Gallup got its start as a railroad town on the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad (later incorporated into the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad) and was named after the local paymaster, David Gallup. The town was incorporated in 1881 and became the county seat of McKinley County 20 years later. Coal mining would soon become Gallup’s major industry and it was even known as “Carbon City” for a time. Gallup would fall along the path of Route 66 on its way from Chicago to L.A. and even made it into the popular song we all know about the Mother Road. Because of Gallup’s location near the Navajo, Hopi and Zuni reservations, trading posts sprung up along the highway where tourists could buy jewelry, rugs, fetishes and prized Kachina dolls. Today Gallup is home to around 20,000 people and is a wonderful melting pot of Anglo, Native American and Hispanic cultures. In 2013, Rand McNally named Gallup “America’s Most Patriotic City”. I had a great time in Gallup, poking around the trading posts and admiring some of the vintage murals and signs. It was another great town for me to get my kicks on Route 66.