Introduction: (pages 9-12)

     From the beginning, Kaszynski puts his expert knowledge of Route 66 to good work. The Introduction is a precise, four-page summary of the origins of Route 66--one of the best to be found anywhere. Even before 1900, groups of citizens called for action to "Get the Farmer out of the Mud," and this activity was known as the Good Roads Movement, but road development in the early twentieth century was left to counties, cities, and towns. The author describes the various plans for developing highways among states, including the beginning of the highway numbering system. Beginning in 1916, the Federal government began to play an effective role in road construction. In 1924, Cyrus Avery, active in promoting highway development, "advocated a route from Chicago to St. Louis, through Oklahoma City, New Mexico, Arizona, and eventually to Los Angeles." A U.S. 60 had been established to run from Virginia to Los Angeles, so after some debate Avery's route was numbered 66.

     Along these highways, countless "mom and pop" businesses developed: "they offered their own down-home experience while advertising along the nation's early highway" (p. 11). These businesses included gas stations, tourist camps and cabins, as well as eateries. Kaszynski describes his book as reporting "the saga of one such mom-and-pop restaurant, whose history spans the years from the late 1930s through the 1990s. It was a family-run business owned by Ernest L. Edwards, Jr., in central Illinois in a small town called Broadwell [located seven miles south of Lincoln, the county seat of Logan County]. The 'Pig-Hip Restaurant' outlasted hundreds of other cafes, burger stands and diners that faded and then vanished from the roadside scene. It is also a story of Highway 66 (its pre-war term) and the people of the 'Prairie State' who lived along its route" (p. 12).

     Undoubtedly, the endurance and fame of this restaurant--and is world-renowned pig-hip sandwich-- is directly related to Ernie's long, vigorous life. When his biography was published in 2006, Ernie was in his upper 80s, and he was actively involved in developing and promoting his Pig-Hip Restaurant Museum--and still is as of the publication of this book review. Let me add that the book also describes Ernie's several other businesses in Broadwell and Lincoln as well as his various civic activities.

Chapter One: The Early Years (pages 13--23)

     Ernest L. Edwards, Jr., was born on August 5, 1917, in Murphysboro in southern Illinois 75 miles southeast of St. Louis. His parents were Naomi Star ("Toots") Meyers, and his father was Ernest L. Edwards, Sr. Father and son were descendants of Ninian Edwards, a former governor of Illinois and husband of a sister of Abraham Lincoln's wife. This chapter has accounts his parents' experiences as they moved from one Illinois town to another: from Murphysboro to Jerseyville to Granite City then back to Jerseyville and then to Salem before moving to Lincoln in 1934.

      Ernie's parents played a key role in leading him toward a career in small business. Ernie's father typically worked in factories. His mother tried various business activities to supplement the family income, for example, operating a small neighborhood grocery and selling toys. Ernie's father "had worked for others much of his life but found self-employment to be the most rewarding. He firmly believed that in order to get ahead, you had to take control of your own destiny and become an entrepreneur. He didn't want Ernie to start out working in a factory as he had done and encouraged him to try some type of self-employment" (p. 16).

     As a kid, while working at several typical jobs such as delivering newspapers, Ernie showed an interest in starting his own businesses. He operated a newspaper stand but became curious about the food service business. In the fifth grade, his first job was working for a guy who had Ernie making and selling ice cream on a stick. In 1930, at the age of 13, Ernie and another kid in Jerseyville "opened a confectionary and sold ice cream." A couple of years later, Ernie and his father operated a hot dog stand at the county fair in Jerseyville. There, Ernie began to create his own distinct food product:

"Most hot dog vendors boiled or grilled their frankfurters and Ernie figured that he'd try a difference [sic] method of cooking them that might appeal to customers. He called them 'electrocuted hot dogs' [bold mine] and invented a way to cook them using electrical current. He built a simple device by wiring six sharp metal pegs mounted on a board about a foot across. A toggle, similar to an ordinary light switch, was added to the board and when flipped to the 'on' position carried electric current to the metal pegs, which cooked his hot dogs in approximately two minutes. He placed a glass cover over the unit to prevent being burned by hot grease and added a red blinking light to the top of his stand to advertise his unique product. . . . Ernie's hot dogs were very popular and he did a steady business throughout the duration of the fair" (p. 18).

