Oklahoma Route 66 Museum, Transportation museum in Clinton, Oklahoma.

The Oklahoma Route 66 Museum in Clinton occupies a building on the former Route 66 alignment and presents the highway's history decade by decade. Galleries hold vintage vehicles, road signs, travel souvenirs and period objects, arranged to show how cars and travel changed from the 1920s onward.

The museum focuses on the 1930s when thousands of families traveled west escaping agricultural hardship in their home states, making this period central to understanding the road's importance. This mass westward movement shaped the route as a defining part of American history.

Each gallery pairs vehicles, road signs, and travel mementos with period music that reflects the era, showing how travelers experienced the journey and what sounds accompanied them on the road. The combination of objects and music creates a sense of how people moved through time on this highway.

The displays flow logically through different time periods, making it easy to follow the story as you walk through the galleries. Plan time to view the collected items closely and read the information provided alongside each section.

The museum's collection grew from a 1995 appeal that asked Route 66 businesses to donate roadside items, and the result fills a recreated 1950s diner and a drive-in theater interior. Look for the hand-painted signs and novelty souvenirs that once hung in shops in towns along the highway.