I am Stuck On Stuckey’s
By: Lisa Holliday
Tags: Roadtrip, Stuckeys, Family, Pecans, Nostalgia

A journey into the past:

Sign for Stuckey’s in Missouri Photo Credit Lisa Holliday

Before heading out on my bucket list trip of Route 66, my husband had one request; if you see a Stuckey’s, please stop in. Now, I have never heard of Stuckey’s; apparently, they did have a couple in California, but if I went to one, I don’t remember.

When traveling through Missouri, I just happened upon an old Stuckey’s billboard and was shocked. I immediately pulled out my phone to find out if it still existed in the area. See on Route 66; many billboards are for places that are from days gone by, you can’t just take them at face value. Nothing came up on Google, so I assumed that it was just an old Route 66 billboard. I hit the road again and ran smack dab into it. It did still exist!

Tom T wrote on November 6, 2019, “In 1969 and again in 1973 -2 parents, 1 dog, and 6 kids left Long Island and drove across America without a/c or video games — we visited all of the 48 lower states over those 2 trips. Stuckey’s was a beacon of light during those long drives. I think we stopped at everyone that we passed- So many good memories of simpler times.”

Being a first-timer into this joint, it didn’t give me the goosebumps with nostalgia that it probably would have given my husband had he been there, but it did strike my curiosity.

Stuckey’s was established in 1931 during the Great Depression, and if you drove the highway’s of America, you likely ran across one on your travels in the 1950s and 1960s. Stuckey’s was a roadside stand run by husband and wife Ethel and W.S. Stuckey, Sr. W.S. Stucky’s family owned a pecan farm in Georgia, and these pecans were used to make the Stuckey’s famous Pecan roll and their Pecan Divinity candy; this was the very item I purchased while visiting their store this year.

Stuckey’s Pecan Log Roll was an inspired creation of Mrs. Ethel Stuckey herself. Based on a secret mix of powdered sugar, white molasses, and roasted nuts, that created a fluffy white sweetness covered in its deep coating of crushed select pecans, and was one primary reason for families to stop at Stuckey’s

Stuckey’s graduated from a roadside stand to a gas station with a restaurant that also sold their pecan goods. Their slogan, “Relax, Refresh, Refuel,” and if you filled your tank on your stop, you would receive a free pecan divinity tin of candy. This candy drove many people who lived near a Stuckey’s to drive the extra miles to fill up, just to receive their exclusive divinity.

Leah Phillip wrote on November 6, 2019, “I grew up in NJ, while my grandparents lived in OR. We spent many summers on the road, driving to visit them. Stuckey’s was our favorite pitstop.”

Stuckey’s also advertised its locations in the Green Book, a guide, also called the “Negro Motorist Green Book,” the book provided African Americans with advice on safe places to eat and sleep when they traveled through the United States. You will see a billboard for Stuckey’s in the movie Green Book if you pay close attention.

Stuckey’s was also known for its diner. Fan favorites included the biscuits and gravy and the double-stack plain cheeseburger.

Photo Credit Lee Cartledge/Unsplash

Having those places that you can still visit like Stuckey’s is a way to relive a happy memory. The sites, the smells, the taste are all ways of taking us back for a walk down memory lane. I think nostalgia is good for the soul, even if it does remind us of longing.

“Nostalgia is a file that removes the rough edges from the good old days.”

Doug Larson

In reading the memories of others and their visits to Stuckey’s, one message was apparent. The memories that Stuckey’s helps keep alive is the road trips of our youth with our family.