Bristow Route 66 Toy Museum(47)
- Jonathan Elmore
- Sep 19
- 2 min read
Usually, I'm not someone who has nostalgic trips down memory lane. I had good times growing up, but I don't really dwell on the past that much. I'm not trying to be a Zen master or anything. That's just how I'm built. I didn't realize that the mere sight of some of the toys from my childhood would turn that notion on its ear. My trip to the Bristow Route 66 Toy Museum had me oohing and aahing, laughing to myself, and wondering what happened to some of the great toys I had. My guess is a garage sale when I was away at church camp. Ah well, what was I going to do with a genuine original GI Joe Jeep anyway? (weeps softly)
When I walked in, I met the owner Bret Fadely. He was busy digging through boxes of Hot Wheels looking for some specific cars. While this is an amazing museum with scads of toys in it, Bret also sells a lot of things out of this space too. I can appreciate that. I've owned my own businesses in the past and you make a buck whenever, wherever, and however you can to keep the lights on and tacos on the table.
I tried to get my brain ready to see great toys, but I was almost overwhelmed. My eyes darted to Evel Knievel, Batman, Star Wars, Harley Davidson, Hot Wheels, and on and on. I had to tell myself to breathe and take things one at a time. Then I remembered I had a camera. I have to be honest, the photos that I'm posting here are about 1/4 of the ones I took. I'm not sure if it was audible or if it was just in my head, but when I would see a toy that brought back a memory...I think I grunted a little. HA! It was like the de-evolution of man. "Ug, me like Spiderman and big dragster! Take picture!" I also know how my brain works so I went through the entire museum twice, once clockwise and then counter clockwise. I get focused on one thing and everything around it disappears. After my first pass, I had to go back through so I would be sure to see everything and soak up all the good feelings from the parts of my childhood that involved play. We didn't have a ton of money for lots of toys so the ones I had were very important to me. And quite a few of those were represented here at the museum.
If you ever find yourself between Oklahoma City and Tulsa, stop in Bristow to see this great toy museum. After that, swing by the Train Depot and check it out too. Then you can get back on the highway and on to wherever you were headed. But you'll be glad you stopped and said hi to Bret and toured his collection.
118 N Main, Bristow
918-633-8209
Jonathan Elmore ©2025