     After that success, Ernie traveled to Springfield several years to operate his own popcorn stand at the Illinois State Fair. This chapter has a wonderful, detailed account of Ernie meeting a farmer in bib overalls from southern Illinois who raised popcorn and introduced Ernie to a popcorn variety unlike that used by the competition. Ernie began selling it with good success. You just have to read this account to believe what this new variety was and what oil Ernie used to pop it. One of Ernie's life-long talents has been the catchy names he gave to the food he sold. In his youth, Ernie's nickname was Chick, and at the State Fair he made a sign advertising "Chick's French Fried Popcorn." The farmer who introduced Ernie to this new popcorn variety later sold out to the Jolly Time Popcorn Company.

     Ernie was a teenager in 1934 when his family moved to Lincoln. During high school, Ernie's main job was delivering newspapers. Chapter One ends with Ernie's high school graduation.

     One kind of information appearing in Chapter One that appears in all of the other chapters is Ernie's experiences in seeing or meeting famous and nearly-famous people. In Chapter One the reader discovers how the youthful Ernie had met Frank Phillips, the founder of the Phillips Petroleum Company; and in his early years Ernie twice met Henry Ford. These kinds of stories add a strong "human interest" appeal to Ernie's biography.

Chapter Two: A New Roadside Sandwich (pages 24--48)

     This chapter describes the founding of the Pig-Hip Restaurant in Broadwell and covers Ernie's life between high school graduation and the beginning of WW II (late 1930s).

     This chapter opens with a story of how Ernie began working at Bea's Ice Cream in downtown Springfield, IL. The owner, a Mr. Segalty, also hired Ernie to get a job at the Icey Root Beer Company in Springfield for the purpose of spying to find out how the three little old lady owners made their popular "steakburger," "rumored to be the best burger in the entire country" (p. 24). Ernie's espionage succeeded, and the book describes the special way the steakburger was prepared. When Ernie decided to quit working at Bea's, he sincerely believed that he was due at least twice the $20.00 that Segalty paid him, so Ernie "punched Segalty in the nose as he left" (p. 36).

     As Ernie worked at his next job, an auto body store next to Bea's, he discovered openings at Pikeman's Steeplejacks across the street. For a year and a half, Ernie worked as a steeplejack in Michigan, Kansas, then in Carbondale and Murphysboro, IL.

     Afterward, Ernie's dad offered to help him start his own business. Ernie's dad, who owned and operated a shoe repair business, thought the same kind of business would be good for Ernie, but Ernie had his heart set on selling food. In 1937, Ernie found an old restaurant on Route 66 in Broadwell for sale, its owner rumored to be a moonshiner. It was known as Wolf's Inn. With a loan of $150 from his dad, Ernie at the age of 24 bought Wolf's Inn and renamed it the Harbor Inn because the wallpaper had images of boats and anchors. The Harbor Inn was open for mid-day plate lunches that included ham and beans with corn bread and beef and noodles. "He started selling cold beer by the bottle before he found out that he needed a liquor license. He quickly applied for and was granted a state and Federal liquor license. He was (and still is) the only person in Broadwell with a liquor license" (p. 29).

     Kaszynski provides a concise but detailed summary of how millions of Americans were traveling to find better jobs and lives during the Depression (pp. 27-28). The author notes that some people burned corn rather than coal because it was cheaper. At his mother's suggestion, Ernie decided to build a small "filling station" next to the restaurant. Ernie bought some cheap lumber, and then he, his dad, and brother built the station, selling 7 gallons of Mobile gas for $1.00 in 1937. Soon, Ernie was approached by and struck a deal with the founder of Cities Service, who lived in Bloomington, IL.

