06/02/2026
⛽️ Magnolia Station | Vega, TX
Colonel J.T. Owen built it in 1924 on the Ozark Trail—two years before the road became Route 66. The station served travelers from the ground floor while the attendant lived upstairs. Over the decades, the building wore the signs of Magnolia, Phillips 66, and Conoco, and even housed S***z Barbershop after its days as a filling station.
When Interstate 40 bypassed Vega, the building sat vacant for nearly 30 years. But in 2001, the City of Vega secured a National Park Service Route 66 preservation grant and began restoring the landmark. It reopened as a visitor center in 2004.