Long before Route 66, there was the Jefferson Highway.

Route 66 was a federally funded, 2,448-mile highway that crossed the country going east and west from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, California that came into being around 1926.

Jefferson Highway was a 2,373-mile route funded by private businesses that stretched from New Orleans and to Winnipeg, Manitoba.

It was mapped in 1915, at a convention of more than 300 business leaders and civic boosters from along what would become the Jefferson Highway, the “Pine to Palm Route.”

The Highway’s namesake began to fade in the late 1920s, according to historical records. By 1929 the Jefferson Highway Association, the driving force behind the route, ceased to function.

That was about the time the Mother Road began to take on major significance and developed a mystique that still endures today.

But Jefferson Highway has its own mystique for a large population between New Orleans and Manitoba and beyond.

About 14 years ago, the Jefferson Highway Association was formed in Muskogee.

The president of the Association is Roger Bell, of Muskogee.

Last week, he led a caravan of Association members and fans that began Monday, June 2 in Joplin, Mo., stopped at Muskogee and Fort Gibson and spent Tuesday night at Sequoyah State Park and made a stop Wednesday afternoon, June 4, in Eufaula en route to McAlester for a three-day conference, an annual event held at different locations.

About 37 members were in the caravan, from a dozen different states and one from Canada.

They were treated to appetizers and gift bags by the Lake Eufaula Association.

The Jefferson Highway Association makes a trip each year, taking different routes, experiencing what each stop along the way has to offer.

Several hundred fans belong to the association.

“And we’re growing,” he said.

The old Jefferson Highway passed through Eufaula, where a small remnant of the road still exists near the cement plant, and through Checotah and McAlester.

Bell explained the appeal of the Highway.

“It’s Americana,” he said. “An experience to get off the main highways and celebrate the past. This is something that travelers, even world travelers, enjoy. They really see the true America by getting off the interstate that bypasses a lot of things, like really seeing the heart of communities.

“I have found that each community has a story.”

He started the Association as a volunteer project about 10 years ago.

At the same time, Route 66 Associations have developed all along its historic route.

But there is no competition between the two organizations. Both essentially have the same goals.

“We work with the Route 66 Associations,” Bell said.

He said the unique thing is that 66 is eastwest, while Jefferson Highway is northsouth.

“There are completely different cultures along each route,” he said. “Different foods. Different music.

“There’s a lot of difference between Minnesota and the area around New Orleans.”

This caravan’s itinerary was a 2 ½ day conference in McAlester where there will be several speakers, including Lieutenant Governor Matt Pinnell.

There will be an opening reception and an annual awards banquet, a murder mystery dinner and other activities, including a meal at the Reba McEntire restaurant in Atoka, and a bus tour.

At the end of the conference, the individuals in the caravan go their own way – taking the route home of their choice.

Folks who would like to join can do so at Jeffersonhighwayoklaho-ma. com. The membership is $25 a year, $35 for families and businesses.

Because history is the heart of the Association, the group is trying to form a historic lodging association as well, where members can stay at such historic sites as the historic Park Inn in Mason City, Iowa, a building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.