     The Harbor Inn was becoming popular. Ernie tried catering for a short time, but abandoned it as being too involved. While Ernie's brother, Joe, worked the filling station, their mother helped Ernie with the restaurant. They began to experiment with new menu items to give variety to the locals who often ate chicken at home and wanted other kinds of food in restaurants. Ernie's mother, Naomi, had worked for Ray of Ray's chili, and she began to make her own chili for the restaurant. Naomi also encouraged Ernie to try making ham sandwiches.

     At the Kroger store in Lincoln, the manager, "Pop" Hanlan told Ernie that fresh ham was cheaper than cured ham. Ernie, of course, chose the cheaper fresh ham. Pop also had a great story of why the ham from the hog's left hip is more tender than the ham from the right hip. This story is just one of many that make this book a must-read for Route 66 fans and others interested in the history of American popular culture in the 20th century. Kaszynski also relates the story of how one of Ernie's old farmer customers ("a lean tough old buzzard and looked the spitting image of Abe Lincoln himself") was the key to naming the "pig-hip" ham sandwich. These stories became "a boon to Ernie's business for the remainder of his life" (p. 33).

     The book describes how the pig-hip sandwich was prepared from 20-pound fresh hams that were baked for a certain number of hours at a specific temperature. "One of his most popular items, naturally, was the 'Pig-Hip' Special, which came with a Pig-Hip sandwich, French fries and Jell-O salad and cost 65 cents" (p. 35). Anther popular sandwich was a steakburger.

     As indicated in the photo caption below, Ernie's new ham sandwich was so popular that he changed the name of his restaurant:
 

5: A Classic Early Scene on Route 66

     Next, Chapter Two describes Ernie's decision to abandon the idea of franchising in favor of establishing a second restaurant. In 1940, he bought the Spanish Gables, a tavern at the southwest corner of Fourth and Washington Streets in Lincoln, across from the Postville Park. Right after he bought this property, Ernie found himself in trouble with Gus Belt, the Bloomington entrepreneur who was just starting his Steak 'n Shake empire. Belt was unhappy that he lost out on buying the Spanish Gables and threatened to take Ernie to court for using a black and white color scheme in Ernie's new place. Before long, Belt realized that his case was groundless and apologized to Ernie. Belt's slogan "In sight, it must be right" resulted from his restaurant's kitchens being open to the customers' view, and Ernie decided to come up a slogan of his own for his Pig-Hip sandwich: "They made their way by the way they're made." Someone suggested Ernie name his new restaurant the TIZ-IT, and he liked this name because it is spelled the same forward and backward (anagram).

6: This Building Endures as a Private Residence

     Kaszynski identifies many of the other eateries, gas stations, and tourist cabins found in the neighborhood of the TIZ-IT (although he does not mention my Grandfather H.F. Wilson's grocery store on Business Route 66 near the corner of Washington and Fifth Streets). The rest of this chapter tells how Ernie furnished his restaurants, which suppliers he used, and how he treated his employees with respect and fairness. Kaszynski provides information about the history of Route 66 in the 1930s and describes several highway and train accidents of this period as recalled by Ernie.

Chapter Three: Wartime and the Postwar Boom (pages 49-72)

     This chapter opens with a concise account of the shortages at the beginning of WW II that led to the failure of many businesses, including gas stations. In 1942, there were two lanes added to Route 66 because of its strategic military status. "A portion of the Pig-Hip's property was in the path of the new road. Ernie's house was sold and moved to Elkhart [south of Broadwell] and his restaurant and small filling station also had to be demolished. . . . Ernie built a new restaurant with the funds he received from the government on a short stretch of road that was added to the west of the military lane in 1943 and kept running the TIZ-IT by day and the new Pig-Hip by night" (pp. 50-51). Before Ernie went into the Army in 1943, he sold the TIZ-IT, whose location had changed to the intersection of the Route 66 bypass and state Routes 121 and 10, to Joe Eimer for $5,000.00. Eimer also owned the Maid Rite in Lincoln and renamed the TIZ-IT the TIZ-RITE. Ernie sold the Pig-Hip to his parents in case he did not return from the war.

