Hotel that housed Timothy McVeigh receives Route 66 grant

PHOENIX — A Kingman, Ariz. hotel that once housed Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh has received a grant designed to preserve historic Route 66.

The National Park Service granted the Hilltop Motel a much-coveted Route 66 Cost-Share Preservation Grant. If the motel’s owner, Dennis Schroeder, comes up with $21,000, the Park Service will match that with a $20,000 grant for much-needed repairs.

The most notable guest who has stayed at the motel is the Oklahoma City Bomber, who killed 168 people at the Murrah Federal Building on April 19, 2005.

“We had Timothy McVeigh in February of 1995, which is basically a few weeks before the events in Oklahoma City,” said Schroeder.

Sometimes, people are curious about the room that McVeigh stayed in.

“You’ll get a few that want it,” Schroeder said. “Other people don’t want anything to do with it. It’s just a part of history.”

Other celebrities have stopped by the motel.

“After playing Woodstock in the late ’60s or early ’70s, the group ‘Crosby, Stills and Nash’ came to the Hilltop looking for a room,” said Schroeder. “They were turned away because the motel was full for the night, but they were allowed to take showers in a room that was being used for storage.”