We finally got out of the Motel at 5:45 and are here at the Sahara Restaurant recommended by the Motel.
So at the Saharah Dining Room operated by Mexicans I had a dinner with Veg. soup-toss salad- breaded Pork Chop Spinach and Potatoe. Instead of dessert I had a small order of Chili and Oh Boy! was it hot. but very good. I remember we used to get it in Sharraf's but this was even hotter. Tommy has had a pain in his stomach the last couple of days so he settled for a glass of milk and couldn't finish that. Jeannie and Helen settled for a Hamburger and they got stuck. Gladys had another combination salad and she is starting to look like a rabbit as the result of so much lettuce. I was quite satisfied with my meal and had in mind to get a schnapps after supper but passed it up. Took the kids for a walk around the town to see the sights. The natives live in poor houses - that is - the Mexicans. We finally found a Catholic Church. It was all dark inside except for the Sanctuary Light - we said a few prayers and left. The outside door of the Church as well as the inside were hand

July 7th

Arrived Santa Rosa
New Mexico
Arrival Time 5:00 pm
Mileage 19434
Miles Covered 434
from El Reno

Western Motel  10.70

Gas Clinton Okla   1.50
Clinton   1.80
Adrian Texas  2.53
 Santa Rosa NM  1.60

This appears to be a nice set-up. We have two connecting rooms with double beds - Have arranged for a Roll-a-Way in one of the rooms which will be used by either Jean or Gladys. One Bathroom w/a tiled shower. Just after we got the car unloaded a bad thunderstorm broke and we are sitting here waiting for it to stop so we can go out to eat. Tommy is reading the creation of the world from the Holy Bible. Helen is nervous as a witch. -Gladys is calm and collected - Jean doesn't know the word fear. Most of the Motels we have stayed at are arranged for winter heating altho I wonder how much tourist trade they get. We paid $9.50 for the two rooms plus $1.00 for the rollaway.-plus 21c tax. Grand total - $10.71. I have noted a peculiar fact in all these Motels in that they all have plastic Toilet seats. The country we passed thru today varied from flat prairie like country to hilly rock formations. The ground used for planting is quite reddish in color as compared to our New England Loam. What rock formations there are seemed to be of shale, high and rugged

El Reno Oklahoma

Start Mileage  19031

Leaving time 6 AM

It hardly seems possible that we have come so far since Saturday.

Amarillo


Amarillo Left  12:30

Stopped in a place called Underwood's Barbecue to eat. Very attractive and Refrigerated as they call it out here. Everybody except me had barbecued chicken that they didn't particularly care about. Looked burned and was quite dry. I had barbecued sandwich meat - all beef - like a pot roast only chewed up. Had a Frankfort of sausage meat. Texas Potato Salad made with red peppers and I don't know else. This is run on a cafeteria style. You just march along and help yourself. Tommy could finish his chicken altho Jean did. Very spicy. Imagine we will be drinking all afternoon. Cost for four of us $3.60. Gladys $1.15 w/ tea. No desserts.

Before we left our Motel we all had Tomatoe Juice - Frosted Flakes- cereal - milk- tea- and coffee. That held us over from 6:05 AM to 12:15pm. Taking off for as far as we can get to Albuquerque as far as we can get to around 4 pm. Distance about 290 miles. May the Good Lord gives us strength and keep Betsy Ford on the gallup.

El Reno Oklahoma

Miles Covered  423
19031

Left El Reno  6:05
 
Amarillo - 11:45 Arrived
19280 miles

Anyway for supper I had a veal Cutlet that I couldn't eat with a baked potatoe and a salad. Tommy and Jean had spaghetti which they said was all right. Helen had a Shrimp Cocktail again with a salad she couldn't eat and Gladys had a combination salad that was served absolutely dry. Helen spied an ant galloping thru the salad so they sent it back. Back came the same salad with the ant I suppose gently removed. So there you are. We have been going like hell and seemingly not making too much progress.  We did stop just across the Oklahoma line to cook - out our lunch. Had Fried ham & egg. Tom and Jean had a lettuce and tomatoe sandwich. Helen and Gladys had a  pack up. We boiled up a half dozen eggs to eat on the road. The flies were bad and we couldn't get out of there fast enough. One can of the fuel has been used up and I only hope we have enough to go thru . Tomorrow is a good stiff jump to Amarillo about 235 miles and from there to Albuquerque another 295 miles. Arrived here at 7:45. Going 60 and all the time since we left El Reno. Stops only for gas and Oil checkup.