     Before he went into the Army, Ernie and his wife, Loeta, took three vacations to California and back on Route 66 in their 1941 Ford convertible. During the war, Ernie was an Army cook in the South Pacific and then Japan.

7: Former Landmark at the Four Corners

     [Note: The arms were mechanical and waved.]

     After the war, the Edwards family expanded its business activity. Ernie's mother, using money that her son, Joe, had sent back during the war, made it possible to build a cement-block gas station near the Pig-Hip. This building had a grease room and a single-bay garage. Ernie bought a wrecker, and Joe bought an Army surplus Jeep the he modified to serve as a wrecker. The new gas station also had a mechanical hoist. Joe operated the station. Ernie's sister, Bonnie, and her husband, Doo, built some tourist cabins that were later enclosed, and this motel was the Pioneer's Rest. Another business expansion for Ernie was that he established another TIZ-IT: this time in downtown Lincoln, first on S. Sangamon and then on S. Chicago Street in the block north of the garment factory.

     Toward the end of Chapter Three, Kaszynski reports on the various famous and near-famous people who patronized the Pig-Hip. These included big-band leaders such as Guy Lombardo and Wayne King, other entertainers, sports celebrities, politicians, and the local legendary bootlegger known as Coonhound Johnny. Some of my favorite pages in this book are those that tell of Ernie's recollections of Coonhound Johnny, who convinced Ernie to install pinball machines for a time. More than once, Ernie drove Coonhound and his infamous friend, Al Capone, to the state capital, Springfield, where the gangster apparently had business with state officials, including members of the legislature. Ernie's chauffer service took place after Capone was released from Federal prison in 1939 (pp. 65-66). (Mr. Kaszynski generously gave me permission to tell these stories in this Web site, and a link to them appears below in Works Cited.)

     This chapter includes a priceless account of how Ernie met Colonel Harlan Sanders and remained friends with him for many years. Sanders stopped at the Pig-Hip Restaurant when he was traveling the Midwest to sell franchises. The two men prepared chicken dinners for one another that day, and you will have to read the account to decide which guy liked the other's chicken better.

     After the war, Ernie's life became more complex. He opened another TIZ-IT (the third) at 110 S. Sangamon Street in downtown Lincoln, and it succeeded because of "a steady clientele of workers from the Lincoln Garment Factory and the Stetson China Company" (p. 60). Ernie owned this third TIZ-IT until 1953 (p. 68). After the war, Ernie and his wife became parents, and Ernie was more aggressive in advertising his restaurants and selling souvenirs. He also had to deal with a few burglaries and robberies. He became an active member of the Illinois Restaurant Association and a Justice of the Peace in Broadwell.

Chapter Four: Decline and Rebirth of Route 66 (pages 73-86)

     During the 1960s and early 1970s, post-war prosperity continued, and the Pig-Hip Restaurant attracted old and new customers. Locals typically ordered more food and drink than travelers. Ernie says that in the 1970s and 1980s, he "noticed a different sort of customer": they came in groups, and "Ernie learned they were traveling between Chicago and St. Louis to collect welfare in both states" (p. 84).

     During this period, Ernie made some improvements to the Pig-Hip. An indoor toilet was added after Illinois Governor Kerner's sister complained about having to use the outhouse. There was remodeling and then more remodeling after fires in 1965 and 1970.
 

8: Three Route 66 Edwards-Related Businesses in their Prime
 

     The construction of Interstate 55 reached central Illinois in the mid 1970s. I-55 at Broadwell closely parallels old Route 66, and the overpass and freeway exit allowed easy access to the Pig-Hip Restaurant, which was thus spared the decline in patronage suffered by many other businesses. The reduction in traffic on old Route 66 also brought a decrease in the number of vehicle accidents.

