The Lincoln Highway...

[HereWeGoAgain]

Everyone knows about Route 66 but far fewer know of the Lincoln Highway,the very first coast to coast road in America.
I love this type of American History and would have loved to have been part of it.
It was like traveling through the old west minus the indians and horses.

 

[Hawk1981]

Advocates for improved roads led by bicyclists turned local agitation into a national political movement. The Good Roads Movement occurred in the United States between the late 1870s and the 1920s. Early movement advocates enlisted the help of journalists, farmers, politicians and engineers in the project of improving the nation's roadways.

Groups across the country held road conventions and public demonstrations, published material on the benefits of good roads and endeavored to influence legislators on local, state and national levels. Support for candidates often became crucial factors in elections.

At the turn of the twentieth century, interest in the bicycle began to wane in the face of increasing interest in automobiles. Subsequently, other groups took the lead in the road lobby. As the automobile was developed and gained momentum, organizations developed such cross-county projects as the coast-to-coast east–west Lincoln Highway in 1913, and the north–south Dixie Highway in 1915, which extended from Canada to Miami, Florida.

 

[Camp]

Great long-distance motorcycle run, however, it has been about 30 years since I did the trip. Mostly it's US Rt. 30, but even back then there were alternate routes where new highways or roads had replaced the old roads. You kind of had to decide on whether to take the new Rt. 30 or the old one. The old route would almost always be longer and more time consuming, but, have better scenery and historical buildings and sights. Everyone is greatly tempted to go off the route when it crosses Rt 66 but leaving Rt 30 there is a mistake because you will miss some of the best parts of Lincoln Highway. Of course, much has probably changed in the decades since I traveled the Lincoln Highway. This was all pre-smartphone and navigation systems. We used big poster-sized paper things called maps.

 

[Hawk1981]

In the summer of 1919, the United States Army Motor Transport Corps (MTC) deployed a convoy of military vehicles on an ambitious cross-country journey. The expedition consisted of eighty-one motorized Army vehicles that crossed the United States from Washington, DC, to San Francisco, a venture covering a distance of 3,251 miles in 62 days. The convoy was manned by 24 officers and 258 enlisted men and was designed to test the mobility of the military during wartime conditions.

The overall objectives of the trip were fourfold: encourage the construction of transcontinental highways, recruit troops for the Motor Transport Corps, demonstrate the use of military motor vehicles to the public, and evaluate the performance of different vehicles on various terrains and grades. For the most part, the convoy followed the first transcontinental roadway, the Lincoln Highway, which had opened in 1913, running from New York City to San Francisco.

From Pennsylvania to Illinois, to the route of the Lincoln Highway was mostly paved, but west of Lincoln's home state, the convoy had conditions that were more primitive. Driving through dusty and/or muddy conditions most of the rest of the way, the convoy averaged 15 mph during its 10-plus hour travel days.

During the course of its journey, the convoy recorded 230 road incidents, including stops for adjustments, extrications, breakdowns, and accidents resulting in 9 vehicles retiring, and had 21 injured personnel en-route who did not complete the trip.

The convoy experienced several unscheduled delays requiring extra encampments due to mechanical breakdowns and difficulties with roads. During the trip the convoy broke and repaired numerous bridges and in some cases traveled additional miles when bypassing bridges that were too dangerous for heavy equipment to cross. Ultimately, the convoy arrived at its destination in San Francisco six days behind schedule.

In his report on the journey, one of the convoy's observers, Lt. Colonel Dwight Eisenhower, noted that most of the difficulties along the route were experienced by the heavier vehicles which even on the very best roads "were not capable of the speed that the lighter types could efficiently maintain," and by "inefficient handling of the vehicle by the driver."

 

[Dick Foster]

It seems they can't quite make up their minds where much of it it is or was today except for US50 across Nevada, the loneliest road in America which follows the old pony express route. It has been one of my favorite drives for a long time. Given the chance I'll choose it over I80 the Eisenhower highway every time.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Advocates for improved roads led by bicyclists turned local agitation into a national political movement. The Good Roads Movement occurred in the United States between the late 1870s and the 1920s. Early movement advocates enlisted the help of journalists, farmers, politicians and engineers in the project of improving the nation's roadways.

Groups across the country held road conventions and public demonstrations, published material on the benefits of good roads and endeavored to influence legislators on local, state and national levels. Support for candidates often became crucial factors in elections.