Wednesday July 6th

Leaving
Lebanon Missouri

18608 
18658 Springfield

Left Lebanon Mo 18608
Arr. Yukon Okla  19031
Beacon Motel
Ice  .50
Cooked out Vinta Okla  $11.00
Ice Claremont Okla  .25

Gas Miami Okla  10 gal 2.50

Yukon Okla  2.95

Toll Chge Okla Pike  1.30

Tried to get the ladies up at 5:45 and get an early start. Weather looks good. The time here has us all confused. Clock is on daylight time so actually get away about 5:30.

Stopped outside of City for a very nice breakfast. Tommy had Tummy Ache but brother he can still eat. Jean has Soft boiled eggs. Helen had poached eggs and Tommy and I had Plain fried. They slice their potatoes very thin with lots of onions. I had to be clean up man for the crowd. We all had small squares of Apply Jelly that went nice with the toast. Leaving here for Joplin Mo about 73 1/2 miles. Had a real hot trip over Tulsa-Oklahoma Pike - went thru or around downtown and finally would up in El Reno- Oklahoma - traveled about 423 miles. We still have another thousand miles to go. Wound up here in the Beacon Motel. Had a lousy supper. No air condition in rooms but we do have window Ventilations. The final payoff was no water and come to check up the proprietor tells me they are using the water to water down the Cemetery

This motel has only half the rooms Air Conditioned - the other half have Exhaust Fans which in my case are just as good. Both rooms have fans. We ate at the Yellow Jacket Grill. Inferior to the other places we have been. Helen and Gladys had a combination salad. Tommy and Jean had Roast Beef and I had of all things Corn Beef and Cabbage. On the way back to the Motel we stopped to pick up a dozen eggs - 2 qts milk - bread-Orange juice. Will stop along the road for Ham, Eggs. Roads thru this State are good generally. Lot of road building going on and in places where there are only two lanes  it is plain murder when you get stuck behind a big truck or a slowpoke.

Tuesday July 5th

Meramae Caverns

Left  Marshall  Ill   18.246
Arr. Lebanon MO  18608
Elapsed Mileage    362 mi

Toll Chgs. Mo.   .45

Fruit Ill   .71
Food Kirkwood 4.72
Lebanon 3.33
Lebanon 1.95


Gas Lebanon        11 9/10
Hazelwood    11 3/10

Motel Red Fox  14.00

After much threatening Tommy and I had to pull the bedclothes off the ladies in order to get them up at six AM. Had cereal in the room.  made a coffee on the burner - milk for the kids and filled up the freezers from a Coke Freezer that the owners kept ice in.  On the trip we kept seeing advertisements at the Mermae Caverns so I decided that we should see them.  We lost about three hours on the road but to me it was well worth it. Adults paid 1.50 and children .77c so they must have a gold mine there. This was my first experience of this sort and it is somewhat overpowering to see the work of nature. A lecturer went along with a group of about 50  explaining the various formations and the twenty million years it took to create them. Helen and Gladys wouldn't go in so they stayed above deck until we came out. It's the sort of thing that makes an impression that you don't easily forget. Had planned to make Springfield MO by night but ran 54 miles short of that point we pulled up here in Lebanon at the Red Fox Motel.

doll and Gladys had the whole double bed to herself. Both rooms were air conditioned and for me it was too cool so much so that when I got up at 5 AM I had to turn it off. It so happened that the Marshall Fair Grounds were not far from the motel so after I took a shower the kids and I took a walk over to watch the fireworks put on by the local American Legion. We paid a quarter to sit in the grandstand and they got quite a beat out of them. They filled upon Snow Cones and popcorn and luckily it didn't upset their stomachs. Finally back to the Motel and to bed about 10:30 - tired.