     A great story in this chapter tells how Ernie acquired the huge restaurant sign of the former Ramada Inn on the Route 66 beltway in Lincoln and mounted it on top of his house (photo #2 above). The sign remained there for several years and became a landmark to travelers on I-55.
 

9: Pig-Hip Partners

     In later years, Ernie sometimes refers to himself as "the Old Coot on 66," and here is the story behind that nickname:

"In 1983, another well-known celebrity with national recognition entered the Pig-Hip. Ernie did not recognize the man and went about his usual business, served the man his meal and returned to his easy chair behind his L-shaped glass counter. The man saw a framed picture of Emil Verban on the wall and struck up a conversation, asking if Ernie knew Verban. Ernie replied, "Sure, he lives just up the road, he's my best friend. I've known him all my life." The man said, "Well, he was a pretty good ball player in his day." Ernie nonchalantly remarked, "Well, no, not really, he got to be in the majors because so many people were out for wartime service." A few days later, the man (who turned out to be columnist Mike Royko), wrote an article for the Chicago Tribune about the sorry nature of the Chicago Cubs and its long-suffering fans. He mentioned his encounter with 'the old coot in the rocking chair' at the Pig-Hip Restaurant in Broadwell. He was not being derogatory, of course, and ended with, 'When you're a Cub, not even your best friend will stick up for you!' Ernie liked the column so well that he started referring to himself as 'the Old Coot on 66' ever since" (p. 84).

     Within a few years of the decommissioning of Route 66 in 1985, its fans began a movement to revive interest in the Mother Road. In 1989, Ernie joined other Illinois residents such as Tom Teague, Springfield artist Bob Waldmire, and Bob Borowiak in forming the Illinois Route 66 Association.

Chapter 5: Retirement (pages 87-92)

     "By 1990, the Pig-Hip was busier than ever despite the demise of Route 66" (p. 87). Yet, at 74 Ernie was finding it much harder to do everything necessary to run the business, and his aging equipment always needed repair or replacement. The Pig-Hip Restaurant officially closed on September 9, 1991, and the owner of the Pioneer's Rest Motel, Ethel Epperheimer, closed it as well. In the fall of 1993, Ernie and Fran had the contents of the restaurant auctioned. The gigantic restaurant sign, originally part of the Ramada Inn complex on the Route 66 beltline in Lincoln, was sold for $35.00. Its removal caused $75.00 worth of damage to their house. At the time of the publication of Ernie's biography, the sign found another home on a former stretch of Route 66: at a Mexican restaurant at the corner of South Grand and Dirksen Parkway in Springfield, IL. After the auction, however, Ernie and Fran have continued to sell souvenirs.

10: "The Old Coot on 66"

     After the Pig-Hip closed, it continued to have people stop to see it, including famous people such as Arnold Palmer and former President Carter as well as tourists from around the world. Some who stopped were children of parents who had patronized the Pig-Hip many years earlier. In the last few years, Ernie has established the Pig-Hip Restaurant Musem (Ernie says he won't correct one of his typical misspellings) and gift shop. Ernie has managed to retrieve or duplicate some of the furnishings and decor of the restaurant. The Illinois Route 66 Association has assisted with the development of the "Musem" (see link below in Works Cited).

"Ernie maintains that he lived a fascinating life and would not trade it for anything. His parents, sister and first and second wives are all buried in the same cemetery plot. In addition to running a restaurant for 54 years, Ernie was Broadwell's justice of the peace for 30 years, a Mason for 52 years and was a member of the local American Legion, VFW, the Blue Lodge, the High Twelve, served on the school board for twelve years (as president for eight), the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce, the Broadwell town board for a few years, some Democratic Party organizations, the National Restaurant Association and the Illinois Route 66 Association. He is also involved with the Route 66 Corridor, which receives some federal funds since its enactment by Congress in 1999. Recently, these funds helped repair the furnace for the Pig Hip" (pp. 90-91).
 

