Overview

• Arizona has officially recognized all 160 miles of its Route 66 corridor—from the California border to near Ash Fork—as a historic road, the nation’s longest uninterrupted stretch.
• Delgadillo’s February 1987 founding of the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona spurred an initial 83-mile designation that eventually expanded to the full remaining route.
• Now retired, he has built and sold 268 numbered birdhouses crafted from 100-year-old lumber, pricing each at $100.66 to raise funds for local signage.
• Proceeds will finance welcome signs at both ends of Seligman in preparation for Route 66’s 100th anniversary in 2026.
• Dubbed the “guardian angel of Route 66,” Delgadillo draws pilgrims to his Seligman barbershop shrine and has inspired preservation efforts across other states.