Getting ready to leave Lincoln Motel
Marshall - Ill
July 5th

Cooked  out our breakfast all having cereal w/milk and then bacon and eggs with milk for the kids and we having coffee. Packed up again and drove about 360 miles until we landed in Marshall Illinois. Talk about travelling. our average speed still is between 50 and 55 altho the roads are posted for 60 and 65. The Ford is doing nobly.. Haven't used any extra oil as yet altho I brought along six qts to get us thru.

Stopped in a lovely place to eat where Tommy couldn't quite finish what he had ordered. Hamburg as usual with mashed potatoes - string beans - Orange soda. I had Chicken on a bisquit with cauliflower and scalloped potatoes. Helen another salad - Jean a piece of Watermelon - Gladys

Anyway we wound up at the swankiest motel yet in Marshall Illinois  2 double beds in every room so that Tommy and I each had a full size bed to ourselves. Mother and Jeannie with her

July 4th - 10pm

left 17887
arrived Marshall Ill 18246
Elapsed Mileage  359 mi

No Toll Charges

Ice - Columbus O   .50
Candy Furit  .92
Lunch - Englewood O   1.60
Supper  Dayton O  286

gas Columbus O 10 2/10  2.88 
Brazil Ind  12 gal 3.50
Motel - Lincoln   16.50

Too tired out July 3rd to do any log writing. Found we got off the track by staying on the Pennsylvania Turnpike too long. We ran clear out of Penna into Ohio before we finally woke up and had to cut back South thru Steubenville until we finally landed in Cambridge. We really had a rough time. Got caught in a torrential downpour where they building a new road and what with the holes and the puddles and Helen all upset - it was just plain rough. Anyway we put up at a Motel called Frisbees which while it was all right- it still didn't have enough air conditioning for us to be comfortable. Stopped in a fairly good place to eat where I had roast Pork w/ mashed potatoes and Applesauce. Tommy - hamburg which they called a cube steak. Gladys the same. Mother a Shrimp Cocktail with a toss salad and I think Jean had a ham sandwich. At any rate they were all satisfied. Tommy and I were up bright and early about 6AM and took a walk thru the town. Not a soul stirring - Why - the state of Ohio is on Standard time so actually we were up at 5 AM.

July 3rd - Sunday

Carlisle 1 AM  17501
Cambridge O    17887

Elapsed Mileage    386mi

Toll Chgs
Gateway end Penna Turnpike 2.25
Ohio Turnpike                .25

Food
Howard Johnson - Lunch  4.11
       supper  5.73

Gas  Somerset 8 7/10  2.50
           Ohio  8 3/10  2.67

Motel Frisbees   11.00
Cambridge O

and unloaded the baggage. Washed up a bit and proceeded to get the supper started. Back of the Motel was a picnic table so we brought out the stove and got going. We had a can of spaghetti and that went with the hamburgers we made. Lucky enough to get a couple of quarts of Milk with a loaf of bread.  Kids finished up the one quart of milk so we saved the other for breakfast and got another quart with another loaf of bread. Cleaning up after the cookfest is more work than getting it ready. Anyway here it is ten o'clock - sitting outside our room relaxing. and banging away at the mosquitotes. We have found out the first mass in Carlisle is at 7:30 so we shall plan for breakfast first -cookout style-church- and then take off for Pittsburg about two hundred miles away. Thanks to Richard, Joe and Jake the load is riding OK. Hear a funny noise once in a while and wonder if the rack is taking off but so far so good. Hope everything is under control and while we don't expect to hit the same mileage will keep going it's time to stop

Leaving Gooley's Motel on way to Church in Carlisle Penna  7:30 Mass

We had lunch at a Howard Johnson's off Kings Highway after crossing the Geo. Washington Bridge. Tommy - Jean and I had a hot turkey sandwich. Gladys a hot roast beef sandwich and Helen an egg salad sandwich. Not too bad. Our original plan was to stop at Harrisburg but we missed the exit and before we knew it we were on the road to Pittsburg - 10 miles beyond Harrisburg and running low on gas. We kept going anyway until the next rest area in Mechanicsberg where we filled up the tank again -used the Refresher Station -found out that we could exit on Route 11 and hit some motels. This one we are in is quiet set off the road a bit - in the town of Carlisle. Helen Gladys and Jean have a room with a double bed and a single bed. Tommy and I have a room with a double bed. Both rooms have shower with plenty of hot water they say - face cloths, towels etc. Seemed to be pretty stuffy but the owner said we would need blankets which we hope is true. We are paying $2.50 each which doesn't seem too bad. So much for the Motel. We made the deal -pulled the car in

