Joliet, Illinois

Joliet is the first Route 66 town that's outside of Chicago's suburbs. It was thus the first town that felt to us like a Route 66 town. And that made it a fun visit. By the time we reached Joliet, we were ready for a break, so our first stop was at Rich & Creamy, a vintage soft ice cream stand featuring a silhouette of the Blues Brothers on the roof (look to the left of the pink ice cream cone). 

Rich & Creamy in Joliet

Rich & Creamy is in Joliet's Kicks on 66 Park. After some ice cream, we walked through the park.

Sign at Kicks on 66 Park in Joliet, Illinois

There are some informative wayfinding signs near the Rich & Creamy. 

Wayfinding signs in Kicks on 66 Park in Joliet, Illinois

The walk is pleasant, but views of the Des Plaines River and Joliet Prison are blocked by trees. Overall this is a good place to stop if you want to stretch your legs or get some soft ice cream, but otherwise keep going. (Tip: Rich & Creamy and the Kicks on Route 66 Park do not have rest rooms, but gas stations and fast-food restaurants are a few blocks away.)

Take North Chicago Street rather than IL 53 into downtown Joliet. North Chicago Street was the earliest Route 66 route through Joliet, and there are some interesting things to see along it. In downtown Joliet, the intersection of North Chicago Street and Cass Street is the intersection of Route 66 and the old Lincoln Highway, now US 30. The Lincoln Highway was America’s first cross-country road, running from New York to San Francisco.

Intersection of Route 66 and the Lincoln Highway in Joliet

Practically next door at 9 West Cass Street is a new attraction that wasn’t yet open when we visited: the Illinois Rock & Roll Museum on Route 66.

Future home of the Illinois Rock & Roll Museum on Route 66 in Joliet

And a block and a half south on Chicago Street is the magnificent 1926 Rialto Square Theater.

Rialto Square Theatre in Joliet (photo from Venuworks.com)

The 1858 Joliet Prison is not on Route 66. If you want to see it, you’ll have to backtrack north on IL 171 on the east side of the Des Plaines River. It’s an impressive pair of buildings (on both sides of the highway), but the information kiosks that I read would be in the south parking lot are now gone, and the building itself was closed when we visited.

Joliet Prison

Next stops coming up: three small towns along Route 66 in Illinois: Wilmington, Braidwood, and Gardner.