BancFirst Funds Route 66 Centennial Monument at Luther’s Threatt Filling Station

A host of family, friends, donors and cheerleaders of the Threatt Filling Station celebrated the new Route 66 Centennial Monument at the station on Friday morning at an official dedication ceremony. 

The Threatt Station monument is the eighth monument to be installed for the Route 66 Centennial Monument Project. Ten more monuments will be installed over the next 90 days in communities from Illinois to California with dozens more planned across Route 66, Brian Brown, the project director, said. The QR code on the sign leads here.

At the event, Edward Threatt Sr., who manages the station and property and formerly served as mayor of Luther, announced continuing renovation plans for the station that include transitioning the site into an interpretive center for Route 66 visitors.

The station on the corner of Route 66 and County Line Road was the first Black-owned filling station on Route 66, and stood as a beacon for generations of Mother Road travelers seeking fuel, food, and a safe haven for community during the Jim Crow era.

The original wooden Threatt Station was founded by Edward’s grandfather, Allen Threatt Sr., in the same era that Route 66 carved its path from Chicago to California in 1926. The station has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since April of 1995. Allen Threatt Sr. was inducted into the Route 66 Hall of Fame in 2022.

The Threatt Filling Station foundation received a $858,200 Project 66 grant from the State of Oklahoma in 2024 to help fund the restoration of the beloved landmark. Guests at Friday’s event were permitted to take a sneak peek inside the building that is expected to open for visitors.  Among several recent updates, the Threatt family installed two vintage Conoco gas pumps identical to those that once served visiting patrons.

The Route 66 Centennial Monuments are manufactured by Oklahoma City’s VOX Industries. VOX collaborated with Oklahoma City public artist Stan Carroll on the design. G&S Sign Services, also of Oklahoma City, fabricates the monuments and leads installation efforts around the country. Incidentally, our friends at G&S Sign Services also fabricated and installed the new Visit Luther Oklahoma sign that points to Luther’s Main Street and is located at the Orchard on 66. It was also funded by a Project 66 grant, completed earlier this year.

Funding for the Threatt Station Route 66 Centennial Monument was provided by BancFirst, one of six sponsored by the Oklahoma City-based company.

NOTE: Special thanks to Opus Entertainment for sending images of the event. Sadly, your editor has tearful FOMO for missing this special day. The mountains called, and I had to go (but I’m wearing my VISIT LUTHER OK shirt!) Hoping the celebration carries on all day, and visitors explore Luther, including getting lunch and shopping downtown.

“Visit Luther” Sign Dedication Draws Crowds, Boosts Business, and Celebrates Route 66 Spirit