July 2nd - 1955

Arrived Carlisle PA
Saturday 7p.m.
Starting Mileage 17041
Stop Mileage 17501

Miles Covered 460
Meals
Toll Charges:
  Hartford Conn  .10
  Merritt Pkwy   .15
  Wallingford   .10
  Milford   .20
   Greenwich   .20
  Yonkers-NY  .10
  HudsonBridge  .10
  Geo.Wash. Bridge  .50
  Camden N.J.  1.60
Carlisle Penna  1.20
      {Hartford{2.01}Gas 10 {Hoboken {2.45}
 13 3/10 {Carlisle{ 3.85}

Motel - Carlisle (gooley) 12.50
Total    22.95

Total Gas

Well whoever would have thought we would wind up here in Carlisle Penna with 460 miles clocked on the speedometer and all thru with a cook-out supper- dishes washed and now sitting around in the gloaming and planning on Church tomorrow. To start from the beginning we left West Roxbury at 6:30 AM today the second and picked up Gladys Lucas ten minutes later. The trip was uneventful and we had practically clear sailing until we hit the Merit Parkway in Connecticut and from that point we really sailed along over the State line to New York's Kings Highway until we came to the Geo Washington bridge. Traffic moved slowly to the approaches and then got rolling again. Got a little confused in Philadelphia until we got got on the turnpike where the allowable speed is 70 miles per hour. And Brother do they hit it up. Our average speed was 55 and once in a while sixty when the ladies would start screeching to slow down. The surprising thing was the way tough looking old jalopies would go tearing past us making all sorts of noises but they sure did move along

We shall attempt to keep a chronological record of our trip. Keeping a record of mileage-points of interest-cities visited and experiences. Our car will start with a full tank of gas and mileage at start of trip. Car has been greased-oil changed-motor tuned up and braked adjusted. Tires on the car are the original tires which we feel should carry us thru.

We started off with a full tank of gas and the record should show what we average per gallon.

All post cards may be removed in order to read the description on the reverse side. We ask that you please use care in removing and re-inserting.

Tourride from the Conoco Oil Co. for $1.50. In addition we have become members of the American Automobile Association for $17.50 and this will give us insurance protection for one year besides emergency service.
We are indebted to Bill Butler, for front cover which is apropos to the trip.

To Henry Hohman and Bill Jansen for the Canvas Airplane Silver Covers for covering the load.

To Mr. & Mrs. Lewis Maier for the loan of their luggage carrier.
To Frank Moran for the use of their picnic freezer.

Leaving home sweet home
back row daughter Helen
neighbor Nora Maron
Daughter Barbara Hanlon
son -in-law Richard Hanlon
Front row Jean - Tommy
who made the trip
neighbor Kathy Moran
Mrs Pink -Trip book

July 2nd 1955

starting mileage leaving West Roxbury 17041

Here we are on the eve of the great adventure to unknown lands wondering what lies ahead and what fortune has in store for all of us.  We have made lists of what to take along in order to be prepared for everything including shipwreck from which fate may Heaven preserve us. We have prepared our trip with the use of a one gallon jug for Ice water - a half gallon jug for fruit juices - a picnic basket including knives, forks and spoons as well as cups and plates. We have equipped ourselves with a two burner Bernz-O-Matic Bottled gas stove with two extra gas containers. We propose taking along a number of cooking utensils such as prying pan, cause pan, coffee pot, etc. To contain food we have two picnic freezers so that we may if we desire stop along he road to prepare a light meal. To start off we have two quart thermos bottles with hot coffee.

we are well equipped with maps from the major oil companies and in addition have purchased a

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