At the turn of the twentieth century, interest in the bicycle began to wane in the face of increasing interest in automobiles. Subsequently, other groups took the lead in the road lobby. As the automobile was developed and gained momentum, organizations developed such cross-county projects as the coast-to-coast east–west Lincoln Highway in 1913, and the north–south Dixie Highway in 1915, which extended from Canada to Miami, Florida.

View attachment 331517

Thats what the video says alright.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Great long-distance motorcycle run, however, it has been about 30 years since I did the trip. Mostly it's US Rt. 30, but even back then there were alternate routes where new highways or roads had replaced the old roads. You kind of had to decide on whether to take the new Rt. 30 or the old one. The old route would almost always be longer and more time consuming, but, have better scenery and historical buildings and sights. Everyone is greatly tempted to go off the route when it crosses Rt 66 but leaving Rt 30 there is a mistake because you will miss some of the best parts of Lincoln Highway. Of course, much has probably changed in the decades since I traveled the Lincoln Highway. This was all pre-smartphone and navigation systems. We used big poster-sized paper things called maps.

I love the part where the farmers and ranchers didnt really care for the rich folk in their horseless carriages.
When the hand written instructions said turn right at the red barn the rancher/farmer would paint it white.

 

[mdk]

A part of the highway runs through my hometown.

 

[Camp]

It seems they can't quite make up their minds where much of it it is or was today except for US50 across Nevada, the loneliest road in America which follows the old pony express route. It has been one of my favorite drives for a long time. Given the chance I'll choose it over the I80 the Eisenhower highway every time.

Some folks I traveled with we called "purest" who insisted on traveling on original roads or routes. They used old maps obtained from map collectors (yes, there are map collectors) and carefully planned the routes from day to day or week to week. I think some had planned the trips before we left Pennsylvania. You have to really enjoy history and scenic roads, small towns, and cruising 45mph. On the plus side, plenty of cool rest stops, and lots of them.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

It seems they can't quite make up their minds where much of it it is or was today except for US50 across Nevada, the loneliest road in America which follows the old pony express route. It has been one of my favorite drives for a long time. Given the chance I'll choose it over the I80 the Eisenhower highway every time.

Some folks I traveled with we called "purest" who insisted on traveling on original roads or routes. They used old maps obtained from map collectors (yes, there are map collectors) and carefully planned the routes from day to day or week to week. I think some had planned the trips before we left Pennsylvania. You have to really enjoy history and scenic roads, small towns, and cruising 45mph. On the plus side, plenty of cool rest stops, and lots of them.

The sad thing is the trip was probably easier back in the day because they didnt have to deal with local landowners.

 

[Dick Foster]

It seems they can't quite make up their minds where much of it it is or was today except for US50 across Nevada, the loneliest road in America which follows the old pony express route. It has been one of my favorite drives for a long time. Given the chance I'll choose it over the I80 the Eisenhower highway every time.

Some folks I traveled with we called "purest" who insisted on traveling on original roads or routes. They used old maps obtained from map collectors (yes, there are map collectors) and carefully planned the routes from day to day or week to week. I think some had planned the trips before we left Pennsylvania. You have to really enjoy history and scenic roads, small towns, and cruising 45mph. On the plus side, plenty of cool rest stops, and lots of them.

I always choose the backroads in lieu of freeways and interstates. That way the trip is often more than half the fun. There's much more to see and time to see it.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

It seems they can't quite make up their minds where much of it it is or was today except for US50 across Nevada, the loneliest road in America which follows the old pony express route. It has been one of my favorite drives for a long time. Given the chance I'll choose it over I80 the Eisenhower highway every time.

Went to Vegas to visit a buddy and had an off road trip scheduled for the last week of my stay.
We left Vegas and ran the old wagon train trails all the way to southern California.
It was one of the coolest things I've ever done. We hit all the springs the wagon trains did and camped at the same places they did.
I was sitting there taking a dump into a plastic bag,as per California regulations,when I started to notice weird shadows on the rock. After further examination it was people's names and dates carved into the rock from the 1820's!!!
Not to mention the holes in the rock where the indians ground corn. This was typical at every spring we visited.

Gonna take the trip again before I croak.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

It seems they can't quite make up their minds where much of it it is or was today except for US50 across Nevada, the loneliest road in America which follows the old pony express route. It has been one of my favorite drives for a long time. Given the chance I'll choose it over the I80 the Eisenhower highway every time.

Some folks I traveled with we called "purest" who insisted on traveling on original roads or routes. They used old maps obtained from map collectors (yes, there are map collectors) and carefully planned the routes from day to day or week to week. I think some had planned the trips before we left Pennsylvania. You have to really enjoy history and scenic roads, small towns, and cruising 45mph. On the plus side, plenty of cool rest stops, and lots of them.

