This is the 100th anniversary of Route 66. Plenty of celebrations are planned with my wife and me, hoping to attend several events. Car shows galore are scheduled.
As a small boy, I rode with my parents and brother to California from Alabama, taking Route 66 for a good many miles. Several years ago, I wrote a short story that described a small portion of that trip, which almost killed my brother and me.
“The year was 1956. Dad was in the Air Force and had been notified that his next assignment was George A.F.B. in California. Loading up a black 1949 Mercury along with a small trailer home, our family departed Vernon, Alabama, headed west to Victorville, CA.
My brother Jim and I rode in the back seat. I would’ve been two at the time, so my recollection of events is extremely limited. Dad, Mom, and Jim provided me with the following details:
Entering Arizona via Route 66, a blazing July sun made things unbearably hot inside our car. The vehicle had no air conditioner. Being painted a dark color clearly amplified the intense, sweltering heat.
Jim and I quickly became drowsy and unresponsive. Pulling into a gas station on the outskirts of Holbrook, an employee told Mom she’d best cool her kids down, or they wouldn’t survive the trip.
The man sold my folks a block of ice, including a tin pan to hold things. Placing this crude cooling device on the floorboard, Jim and I made the remainder of our journey hovered over it.
That pump attendant probably saved our lives by advising us. For many years now, I’ve often wondered if this gas station still exists.”
Another place that I still wonder about is the motel we stayed at in Williams, Arizona. There were several to choose from back then, and without Dad or Mom here to try and remember, I don’t know.
A March 28, 1960, picture postcard I came across shows the Gateway Motel on the front. It only had eight rooms, and this would’ve been the type of place my folks sought out because of price. Motel 6 didn’t exist back then.
The card was sent from “Mom & Pop” to Mr. & Mrs. Ernest Kenaga in Elkhart, Indiana. I decided to research this card in its entirety.
Although I’ll never know if this is the same motel, Gateway was there in 1956, having been built by Ralph A. Southworth in 1950. Being located directly on Route 66, we would’ve driven right by the place.
The message on the postcard, transcribed as written, reads as follows:
“Sun eve here,
Will let the motel furnish the card this time, saw big hole today, what a place to Las Vegas tomorrow they don’t sleep there then Death Valley in Cal again Tues. I suppose.
Love Mom and pop”
The best way for me to tell about Ernest and Margaret Kenaga is to print their obituaries. I know that Ernest’s mother wrote the postcard and not Margaret’s, because her mom had passed away in 1952. That big hole mentioned is undoubtedly Meteor Crater National Park.
“Ernest Leroy Kenaga, 95, Elkhart, died 8 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2017, at Hubbard Hill Estates. He was born Dec. 23, 1921, in Crandon, Wisconsin, to Noble & Hazel (Loney) Kenaga. He married Margaret (Hunsberger) Kenaga on Aug. 28, 1943.
Surviving are his wife, Margaret, Elkhart, son, Mike (Helen) Kenaga, Elkhart, daughter, Candy (John) Sewell, Winter Park, Florida, granddaughters, Stacy Kenaga, Houston, Texas, and Molly (Adam) Sewell Schott, Winter Park, Florida, and a brother, Robert (Lucy) Kenaga, Elkhart. He was preceded in death by his parents, Noble and Hazel.
Ernest was a veteran of the U.S. Army, serving in WWII and discharged in 1946. He played the trumpet with the 12th Armor Division for General Patton’s funeral service. Ernest was a Manager of the Customer Service Department at Selmer, retiring after 40 years. He was a member of the First Brethren Church of Elkhart. Ernest was a 1939 graduate of Concord High School. Mr. Kenaga was a member of the American Legion and was an avid Notre Dame and Yankees fan.”
“Margaret Kenaga, 101, Wakarusa, formerly of Elkhart, died 10:35 a.m. Tuesday, April 26, 2022, at Miller’s Merry Manor. She was born May 3, 1920, in Wakarusa, to Clem & Maude (Schalliol) Hunsberger. On August 28, 1943, in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, she married Ernest Leroy Kenaga, who died on January 31, 2017.
Surviving are a son, Mike (Helen) Kenaga, Elkhart, a daughter, Candy (John) Sewell, Winter Park, Florida, two granddaughters, Stacy Kenaga, Houston, Texas, Molly Sewell, Wellington, Florida, and a sister, Starley Morrison, Waldorf, Maryland.
Preceding her in death are her parents, husband, Ernest, siblings, Winfred Hunsberger, Robert Hunsberger, Nancy Ummel, and Lois Turnock.
Margaret worked and retired from Miles Lab and Bayer. She was a member of the First Brethren Church of Elkhart. Margaret, who was very energetic, enjoyed keeping a clean house, yard work, being outside, and hummingbirds.
The family would like to thank a very special neighbor and friend, Tom Johnson, for all the help he gave Margaret over the years.”
Gateway Motel went through a smorgasbord of owners during its 30 years of business. Ralph Southworth built the place before selling it to Roy and Grace Gamble. One year later, the Gambles sold it to Harry Smith. Mr. Smith sold it just a few years later to Mr. and Mrs. A.C. Hollan.
In 1967, the Hollans unloaded it on Mr. and Mrs. George Motson. The Motsons peddled it to Mrs. Gamester, who, after a couple of years, successfully offloaded it to Dave Moslers. It appears that this man is the person turning it into retail shops, changing the name to Gateway Plaza. They even modified the old sign.
For whatever reason, business after business has come and gone at this address, with the latest being JD’s Espresso. It appears 66 Nails is still there. Kudos to them.
Part of my Route 66 celebration will be to take a drive to Williams and visit 219 E. Williams, this being the official address of the now-defunct Gateway Motel. There are plenty of things to see in this town to keep busy.
We’ll spend the night somewhere besides Motel 6, so that Joleen can get her nails done, and I can drink a toast to the memory of Gateway Motel with hopefully a steaming hot mocha in my hand, courtesy of Anna’s Grand Canyon Coffee and Café. Route 66 travelers claim that Anna’s breakfast burritos and mochas are to die for!
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