Bøger af Joe Sonderman

St. Louis has a fascinating history that continues to affect how we live in the metro area today. This book presents that history in a unique fashion that makes it interesting to read, compiling historic events in a day-by-day calendar format. There are the tragedies and triumphs of great figures of history and, of course, sports. There are the epochal events from the settling of the city to Westward Expansion, from the Louisiana Purchase to the 1904 World's Fair through the wars and the baby boom years right through Ferguson, COVID-19, and the success of our new soccer team. But there are also the lesser-known stories behind the names of our communities and roads, tales of the offbeat and sometimes humorous, and the accomplishments and foibles of the famous. Local radio personality, traffic reporter, and author Joe Sonderman has been collecting St. Louis history for 45 years and presents it in an easy-to-read style that will engage anyone with even the most casual interest in what makes our region so great. Many of the stories happened within our lifetime, so flipping through the book will often bring back memories of events you may have forgotten about or stories you never knew. You will find it hard to put down.

Route 66 is the "Main Street of America," heralded in song and popular culture. It took a maze of different routes through St. Louis before slashing diagonally across the "Show-Me State" through the beauty of the Ozarks. In between, there are classic motels, diners, tourist traps, and gas stations bathed in flashing and whirling neon lights. Natural wonders include crystal-clear streams, majestic bluffs, and wondrous caverns. Roadside marketers concocted legends about Jesse James, painted advertisements on barns, lived with deadly snakes, or offered curios such as pottery and handwoven baskets. That spirit is alive today at the Wagon Wheel and the Munger-Moss, the Mule, Meramec Caverns, and Ted Drewes Frozen Custard, just to name a few. Their stories are included here.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 127).

New Mexico is "The Land of Enchantment," offering a fascinating blend of Native American, Spanish Colonial, and Western American cultures. The travelers from the East knew they had arrived in the great Southwest when they entered New Mexico--the towns along Route 66 were ablaze in neon, and the motels lured travelers with Western themes, Pueblo Revival architecture, and Native American trading posts. An adventure still awaits the traveler today who takes the time to exit I-40 and leave the franchised blandness behind. The neon still flickers at the Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, on Central Avenue in Albuquerque, and at the El Rancho Hotel in Gallup. The "Fat Man" still smiles at Joseph's Bar and Grill in Santa Rosa. The stories behind those landmarks are here, as well as the stories behind establishments that are lost forever or slowly crumbling to dust among the tumbleweeds.

Route 66 in Arizona is a ribbon tying together spectacular natural attractions such as the Grand Canyon, the Petrified Forest, the Painted Desert, and the Meteor Crater. There were plenty of man-made diversions along the way, too. Roadside businesses used Native American and Western imagery to lure travelers to fill up their gas tank, grab a meal, or spend the night. Roadside signs featured shapely cowgirls and big black jackrabbits, or warned of killer snakes and prehistoric monsters. Between wails of "Are we there yet?" children pleaded to stay at motels shaped like wigwams, explore the Apache Death Cave, or pick up a rubber tomahawk at a trading post.

Route 66 Highway, first built in 1926-32, offers a fantastic variety of scenery and history. This segment of the highway, from the Gateway to the West through the beautiful Ozarks, is organized in over 300 vintage postcards and color photos that capture travel on "The Mother Road" across the "Show Me State." There are stops at "no-tell motels," gas stations, cafes, roadside stands, and good, old-fashioned tourist traps. The detailed text provides histories at each stop, including icons such as Coral Court, The Diamonds, Meramec Caverns, and many more. This book is organized first chronologically and then features a tour through the Meramec Valley, from Leasburg to Rolla, the Ozarks, Lebanon to Springfield, and Springfield to the "Ghost Section." Postcard values are included in the captions. For all who enjoy the romance of the open road, this book is a treasure.