Before Route 66: Pasadena Museum of History Lecture Explores Early Automobile Travel ‹ ColoradoBoulevard.web

Beale’s Cut via Newhall Pass, in what’s now Santa Clarita, c. 1910s. (Photo – pasadenahistory.org)

The ongoing exhibit exploring Route 66 and Colorado Boulevard on the Pasadena Museum of History conjures up a brand new query for dialogue on Saturday, July 25, at 5:00 pm: What was a street journey like earlier than Route 66?

By Melanie Hooks

The quick reply: not simple.

Early car journey was a journey of uncertainty and journey. Cars had been nonetheless an rising expertise, and roads lacked the infrastructure, maps, and signage drivers now take with no consideration. Between 1914 and 1915, the Automobile Club of Southern California launched an bold effort to enhance journey by signposting the National Old Trails Road, the freeway that later grew to become a precursor to Route 66.

Morgan Yates, Corporate Archivist and Historian for the Automobile Club of Southern California, will current an illustrated lecture exploring the Club’s pioneering signposting efforts and the challenges of early car journey.

Doors open at 4:00 pm for a pre-lecture reception, and this system begins at 5:00 pm. Tickets are $20 for most of the people and $15 for museum members and can be found via the Pasadena Museum of History website.

Presented by the Gamble House and the Pasadena Museum of History, the occasion can be held on the close by Neighborhood Unitarian Universalist Church, Ross Chapel, 301 N. Orange Grove Blvd., Pasadena.

Before Route 66: Early Road Travel and the Birth of Highway Signage
July 25, 2026
4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Location
Neighborhood Unitarian Universalist Church
Ross Chapel
301 N. Orange Grove Blvd.
Pasadena, CA 91103
Buy tickets online ($20/$15).

Where History Meets the Road: Celebrating Route 66 & Colorado Boulevard Exhibit via January 24 (Photo – pasadenahistory.org)