GET-YUR-MOTOR-RUNNIN' ROAD TRIP
Astoria - Santa Fe - Death Valley - Astoria
October 28-30, 2013 (Days 14-16 of 44)
Santa Fe, NM to Albuquerque, NM
Miles: 73 / Trip Miles: 2,089
Albuquerque (5,300 feet elevation):
I dropped Mary off at the Albuquerque airport on October 28th, and stayed in Albuquerque a few more days. The temperature during my stay was perfect … mid 50s to high 60s. Evenings were very windy. During the calm mornings, I had views from my hotel window of hot air balloons rising over Albuquerque, with the Sandia Mountains (highest elevation of 10,700 feet) in the background.
My hotel did not have a guest laundry. I located a laundromat a mile or so away in a rundown neighborhood … most businesses had bars on the windows and doors. While doing my laundry, I noticed Stuffy's next door to the laundromat. Stuffy's is "homestyle" fast-food eatery serving Mexican food. Customers spoke Spanish to each other. I had a delicious lunch of huevos rancheros. Across the street in a half-empty shopping center I found a barbershop with very friendly barbers, and got a haircut. I replenished my food supply at a nearby 1960s-looking super market.
Historic Route 66:
On my 2011 Route 66 Road Trip, I drove through Albuquerque, and took the earlier alignment (pre-1927) of Route 66 north to Santa Fe. Over the last few days, I explored the newer alignment that runs east-west through Albuquerque connecting Santa Rosa, New Mexico to Gallup, New Mexico and bypassing Santa Fe (to the north) entirely.
When Route 66 was first laid out in 1926, it went through Santa Fe, the capital of New Mexico. That was the way it was aligned and constructed, and that was the way it was supposed to stay. But it didn't. Why was it realigned?
In 1926 the governor of New Mexico, Governor Arthur Hannett lost his bid for re-election. Hannett blamed his loss on the "politicians" in Santa Fe. In one great last act of defiance before the new governor, Richard Dillon, was sworn in, Hannett vowed to get even. He had until January to institute his revenge. Hannett decided the best way to get even was to re-route Highway 66 through Albuquerque, and bypass Santa Fe altogether.
In a race against time, with no time off for the workers, including Christmas, construction crews fought the elements and built a 69-mile road through virgin terrain in 31 days. There was no time to buy the right-of-way, so the road cut across both public and private land with no regard for ownership. Though the road was not quite finished by the time Governor Dillon took office in January 1927, bad weather conditions prevented him from contacting the work crews to stop the project. By the time the new governor met with the work crews it was too late, and Santa Fe had been bypassed. Read “Hannett’s Joke: Route 66” -- an interesting article published by the New Mexico State Bar. The new alignment was a more direct, east-west route, that cut-out some treacherous road conditions. It was also quite a bit shorter. This is the route that is now paralleled by Interstate Highway 40.
1971 Trip On Route 66:
When I drove to Dallas, Texas in 1971 from Oakland, California in my new BMW 2002, part of the trip was on Route 66. Interstate 40 was not completed at that time. I remember mile-after-mile of motels along Central Avenue in Albuquerque. At that time, I was an auditor for Continental Insurance Company, my first job out of college, and our group of auditors in San Francisco covered the western United States, including Texas. This was in the days of hijacking airline flights, and I told my boss that I was "nervous" to fly because of the hijackings (a white lie), and would rather drive to Dallas. I convinced him to have the company pay for gasoline and lodging, and allow me two paid work days for my trip. The entire trip (approximately 1,800 miles, much of which was 2-lane road) took me two and a half days. In my BMW, it was an awesome drive!
KiMo Theater:
The KiMo Theatre, located on Historic Route 66 in downtown Albuquerque, was built in 1927. Its Art Deco-Pueblo Revival style of architecture is a blend of adobe building styles (rounded corners and edges), decorative motifs from indigenous cultures, and the soaring lines and linear repetition found in American Art Deco architecture. The KiMo was conceived by entrepreneurs Oreste & Maria Bachechi and designed for them by Carl Boller, who conducted an extensive investigation into the cultures and building styles of the Southwest before submitting his design.
The name "KiMo" is literally translated as "mountain lion" in Tewa, and sometimes loosely translated as "king of its kind".
By 1977, the theater had fallen into disrepair but was saved from the wrecking ball when voters approved a plan for the City of Albuquerque to purchase the structure. It has undergone several phases of continuing restoration to return it to its former glory, and is once again open to the public for performances.
The KiMo Theatre is rumored to be haunted by the ghost of Bobby Darnall, a six-year old boy killed when a water heater in the theater's lobby exploded in 1951. The theater staff maintains a space in a backstage stairwell for gifts and offerings in an attempt to "appease the spirit." Some claim to have actually seen Bobby's ghost, clad in jeans and a striped shirt.
Maisel's Indian Trading Post:
Located in the heart of downtown Albuquerque on Route 66, Maisel’s Indian Trading Post has been selling Southwestern curios for over 65 years. Completed in 1939, the building is described as Indian Pueblo architecture.
Maurice Maisel built the trading post after the re-routing of Route 66 through Albuquerque. Mr. Maisel selected architect John Meem, the leading proponent of the Pueblo Revival style, to design the building. Mr. Meem hired Olive Rush, a prominent artist of the period, to design the murals depicting various aspects of Native American ceremonial life. By the 1940s, the trading post had become the largest of its kind on Route 66, and at one time employed over 300 Native American craftsmen onsite.
The store closed after Mr. Maisel died in the 1960s. In the 1980s, Mr. Maisel’s grandson, Skip Maisel, reopened the shop. It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Modern Motel - A New Life:
The Nob Hill Court, formerly the Modern Motel and Nob Hill Motel (post WWII), is located on Historic Route 66 in Albuquerque. The motel units have been converted into office, retail and restaurant space. In 1937 Walter & Glessie Botts purchased this newly built motel, and owned it until their deaths.
