did in “The Grapes of Wrath.”

Nowadays, with modern cars and air conditioning a crossing during mid day or afternoon won’t be all that bad.

Many of the old landmarks along Route 66 have been restored or renovated . The Power House Museum in Kingman, Arizona contains historical exhibits , including an extensive Route 66 collection.

Many of the Historical Signs mentioned in Jack Rittenhouse’s 1946 “A Guide Book to Route 66″ may still be seen along Route 66 – such as this sign at Gallup, New Mexico. Many others may be seen in Rest Areas along Interstate Highway 40 near the locations mentioned in Mr. Rittenhouse’s book.

The Aircraft Carrier USS Lexington (CV-16) saw action in the Pacific during World War II and during the Korean Conflict. The ship has been retired from active duty and is now open to the public as a Museum Ship at Corpus Christi, Texas. Tours are available which cover all areas of the ship from the Bridge to the Engine Rooms. There is a gift shop and a snack bar for souvenirs and meals.

There is also an Amateur Radio Club and operational station, W5LEX, in the Radio Room aboard Lexington.

This view is from the flight deck and shows the island structure looking aft and was taken on a tour of the ship on the morning of September 9, 2004.

This is proof that Route 66 isn’t all desert in Arizona.
There are Rest Areas at Mile 181 on I-40 . The Rest Area is in the Coconino National Forest.
At Mile 190, I-40 and Route 66 cross the Arizona Divide.
The elevation here is 7335 Feet Above Sea Level, 90 feet higher than the 7245 Feet elevation at Continental Divide, New Mexico, between Grants and Gallup.

Other Rest Areas on I-40 close to or adjacent to Route 66 going west between Oklahoma City , Oklahoma and Barstow, California are located at the locations listed below. Most have rest rooms and picnic facilities; some have vending machines and telephones. :

OKLAHOMA
Mile 9- East and Westbound

TEXAS-
Mile 149- East and Westbound
Mile 87- East and Westbound
Mile 76 – Visitor Center , Eastbound. Accessible from parking lot via pedestrian overpass, Westbound. Tourist Information Center, Rest Rooms, no Picnic Facilities.

NEW MEXICO

Mile 373- Westbound. Visitor Center, Tourist Information Center, Rest Rooms, Picnic Facilities. Even has a Horse Corral !
Mile 301 – East and Westbound
Mile 251 – East and Westbound
Mile 207 – East and Westbound
Mile 102 – East and Westbound , located on east side of cross road to south of I-40.
Mile 93- East and Westsbound
Mile 39- Eastbound
Mile 3 – Eastbound

ARIZONA-
Mile 359 – Westbound. Visitor Center, Tourist Information Center, Rest Rooms, Picnic Facilities.
Mile 236- Westbound
Mile 235 – Eastbound
Mile 182 – Eastbound
Mile 181- Westbound
Mile 23 – East and Westbound

CALIFORNIA
Mile 105- East and Westbound
Mile 28 – East and Westbound