Women of the Mother Road at Petersen Museum
A collection of wonderful stories from along Route 66
The Petersen celebrates the women along Route 66 with a free event on August 4th.
By Susie Ling
Fri, Jul 15, 2022 12:13 PM PST
One thing Democrats and Republicans did agree on: H.R. 66 to establish a Route 66 Centennial Commission. 2026 will be a celebration of a national romance linking Chicago to Santa Monica and the over 5 million people in the 8 states on this line.
Katrina Parks has already been collecting wonderful stories of Route 66, focusing on the women who lived, worked, and played along the road. Producer Katrina has quite a collection; she has 25 films on California alone! One story is about the historic Mitla Café in San Bernardino. Founded in 1937, Lucia Rodriguez, two husbands, 4 children, and another generation has made Mitla a community icon. Another story is about Keiko Sakatani’s family’s fruit stand on Huntington Drive in Monrovia. Keiko’s grandfather was the Strawberry King of Monrovia before World War II’s concentration camps.
On Thurs, 4 August, Katrina will share some of these films – and more stories of Route 66 – at the Petersen Museum. This will be a very special free event as complimentary beer will be shared by the Mother Road Brewing Company.
RSVP here: petersen.org
About The Author
Susie Ling is an Associate Professor in the Social Sciences Division of Pasadena City College, where she teaches history. In addition to amassing hundreds of oral histories in the Southern California region, she's been a long-time contributor to LACar - with articles spanning from vehicle reviews to historical insights about Los Angeles.
