JACK SILBERBERG
Laclede County Route 66 happenings new and old were recognized the Lebanon-Laclede County Route 66 Society’s annual meeting and Wall of Fame induction ceremony Saturday, which took place in the Kenneth E. Cowan Civic Center in Lebanon.
In addition to inducting three sets of honorees into the Laclede County Route 66 Wall of Fame, meeting attendees also heard updates on modern matters like the restoration of the Munger Moss Motel.
City Administrator Troy Schulte said at the meeting that the Dels Corporation, the owners of the Munger Moss Motel, were finalizing renovations on the motel.
He said the city had confirmed the Dels had set aside 15 short-term rental units, the rest of the units being efficiency and one-bedroom apartments.
“So I think that’ll be good for tourism,” Schulte said.
Mark Bertel, CEO and founder of the Dels, had said via phone call at last year’s meeting that 20% of the motel’s rooms would be set aside for overnight stays and 80% long term-rentals.
The Record reached out to the Dels Corporation to confirm the information about the rentals but did not receive a response by press time.
Schulte also said refurbishment of the Munger Moss sign, which the City of Lebanon took ownership of last fall, was underway.
He hoped to have the sign on with a “dusk to dawn approach” and for the city to take ownership of and restore other signs along the Elm Street-Route 66 corridor.
He also highlighted the Jan. 26 public hearing for the two-month long process to change the name of Elm Street to Route 66. He noted the city’s street department had already ordered new road signs as well as plans to paint Route 66 street logos on the street.
Schulte and city tourism director Rebecca Rupard also noted the Route 66 shield installed in Boswell Park.
A Jan. 11 Route 66 Society article noted the shield, installed Jan. 9 along 66 Mural Drive in the park, was possible through Missouri Route 66 Centennial Commission-sponsored funding and collaboration between the city and Lebanon Parks Department.
Meeting attendees also learned about visits to the Lebanon-Laclede County Library’s Route 66 Museum. Library director Tina Chaney noted 13,997 people went through the museum in 2025. The countries with the most visitors were the United Kingdom/England, Italy, Spain, Canada and Germany.
The meeting also recognized new inductees into the Route 66 Wall of Fame: brothers-in-law Onell Everett Carter and James Edward Lawson Sr., who ran gas stations and other businesses along the county’s stretch of the Mother Road for over thirty years; Walter and Helen Dickinson, operators of the bygone Eden Resort near Hazelgreen for three decades; and Andy Liebl, operator of Andy’s Street Car Grill, who, while not the only owner of the grill, was famous for his fried domesticated rabbits.
Route 66 Society senior advisor Gary Sosniecki led the presentation on the inductees. Elaine Young, granddaughter of Carter, and David Bass, stepson of Liebl, received plaques on the behalf of their respective relatives and were grateful for the honor.
Bass also presented a mirror from Andy’s Streetcar Grill to Chaney to go to the Route 66 Museum.
The Wall of Fame resides inside the library just before the Route 66 Museum and consists of plaques honoring those individuals who have made significant contributions to the development and promotion of the county’s stretch of Mother Road of or ran legendary businesses along its route.
