It was a celebration worthy of the iconic Jack Rabbit Trading Post as hundreds of people attended the 70th anniversary.
It was a celebration worthy of the iconic Jack Rabbit Trading Post as hundreds of people attended the 70th anniversary.
The Jack Rabbit Trading Post hasn’t changed much over the years and still provides Route 66 souvenirs and knick-knacks. Here Matthew Castillo and his son Ryder look over paperweights of scorpions in acrylic.

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The Bucket of Blood Reenactors performed during Jack Rabbit Trading Post 70th Anniversary.

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Dean “Crazy Legs” Walker (right), the man who’s voice was the inspiration for Tow Mater of the “Cars,” movies, presented a plaque to Tony (left) and Cindy (center) Jaquez during the celebration.

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The event brought together family and friends to celebrate. Pictured here are siblings (left to right) Margaret Maxwell, Tina Castillo and Wally Pate, with childhood friends and sisters (front) Sandy Day, (back) Cindy Jaquez and Billye Blansett.

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Kaci Palmer took the dare and kissed a happy mule as part of the fun at the Jack Rabbit Trading Post’s anniversary bash.

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A large crowd gathered to share in the celebration at the Jack Rabbit Trading Post last weekend where so many wonderful memories continue to be created. This icon of the Mother Road has served up cold drinks and kitschy souvenirs for road weary travelers along Route 66 for the past 70 years.

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The trading post was built in 1949 and became famous not only for the giant jack rabbit, known as Mr. Rabbit, stationed next to the shop but also for a series of billboards that stretched from Missouri to Arizona in the Route 66 heyday, each bearing the silhouette of a jack rabbit and the distance remaining to get to the trading post. Once you reached the Jack Rabbit Trading Post a large billboard, which still stands today, with the words “Here It Is” let travelers know they reached their destination.

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The Jack Rabbit Trading Post opened when Jim Taylor came to Arizona with a giant black rabbit statue in the back of his truck. The statue drew such a crowd that he decided to make it a permanent fixture for the trading post with a few replacements over the years.

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In 1961, Glenn Blansett leased the business from Taylor and then bought it in 1967. In 1969, his son Phil and his wife Pat took over the business, and then in 1995 their daughter Cindy and her husband Tony Jaquez took over. This industrious couple not only keep the doors open they’ve revitalized the business as a popular Route 66 must-see stop.

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Handmade signs were available that imitated the billboards of yesteryear with the miles painted on them noting the distance from the purchaser’s home to them. There was delicious food on hand, traditional Mexican dancers, and old west reenactors adding to the festivities.

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Visitors came from across the country to show support for the Jaquez’s hard work in making sure that not only this treasure of the Mother Road keeps hoppin’ but that this stretch of Route 66, that has created great memories for so many people, continues to provide them for many years to come.

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