Exploring Pasadena on Foot: Route 66 Series
Join PMH Curator Julia Long for a two-part Exploring Pasadena on Foot: Route 66 Series. Learn about two sections of Route 66 in Pasadena, as well as the city’s unique car culture history on these two-hour strolls through Old Pasadena and the Playhouse Village.

In November 1926, Route 66 opened as part of the U.S. numbered highways system, connecting cities like Pasadena to far flung locations across the country. The highway soon burst into pop culture and attained legendary status, featured in books, movies, and music over the course of the 20th century.

These Route 66 tours function as two parts of a larger story. Guests will learn about different neighborhoods and facets of Pasadena’s car culture on each tour. In addition to Route 66 lore, we’ll talk more broadly about car culture in Pasadena, and the dealerships, manufacturers, and service stations that helped drive a thriving city throughout the 20th century and into a new millennium.

Please Note: While attending both parts is recommended for a complete history, participants are welcome to sign up for either session individually. Participants will receive background information on each tour.

Part 1: Route 66 & Old Pasadena’s Car Scene is scheduled for Saturday, June 6 at 10:00 am. Tickets are sold separately.

Click here for tickets and information

Part 2: Route 66 & Car Culture in the Playhouse Village
Saturday, July 11 | 10:00 to 12:00 pm

This walking tour will pick up thematically where the previous tour finished and continue walking east
on Colorado Boulevard through the Playhouse Village. Pasadena’s Playhouse Village was developed as a commercial district in the 1920s when automobile ownership was rising rapidly across the country. Many of its buildings represent important milestones in car culture, including the first parking garage in the city and a luxury car dealership catering to the Golden Age of Hollywood.

This tour will start at 585 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101 (in front of Pasadena Presbyterian Church) and end on Colorado Blvd. & S. Lake Avenue.

Space is limited; advance reservations required.

Image: Don Lee Cadillac & La Salle Dealership, 655 E. Green Street, n.d.; Now Jacob Maarse Floral Designs; PMH T8-56.