Michael Bushnell
Northeast News

Continuing our virtual road trip of historic Route 66, we leave Joplin behind and make the short hop over the state line to Miami, Okla.

Roadside diners such as The Ben Stanley Café were common along most of the U.S. numbered highways such as Route 66.

The Ben Stanley, located in Miami (My-yam-uh), was just a mile off Route 66 and was nationally famous for steaks, chicken, and seafood.

An advertising note on the back of the linen-style postcard reads “we don’t fool you, we feed you.”

Linen-era postcards were popular during their heyday between 1935 and roughly 1946. Today, they’ve created a whole new genre of paper collectables entitled “Roadside America,” showing diners, motor courts or motels, taverns, and filling stations, all brightly-colored and depicted on linen-style picture postcards.

The building shown in this postcard has long since been demolished and a new residential development now stands where the Ben Stanley used to be.

This particular postcard was actually used as an advertising piece for the National Glass and Manufacturing Company Inc. of Fort Smith, Ark.

The written message on the back reads “A knock-down metal building manufactured complete with equipment and fixtures ready to install on your lot.”

That’s a pretty good sign the building that housed the Ben Stanley was a manufactured product designed and made by National Glass Manufacturing Company.

Stay tuned as we continue our journey across the USA on America’s Main Street—Historic Route 66!