Modern Motel - A New Life:
After Walter's widow Glessie died in 1980, the property passed through several owners. These were dark days for motels along old Route 66. The Nob Hill Motel, and other old motels, became havens for drug users, prostitutes, and criminal activity. These old motels were the cheapest in town, and attracted people on the run and without money. Desperate families set up housekeeping in the Nob Hill Motel, crowding adults and kids together in one small room.
The property operated as a motel until it was renovated in 2009 by developer, Gerald Landgraf, and contractor, Al Schwanke. Schwanke rebuilt the motel for $450,000 in four months. The converted motel looks great! I hope it is successful as an example of how vintage motor courts and motels can be saved from the wrecking ball.
The property operated as a motel until it was renovated in 2009 by developer, Gerald Landgraf, and contractor, Al Schwanke. Schwanke rebuilt the motel for $450,000 in four months. The converted motel looks great! I hope it is successful as an example of how vintage motor courts and motels can be saved from the wrecking ball.
The Italian Connection:
In 1913 it was rumored that Giacomo Puccini, the famous opera composer of La Fanciulla del West (The Girl of the West) which had a successful and highly publicized première at New York City’s Metropolitan Opera in 1910, was on a train stopping in Albuquerque. Reportedly, Puccini was heading to see the American West, and view the country portrayed in his opera. Iole Bachechi, a young Italian girl from Albuquerque, was thrilled to learn that she could see this famous celebrity from Lucca, Italy, the Tuscan hometown of her mother Maria Bachechi (See KiMo Theater). There was a Puccini on the train that stopped in Albuquerque, but it wasn't Giacomo, it was his cousin, Luigi. Luigi, a young journalist living in New York (and also from Lucca) was passing through Albuquerque, saw Iole, and fell in love. They were married in 1914.
Eventually, Luigi Puccini bought the PassTime Theater in Albuquerque and other theaters in the Southwest. In 1929, shortly after his in-laws, Oreste and Maria Bachechi built the KiMo Theater, Luigi built the Puccini Building (originally a grocery store). In 1941, architect Joseph Burwinkle combined the storefront with the construction of the El Rey Theater. During its early years, the El Rey Theater was a popular movie theater, and also featured "The Hangar" restaurant, as well as several popular bars. After Luigi and Iole passed away, the building fell into disrepair.
In 1981, Virginia Puccini Doyle, daughter of Luigi and Iole, and her sister Adelina Puccini Timofeyew refurbished the theater and store into a nightclub and saloon. The original Puccini Building was renamed the "Golden West Saloon", in honor of the opera that had united their mother and father. Legends such as Ella Fitzgerald, Etta James, Lyle Lovett, Arlo Guthrie, and Bo Diddley, made their way down Route 66 to play at the nationally recognized El Rey Theater.
In 1991, the business was leased, and over the years the beautiful building fell into disrepair once again. In 2002, Luigi Puccini's granddaughter, Kathy Timofeyew Zimmer, restored the El Rey Theater. Restoration of the marquee was helped by the matching federal grant program by the National Park Service's 'Route 66 Preservation Program' to restore neon signs along Route 66. The Historic El Rey Theater and Puccini's Golden West Saloon became a community space and a reception area for weddings and special events. In 2006, the Golden West Saloon caught fire, and was closed until May 2014 when a new operator began restoring the Golden West Saloon space into an open air venue.
Tomorrow:
Heading west on Historic Route 66 to Gallup, New Mexico.
Photos
(Click on Photo For Larger Image)
The KiMo Theatre is located on Historic Route 66 in downtown Albuquerque. This Art Deco-Pueblo Revival style theater was built in 1927. [flickr.com]
Located in downtown Albuquerque on Route 66, Maisel’s Indian Trading Post has been selling Southwestern curios for over 65 years. [flickr.com]
The Tewa Motor Lodge opened in 1946, and is still operating as a motel on Historic Route 66. It is an example of the Pueblo Revival style, and uses a regional Native American name to evoke the Southwest. The Tewa are a linguistic group of Pueblo American Indians who speak the Tewa language and share the Pueblo culture. The motor lodge's units, some with garages, are organized in a parallel linear plan facing a small courtyard. The Tewa Motor Lodge is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. [flickr.com]
Recycled Motel
The Nob Hill Court, formerly the Modern Motel and Nob Hill Motel (post WWII), was built in 1937 and is located on Historic Route 66 in Albuquerque. In 2006 the motel units were converted into office, retail and restaurant space. [flickr.com]
In 1941 the El Rey Theater was added to the the existing Puccini Building (circa 1929) located on Route 66. The building and theater have had many reincarnations over the years. [flickr.com]
Route 66 is all about auto travel. The American TV series 'Route 66' featured two young men (Tod Stiles & Buz Murdock) who traveled across America in a Chevrolet Corvette. Corvettes are cool cars, but we all know that "Mustangs Rule". Pony Works located on Historic Route 66 in Albuquerque specializes in classic Mustang restoration, repairs, and parts. [flickr.com]
Blake's Lotaburger is a New Mexico chain of over 80 burger joints. Blake's first hamburger stand, located in Albuquerque, opened in 1952. A friend of mine, who once lived in New Mexico, alleges that Blake's finds their meat supply on the side of the highway and "simply cooks everything until you can no longer see the tread marks". What can I say … I still like LotaBurger! [flickr.com]
2 comments:
I stand by my comment! :-) But terrific pics, as always...
What a trip! Love your perspective and appreciation of architecture with the photos you have shared, Thanks!
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