PULASKI COUNTY, Mo. – Shortly after Fort Leonard Wood was formed in the 1940s, Pulaski County made U.S. history. OzarksFirst spoke with Terry Primas, a historian who says the county had awful traffic back then. The busy roads weren’t ideal for Route 66 travelers, or the military.
“Hooker Cut came about because of the terrible traffic generated first by the construction of Fort Leonard Wood,” Primas said. “Route 66, particularly through Devil’s Elbow from Devil’s Elbow into Waynesville was a windy, little, two-lane, gravel road to begin with. Traffic was just snarled by the construction traffic and then later, military traffic.”
Primas says the stretch of the road became known as ‘Bloody 66.’
Then, the Missouri Highway Department came up with a plan to build a four-lane highway. The engineers cut through the Hooker ridge instead of going around it.
“It was the biggest road cut in the country at the time when it was started in late 1941. It’s 91 feet from the top of Hooker Cut to the roadbed. It also bypassed the Devil’s Elbow, which has allowed Devil’s Elbow to also keep its charm.”
Hooker Cut opened in 1945. Primas tells OzarksFirst the State Highway Department was able to make this happen during an equipment and worker shortage.