Hopi Drive and Navajo Blvd, were and are the two major streets in Holbrook and both were Route 66 so any and all matchcovers from traveler-oriented businesses in the city of Holbrook are included. All of the Whiting Brothers regional matchcovers are listed in Holbrook since Holbrook was the headquarters of the enterprise. (There is one specific Whiting Brother matchcover for the motel in Flagstaff but that matchcover is displayed among the other Flagstaff matchcovers.)
The two main commercial streets through Winslow during the Route 66 era were 2nd Street (one way eastbound) and 3rd Street (one way westbound) so nearly all old Winslow matchcovers are included in this database. There are a few matchcovers from businesses with addresses on the cross streets or 1st Street that are not included.
The website visitor will notice that many Winslow matchcovers do not have either a street address or highway number printed on them. Fortunately telephone directories published during the 1950s and 1960s confirm that these businesses were on US Highway 66 including Crawley’s (406 W. 2nd), Drumm Court (317 W. 2nd), For Men (114 W. 2nd), Grand Café (101 E. 2nd), Hotel Chief (208 E. 2nd – Chief Apartments today), Kenny’s Liquor Store (218 E 2nd), Knotty Pines (1500 E. 3rd), La Posada Hotel (2nd Street and remodeled and open today) and Lorenzo Hubbell (523 W. 2nd).
US Highway 66 in Flagstaff was on East Santa Fe Avenue from the downtown area all the way east and South Sitgreaves (today Milton), but for some reason in west Flagstaff the matchcovers simply say “West Highway 66”. An early alignment of Highway 66 included Beaver Street and Mike’s Pike in downtown Flagstaff so matchcovers from the Du Beau Motel (Beaver at Phoenix) and Bill Preston Chevron (Mike’s Pike) are included. Telephone directories issued during the 1950s and 1960s confirm that other businesses were on US Highway 66 when no address or highway number is printed on the matchcover including the Flamingo Motel (602 W. Highway 66 – now Super 8), Goble Tire Service (206 E. Santa Fe) and Young & Yates Chevron (124 E. Santa Fe).
The Peoria Inn and the Sunnyside Café are listed as “East of Flagstaff” beyond the city street numbering system but I assume on Highway 66.
The only matchcovers from businesses knowingly not on Highway 66 that are included in Flagstaff are from the Weatherford Hotel and the Hotel Monte Vista, both of which are one block north of Santa Fe. Both hotels have always been associated with the highway and were listed in Jack Rittenhouse’s booklet “A Guide Book to Highway 66” published in 1946.
Other businesses in Flagstaff off of Route 66 were not included including the La Fonda Café (E. 2nd Street) and Yiya’s Coffee Shop (US Highway 89).
Route 66 initially came through Williams on Bill Williams Avenue but as traffic increased Bill Williams was dedicated to eastbound Route 66 and Railroad Avenue carried westbound Route 66. Essentially all front strike matchcovers from Williams businesses were located on one of these streets. Some later matchcovers were from businesses on Grand Canyon Blvd. (like Buckles, for example) so they are not included. The one exception is the matchcover from the Pine Ridge Courts located at 110 South Lewis about one block south of Bill Williams Avenue as it would just have to have signage on Route 66 telling travelers how to get to it. And, besides, the Pine Ridge Courts still stands today as unnamed apartments. Most of the matchcovers displayed from Williams that do not have addresses are easily identifiable as being from old Route 66 regardless of what is not said as there are multiple street scene postcards that actually show these businesses. These obvious businesses include the Beacon Café, the Canyon Club, the Coffee Pot, the Sultana (still in business) and Sutton’s Hotel Cottages (later the Whiting Brothers motel and now the National 9 Motel). A few may not be so obvious such as the Adams Grocery (125 W. Bill Williams Avenue), Towne House (525 W. Bill Williams Avenue) and Cheshire Motors (520 E. Bill Williams Avenue), the latter of which was actually listed in Jack Rittenhouse’s book cited above.
One matchcover from the Qumacho Inn Café in Peach Springs (7-8375) indicates incorrectly that the business was located on U.S. 60.
Any matchcover from Kingman that says “66” on it or Front Street or Andy Devine (Front Street re-named) is included. What are not included are matchcovers from businesses on US Highway 93 or Beale Street. And there were a number of motels on US 93 and a number of businesses on Beale Street. The location of the Rail Buffet was 339 E. Front. The location of some businesses such as the Gaddis Café, Hotel Beale and Richey’s Cafe have been verified to be on Route 66 from street scene postcards. The location of the Kingman Café, Old Trails Club and Richards Motel is unverified. At this time matchcovers from these businesses are included in the database but we’d like to know if anyone knows about these old businesses.