Women on the Mother Road in Oklahoma: Route 66

A documentary film maker and two historians will present a program on women on the Mother Road on Tuesday, September 19, 7:oo p.m. at the library.

Called the “Mother Road” by author John Steinbeck, U.S. Route 66 stretches some 2,400 miles from Los Angeles to Chicago, symbolic of the mobility available to Americans, and an iconic highway for many travelers. Yet much of the historical perspective of the highway that passes through Oklahoma has primarily focused on men, often overlooking the experiences of women and girls. Themes of growing up, traveling, challenging gender stereotypes, confronting prejudice and pushing boundaries in a man’s world run through the new oral histories.

Project director Katrina Parks and historians Patti Loughin and Andrew Vassar will present a slide lecture and several filmed and edited oral histories. They will place archival photos and the filmed interviews in a wider historical and women’s studies context.

The program is free and open to the public. For more information on the program, contact Miami Public Library at 918-541-2292 or mjohnson@miami.lib.ok.us. For information about The Women on the Mother Road project, please contact Katrina Parks at (323) 203-5968 or katrinaparks@mac.com.

Funding for this 66 Cultural District program is provided in part by a grant from Oklahoma Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of the OH or NEH.

Cosponsoring the program are Miami Arts & Humanities Council and Chapters.

The 66 Cultural District is funded in part by a grant from the Oklahoma Arts Council.