There’s a special, little known piece of American found near Miami Oklahoma. It is an original 9-foot wide section of Route 66! This sidewalk road is the original pavement that the first construction crews created as part of the Route 66 route from LA to Chicago.
Visiting the Original Section of Route 66
The section is located at 36.815604, -94.926769. It’s about 4 miles southwest of Miami Oklahoma. The road is the westernmost extent of the original road which is still paved. The road continues to the east and north as it travels into Miami, OK. The highway is a mix of gravel and paved road as it makes its way to the northeast. An interesting part of the road is its use of raised bends at different intersections to avoid 90 degree turns and stop signs. The road is for sure a “highway” even though it’s just a single lane road out in the country.
The road travels through some pretty nice picturesque scenery as it makes its way out of Miami. The section I drove on had some creeks and wide-open rolling hills and farmland around it. It’s fun to imagine what it would have been like to drive down this road in your 1920 Ford as you were traveling around Oklahoma or even leaving Chicago to make your life in the growing town of Los Angeles. I love imagining what those original people or travels did so many years ago. If you’re ever in northwestern Oklahoma or around Vinita or Miami, you should stop by and drive down the “sidewalk highway”!