Preserving Spencer Station on Route 66
Follow along with the restoration of Spencer Station, and meet the people and history that keep this roadside stop alive.
National Trust for Historic Preservation
Gabby Rowsam
Spencer Station: Exterior View (2009-11) by Aaron Hall (vitahall) CC BY-SA 2.0National Trust for Historic Preservation
Businesses flourish and nourish
In 1926, Route 66 was established, stretching nearly 2,500 miles across 8 states from Chicago to Los Angeles. Along the route, flourishing businesses such as Spencer Station offered a wide variety of experiences and created an extensive cultural landscape.
Spencer Station: Map to Zoom in without Route 66 (1950) by United States Geological SurveyNational Trust for Historic Preservation
Locating Spencer on a map
Scroll to see the original Route 66 near Spencer Station on this 1950 edition of a 1919 Map.
Spencer Station: Historic Map of Region (1950) by United States Geological SurveyNational Trust for Historic Preservation
Spencer Station: U.S. Federal Census of the Casey Family (1940) by National Archives and Records AdministrationNational Trust for Historic Preservation
The Casey family
Three generations of the Casey family owned the site from 1925-2007. The 1940 U.S. Census (pictured) shows that Sidney Casey worked alongside his sons Carl and Albert at the family business. In 2008 it was purchased by Francis and Mary Lynn Ryan.
Over the next 14 years, the Ryans worked to stabilize the station, adding a new roof to 3 of the 4 existing buildings including the 1926 farmhouse, shored up walls, and recreated the canopy and pump island at the gas station (and much more). Their goal was to save the buildings, not open the station up for the public. Enter Ed Klein of Route 66 World who purchased Spencer Station in 2022.
First hand knowledge
In October 2024, Gabby Rowsam from the National Trust for Historic Preservation interviewed Spencer Station's owner Ed Klein to gain insight into its legacy and the work he and his wife Stephanie have been doing to preserve it.
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Introducing Ed Klein
"My name is Ed Klein. We own Route 66 World, which actually owns the town of Spencer, Missouri. And we bought Spencer Station back in 2022 and have been restoring it ever since."
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Helping Route 66
"So next year will be my 18th year doing everything from preservation work, helping out towns and businesses grow tourism dollars, helping put together projects for preservation restoration, simply grabbing a hammer."
Ed Klein: "Going on TV, doing speaker presentations, interviews, anything I can to help Route 66. And I've always done it on my dime and my time."
In 2008, Ed Klein came across Spencer Station while traveling the route. Also on the property is a historic one room dwelling which is attached to the farmhouse that was built by the Casey family in 1926.
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A property re-discovered
"I came across Spencer in 2008, and I always tell people when you turn off of Route 66, you see the Johnson Creek Bridge and you're thinking this is a really cool bridge in the middle of nowhere."
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"It doesn't belong anywhere. And you're like, what is this? And everybody just loves it because it's this pleasant surprise. Out of the middle of nowhere, I saw this and it just became my favorite place ever since."
Ed Klein: "In 2022, somebody posted a picture on Facebook of Spencer and all I said was, 'it's my favorite place,' and the response was, 'I heard it was for sale.' Then I went into my research mode and found out the owner, who it was, made some phone calls. We met, he lived five hours away and I'll get to them in a little bit, made a deal. He said, no. He said, it's not about the money. He said, I'm looking for someone who's going to be good for the place. Two weeks later, he called me back and he said, I made some phone calls and you're the guy."
Spencer Station: Saviors of the Station by Ed Klein - Spencer Station/Route 66 WorldNational Trust for Historic Preservation
The saviors of Spencer Station
"I always say while we're restoring and preserving Spencer, Francis and Mary Lynn Ryan were the actual saviors of it. There was no roof when I came by. There was no power in here. There was very little of anything of how it looks like today. And they came in and they saved it."
Preserved behind closed doors
When the Klein's purchased the site, it had been closed since 1961, so their first priority was to open the front door for the first time in decades.
Spencer Station: Exterior View (2024-10) by Ed Klein - Spencer Station/Route 66 WorldNational Trust for Historic Preservation
Bringing Spencer Station back to life
"Well, ironically, my background is architecture and a senior project manager in commercial construction. So I know construction, I've been swinging a hammer since age of 10, not professionally."
"So going in, we knew that it was going to be a very heavy lift to get this not only stable and the infrastructure back up, but to be usable, which is always a challenge."
Ed Klein: "But one of the challenges we've had was structurally we want to make sure the building is sound, which that's a heavy cost to do that. Electrical, HVAC, plumbing, these buildings never had running water."
All but around 10 percent of the funding is paid directly by the Klein’s. Gift shop sales and grants supply the rest.
Grant funding supports restoration
In 2024 Spencer Station received funding from the National Trust Legacy Business Grant Fund for a new concrete sidewalk.
Looking to the future
The owners are working to restore Spencer Station to reflect its "heyday" which was the period from 1926-1949. The property will include a café, a gift shop, a barbershop museum, and a gas station-themed event space.
Spencer Station: Completed Sidewalk (2024) by Ed Klein - Spencer Station/Route 66 WorldNational Trust for Historic Preservation
The historic home on the property, once occupied by the Casey family, is slated to become a bed and breakfast.
Spencer Station: Exteior View Daytime (2024-10) by Ed Klein - Spencer Station/Route 66 WorldNational Trust for Historic Preservation
100th Anniversary
"And so we opened the front door just on the weekends. We've had probably close to 4,000 people inside. We'll have about 2,000 people inside just this year on the weekends alone, that doesn't include the people pulling up, taking photos. I call them drive-bys."
Ed Klein: "I think next year is going to be even busier. And we celebrate our 100 year anniversary in 2026 when Route 66 celebrates its 100 year anniversary in 2026. So it's very special for us because there's only a handful of businesses that are true 1926-built or born the same time Route 66 was and we're one of them."
In the Summer of 2025, the Kleins began restoration work on the interior of the General Store.
Celebrate Spencer Station
As Route 66 celebrates its centennial in 2026, make sure to also wish Spencer Station in Missouri a happy birthday as it looks forward to another hundred years.
Learn more about the National Trust for Historic Preservation's campaign to preserve Route 66, sign our petition to advocate for the Mother Road, and then share your Route 66 story with us.
Explore other stories on the Mother Road
Motoring Ahead at the Western Motel
Generations Flock to La Paloma
Gabby Rowsam graduated from Clemson University's Historic Preservation masters program. She was a Route 66 Legacy Businesses research associate for the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Learn more about the Route 66 Legacy Business Program.
This story is made possible by the generosity of David and Julia Uihlein.
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