For Black travelers and musicians road-tripping along Route 66 in the Jim Crow era, Alberta Ellis’ hotel in Springfield was a refuge. Outside of St. Louis, there were few safe places in Missouri for them to use the restroom, fill the car with gas, eat at a restaurant or stay the night.
“Alberta was an incredibly smart businesswoman who saw that lack and decided to fill that void in a lot of different ways,” said Katie Seale of the State Historical Society of Missouri. “The fact that Alberta’s was on a major highway that went through the city was huge for Black travelers.”
Alberta’s Hotel is one of several notable former highway stops featured in the State Historical Society of Missouri’s new exhibition celebrating the 100th anniversary of Route 66. The exhibit is informed by oral histories collected over the years, including that of Ellis’ granddaughter Elizabeth Logan Calvin.
Springfield was growing in 1926, bringing in large acts and musicians from across the country. Alberta’s Hotel offered lodging, food, a barbershop, a salon and a rumpus room. Ellis also opened up a jazz club along the route…