A Love Letter to Route 66: Jim Ross and Shellee Graham’s New Book

Nothing lights me up like seeing a friend’s name on a book cover—especially when it’s our “Lucadia” neighbors Jim Ross and Shellee Graham, whose Route 66: The First 100 Years just hit bookshelves. Their masterful storytelling and deep Route 66 expertise make this biography a treasure that Luther Register News readers must own. Why? Because the road we cruise to work or the store isn’t just ours—it’s a 2,448-mile legend we share with road trippers around the world.

The book opens with a hook that grabs you: “From its beginning, Route 66 embodied the fusion of automobiles with the lure of the open road, an explosive mix propelled by a pair of sassy sixes.” It goes on: “From the simplicity of a soothing breeze in the shade of a roadside park to the unforgettable candy-colored pulse of neon at a cozy motor court, Route 66 left its mark on millions. … The twangy slap of a greasy spoon’s screen door, lunch from a picnic basket, or driving through a rumbling summer storm would long be remembered.”

For us in the Midpoint Corridor, a collaboration of locales, including Luther, between Edmond and Sapulpa, Route 66 takes us wherever we’re going, and more importantly, brings us back home again. But for roadies from every state and many nations, it’s an odyssey, a global icon of American adventure and freedom. You could say Route 66 was the matchmaker for Jim Ross and Shellee Graham, who were each preeminent Route 66 experts. Now married and living on an original stretch between Arcadia and Luther, their combined talent captures this dual identity in their book, answering questions I had and sparking new ones about our road’s universal appeal.

I recently visited their home on Old Route 66, where we discussed the book at length, their love story (as a lifelong romantic), along with Route 66 gossip and plans for the 2026 centennial. I first met them around 2018. They were regulars at the now-closed Farmstead Cafe in Luther, where I used to work while building the fledgling Luther Register News. Between pitching specials and coaxing them into sharing Italian cream cake, we became friends. That’s when I started learning more about Route 66 and collecting their earlier books. Despite their lifelong passion for researching, photographing, promoting, and publishing on the Mother Road, they told me they hesitated to write another book for the centennial. Could they do it justice? (The answer is yes!)

With prodding from Reedy Press, Route 66 cohorts, and friends, they dove in. For over two years, Jim vividly wove history with colorful stories of triumphs, political gambits, the road’s heyday, struggles, and resurgence. Shellee’s meticulous research, vintage photo curation, and design expertise brought each page to life. The result is a visual and historical treasure that captures the rugged charm and global allure of Route 66.

“From its beginning, Route 66 embodied the fusion of automobiles with the lure of the open road, an explosive mix propelled by a pair of sassy sixes.”

jim ross, ROUTE 66: The first 100 years

When my copy arrived, I displayed it proudly on my coffee table, promising to savor it when time allowed. But as a dedicated digital reader (“my books are always in my pocket”), I was skeptical about a large-format book that required me to sit still. But it offered a welcome digital detox that I highly recommend. On a recent rainy day, I curled up in the comfy chair with plenty of cloudy-skied natural light and fresh coffee, and turned the pages. It drew me in with stunning spreads—impossible to appreciate on a digital screen—and a compelling narrative of historical facts, flavored with stories of people who came before us and their connections to Route 66. I resisted dog-earing to keep the pages pristine, using sticky notes to mark notable passages about Luther, like the Threatt Filling Station and Ozark Trail. Though Luther’s lost Ozark Trail marker at Main and First wasn’t mentioned, the section on Route 66’s precursor reignited my curiosity to dig into our town’s early history.

The story of Route 66’s creation captivated me, especially the naming battle. Tulsan Cyrus Avery and Kentucky Governor William J. Fields clashed over the number “60.” Avery, a key figure in nationalizing America’s byways, wanted “60” for his Chicago-to-Los Angeles route, conveniently passing right by his Tulsa businesses. Fields, furious about Kentucky’s “scraps of irrelevancy” in the road planning, fought back, vowing in 1925 to “use every means in my power to fight this proposition of isolation.” Fields won better connectors, but the number “60” stayed contested. As Avery’s political term waned, he secured his route but settled for “US 66.” The book nails it: “For on the 11th day of November 1926, their Chicago-to-Los Angeles thoroughfare—that misfit, rebel road forever branded with a pair of rhythmic sixes—took up residence on the American landscape” (page 23).

Cyrus Avery’s genius branded Route 66 the “Main Street of America,” fueling tourism for decades. But bypasses, starting with Oklahoma’s 1953 Turner Turnpike, siphoned traffic from Main Streets like Luther’s. Now, Oklahoma’s Route 66 centennial investments—millions in community grants, advertising, and events—offer towns a chance to shine again, almost as reparation. In Luther, it’s working. A grant-funded Visit Luther sign, pointing to Main Street, has boosted retail walk-ins and sparked events like the Third Saturday Downtown Market on June 21, 2025. We’re weaving the sign, Route 66, and more into the Luther Pecan Festival, November 8–9, 2025, with two venues—downtown and the orchard—for the first time, celebrating our road’s global legacy.

The book devotes entertaining chapters on the Bunion Derby and Oklahoman Andy Payne’s victory, women’s achievements, “The Mother Road Meets Native America,” villains, victims and the lore around the No Tell Motel outside of St. Louis. There is also a case study on the recent reclamation and restoration of the Painted Desert Trading Post, resolute in the Arizona desert.

In the wake of the interstate cyclones, most small towns became skeletons of what they had been … Praiseworthy are the town leaders, preservationists, grant providers, donors, organizations, and investors who still find a way to make it happen.”

Jim Ross, route 66: the first 100 years

The buzz for Jim and Shellee’s book is growing. They’ve appeared on Galen Culver’s Great State on KFOR and made the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s summer reading list, among other mentions. They’re also hitting the book-signing circuit, including Tulsa’s RoadFest on June 21, 2025.

Like all great biographies, Route 66: The First 100 Years leaves readers inspired to reflect and act. “Going forward, increased awareness will help balance the ratio of losses to saves, but it will require sustained effort. In the wake of the interstate cyclones, most small towns became skeletons of what they had been, and maintaining economic viability continues to leave little in the resource cupboard for saving endangered sites” (page 176). Jim Ross adds, “Praiseworthy are the town leaders, preservationists, grant providers, donors, organizations, and investors who still find a way to make it happen.”

Luther friends, we owe it to ourselves to own this book, not just to cheer on our “Lucadia” neighbors Jim and Shellee, but to grasp why our daily road captivates road warriors worldwide. Share a review online, join Jim and Shellee at Tulsa’s RoadFest on June 21, 2025, or bring your copy to Pecan Fest to spark Route 66 stories. This five-star gem shows how our local stretch ties to a global legacy, urging us to cherish our past through good times and bad. After our chat, Jim and Shellee treated me to a tasty lunch at Arcadia’s Chicken Shack. Next time, I’m buying—at a Luther spot, of course!