Roster of Pig-Hip Restaurant Employees (1952-1991) (pages 93-96)

     When you buy this book, you might be surprised to discover that you knew someone who worked there. I was amazed to see that my childhood playmate and high school classmate, Janet Sue Elkins, LCHS noble Class of 1960 Homecoming Queen, worked there in 1960 (p. 94).
 

Conclusion of This Review

     Pig-Hips on Route 66 is major addition to the history of Route 66. Most likely, only crusty old English teachers like me will notice a couple of errors in language usage (e.g., "off of" should just be "off," and state capitol in reference to Springfield should be capital) and inaccuracy of fact. Toward the end of Chapter 1, there is reference to the bank closings of 1933, followed by a misleading statement: "later that year, Ernie met Henry Ford again. Ford came to Lincoln to buy the old Postville Courthouse. . . ." The correct year of Ford's purchase was 1929. Another misleading statement says that "the Chicago and Alton line ran next to Highway 66 and still exists today" (p. 38). The railroad tracks do exist today, but to the best of my knowledge have been part of the Union Pacific and Amtrak systems for the last 30+ years. A third example of fact error refers to Werth's Standard service station that was located on the southwest corner of the intersection of U.S. 66 and Illinois Routes 121 and 10 (the "Four Corners"). The erroneous sentence says, "Today Werth's is an oil changing and lubrication business and a place behind it that was once Looby's is now called the Blue Inn" (p. 65). The spelling should be Blu- Inn (building now demolished), and this restaurant was located near a Standard service station owned by Wayne Wallace. Wallace's station was "kitty corner" across the intersection from Werth's. The Blu-Inn was positioned not behind Wayne Wallace's Standard station but about 200 feet to its north side.

     Let me repeat for emphasis that these few fact errors certainly do not detract from the overall appeal of the book. As my Lincolnite good friend, Fred Blanford, likes to say, "memory is an imperfect tool." Fred also likes to quote his late father-in-law, the charismatic Lincoln dentist Dr. James "Jimmy" Coogan: "Why let a few facts get in the way of a good story?"

     The only thing the reader of Pig-Hips on Route 66 will regret is that there are not more stories and more photos. Since Ernie's biography includes references to pinball machines in his establishments, I hope he will not mind my expressing an interest in knowing more about his dealings with them. Specifically, one of the stories I would have liked to see in Ernie's biography relates to the most bizarre trial ever held in the Logan County Courthouse--the pinball machine trial of 1950-51 that followed the controversial state-wide State Police gambling raids ordered by legendary Illinois Governor Adlai Ewing Stevenson II. The State Police raided many businesses in Lincoln, Illinois, on October 11, 1950, and confiscated several truckloads of gambling machines. After several weeks of a trial of certain business owners for having illegal gambling equipment, Judge Frank S. Bevan "allowed Assistant Attorney General Baird Helfrich to set up a pinball machine in open court to demonstrate its operation as he presented witnesses for the State. The machine, which was tagged as seized from the Tizit [sic] Restaurant, Lincoln, of which Ernest Edwards is proprietor, was installed in the courtroom by four state highway policemen who had made their fourth trip to Lincoln to testify on their pinball investigations" (Courier, January 10, 1951, p. 1). Ernie was apparently not one of the proprietors charged or called to testify, but it would be interesting to know his story of whether the courtroom pinball machine was from the TIZ-IT and if so how that came to be and why Ernie was not called to testify.

     Soon after this review was published, the Pig-Hip Restaurant and Museum were destroyed by fire (March  5, 2007).
 

11: Pig Hip Historical Marker

(Photo courtesy of Geoff Ladd)

Places to Purchase Pig-Hips on Route 66

Abraham Lincoln Tourism Bureau of Logan County
1555 Fifth Street
Lincoln, Illinois 62656
217-732-8687

Cozy Dog Drive-In
2935 S. Sixth St.
Springfield, IL 62703