Current:Home > Contact-usFamily, preservationists work to rescue endangered "safe haven" along Route 66-InfoLens
Family, preservationists work to rescue endangered "safe haven" along Route 66
View Date:2024-12-23 15:30:59
Route 66 was once known as the "Main Street of America." While the iconic road is no longer part of the U.S. highway system, much of it is still drivable and dotted with landmarks like the Cadillac Ranch in Texas.
The Threatt Filling Station, located in Luther, OK, is one of those landmarks. It was once the only African-American owned gas stop along Route 66 and was one of the few places people of color could feel safe to stop and rest while driving. After decades of disuse, it was named one of America's Most Endangered Historic Places.
"This was literally, literally a safe haven for people during the Jim Crow era," said Edward Threatt, whose grandfather owned the station. "My grandpa, he was a smart man, to be able to acquire 160 acres of land, because we had so much property they could stay out back."
Threatt said that the site won't be a filling station again, but he hopes to turn the building into a respite from the road, as well as a place of history and learning. It's something he says he knows his grandfather would be proud of.
"He's proud of us. I mean, I know he is," Threatt said. "And he expects us, me, my cousins, who are now the elders of the family, to preserve this and pass it on and make sure it is never, ever outside the family."
Preservationist Molly Baker and restoration expert David Gibney have been heavily involved in the efforts to save the building. Baker is a a manager for the National Trust for Historic Preservation's HOPE - or Hands-On Preservation Experience - Crew. Gibney teaches workers how to bring a building back to life and make it look like no damage ever occurred.
"We want everything to look like (what) was originally there," said Gibney. "And that's the real task here."
This type of restoration is a lost art, Gibney said, and "all has to be hand done."
"A.I. can never replace it. Robots can never replace it," he said.
The hopes of the field rest on trainees like Jeremiah Booker, who is working on the Threatt Filling Station project.
"I feel like I'm contributing, and like playing a part in doing this work," Booker said.
This isn't their first project. The HOPE Crew has also been involved in preserving important historical sites, like a St. Croix plantation hospital and the nation's first African-American cemetery.
"Part of telling the full American story is making sure that everyone has their story told, and that there's representation for everybody," Baker said.
- In:
- Oklahoma
Janet Shamlian is a CBS News correspondent based in Houston, Texas. Shamlian's reporting is featured on all CBS News broadcasts and platforms including "CBS Mornings," the "CBS Evening News" and the CBS News Streaming Network, CBS News' premier 24/7 anchored streaming news service.
Twitter InstagramveryGood! (729)
Related
- The Daily Money: All about 'Doge.'
- UN food agency stops deliveries to millions in Yemen areas controlled by Houthi rebels
- Coast Guard suspends search for missing fisherman off coast of Louisiana, officials say
- Gold Bars found in Sen. Bob Menendez's New Jersey home linked to 2013 robbery, NBC reports
- Keke Palmer Says Ryan Murphy “Ripped” Into Her Over Scream Queens Schedule
- Treat Yo Elf: 60 Self-Care Gifts to Help You Get Through the Holidays & Beyond
- Family sues Panera, saying its caffeinated lemonade led to Florida man’s cardiac arrest
- Jonathan Majors' ex Grace Jabbari testifies on actor's 'violent temper': 'I had to be perfect'
- November 2024 full moon this week is a super moon and the beaver moon
- Former U.S. Ambassador to Bolivia Manuel Rocha accused of spying for Cuba for decades
Ranking
- As CFP rankings punish SEC teams, do we smell bias against this proud and mighty league?
- Fantasy football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: 15 players to start or sit in Week 14
- Missouri’s next education department chief will be a Republican senator with roots in the classroom
- Selection Sunday's ACC madness peaked with a hat drawing that sent Notre Dame to Sun Bowl
- Former NFL coach Jack Del Rio charged with operating vehicle while intoxicated
- Peruvian constitutional court orders release of former President Alberto Fujimori
- Memorials to victims of Maine’s deadliest mass shootings to be displayed at museum
- Jonathan Majors' accuser Grace Jabbari testifies in assault trial
Recommendation
-
The Army’s answer to a lack of recruits is a prep course to boost low scores. It’s working
-
Former Colorado officer accused of parking patrol car hit by train on railroad tracks pleads guilty
-
Dancing With the Stars Season 32 Winners Revealed
-
State officials review mistaken payments sent by Kentucky tornado relief fund
-
Amtrak service disrupted after fire near tracks in New York City
-
All of These Dancing With the Stars Relationships Happened Off the Show
-
Supreme Court seems inclined to leave major off-shore tax in place on investors
-
Verizon to offer bundled Netflix, Max discount. Are more streaming bundles on the horizon?