I always choose the backroads in lieu of freeways and interstates. That way the trip is often more than half the fun. There's much more to see and time to see it.

The only time I take the interstate is when I've already seen everything there is to see on the backroads to my destination.

 

[OldLady]

lol I took NY 20 once instead of the thruway to get from Rochester to the Mass border. I thought I was going to go out of my mind. I suppose it might have been fun if I had a few days to do it, had planned out places to stop. It would have been fun to stop in Seneca Falls and see the Suffragette stuff. Some of the scenery going through the Catskills was beautiful. But I had another nine hours to drive after I cleared New York, and taking the scenic route was a bad idea.

 

[gipper]

Everyone knows about Route 66 but far fewer know of the Lincoln Highway,the very first coast to coast road in America.
I love this type of American History and would have loved to have been part of it.
It was like traveling through the old west minus the indians and horses.

We took the Lincoln Highway from Reno east into Utah last spring. Not a damn thing out there. We often went long periods of time without seeing another car or anything man made. We won’t do that again.

 

[Dick Foster]

It seems they can't quite make up their minds where much of it it is or was today except for US50 across Nevada, the loneliest road in America which follows the old pony express route. It has been one of my favorite drives for a long time. Given the chance I'll choose it over I80 the Eisenhower highway every time.

Went to Vegas to visit a buddy and had an off road trip scheduled for the last week of my stay.
We left Vegas and ran the old wagon train trails all the way to southern California.
It was one of the coolest things I've ever done. We hit all the springs the wagon trains did and camped at the same places they did.
I was sitting there taking a dump into a plastic bag,as per California regulations,when I started to notice weird shadows on the rock. After further examination it was people's names and dates carved into the rock from the 1820's!!!
Not to mention the holes in the rock where the indians ground corn. This was typical at every spring we visited.

Gonna take the trip again before I croak.

That sounds like it was a great trip. I was into rockcrawing and camping so we got to a lot of places most folks can't go. The west is great for that sort of thing. There's lots of open space, things to see and places to go that are off the beaten path.

 

[Dick Foster]

It seems they can't quite make up their minds where much of it it is or was today except for US50 across Nevada, the loneliest road in America which follows the old pony express route. It has been one of my favorite drives for a long time. Given the chance I'll choose it over the I80 the Eisenhower highway every time.

Some folks I traveled with we called "purest" who insisted on traveling on original roads or routes. They used old maps obtained from map collectors (yes, there are map collectors) and carefully planned the routes from day to day or week to week. I think some had planned the trips before we left Pennsylvania. You have to really enjoy history and scenic roads, small towns, and cruising 45mph. On the plus side, plenty of cool rest stops, and lots of them.

I always choose the backroads in lieu of freeways and interstates. That way the trip is often more than half the fun. There's much more to see and time to see it.

The only time I take the interstate is when I've already seen everything there is to see on the backroads to my destination.

It seems to me there is always something that you haven't seen before. You just have up to be looking for it.

 

[Dick Foster]

Everyone knows about Route 66 but far fewer know of the Lincoln Highway,the very first coast to coast road in America.
I love this type of American History and would have loved to have been part of it.
It was like traveling through the old west minus the indians and horses.

We took the Lincoln Highway from Reno east into Utah last spring. Not a damn thing out there. We often went long periods of time without seeing another car or anything man made. We won’t do that again.

You problay took US50 and there is actually lots to see. There are pony express station ruins and a couple of mining towns Austin and Eureka and the scenery is just beautiful. I always enjoy the drive between Fallon and Ely. Theres a lot more to see than there is on I80 doing 75 or 80 MPH, dodging all the trucks and the scenery passing by in a blur.

 

[gipper]

Everyone knows about Route 66 but far fewer know of the Lincoln Highway,the very first coast to coast road in America.
I love this type of American History and would have loved to have been part of it.
It was like traveling through the old west minus the indians and horses.

We took the Lincoln Highway from Reno east into Utah last spring. Not a damn thing out there. We often went long periods of time without seeing another car or anything man made. We won’t do that again.

You problay took US50 and there is actually lots to see. There are pony express station ruins and a couple of mining towns Austin and Eureka and the scenery is just beautiful. I always enjoy the drive between Fallon and Ely. Theres a lot more to see than there is on I80 doing 75 or 80 MPH, dodging all the trucks and the scenery passing by in a blur.

Yes. The scenery was beautiful but if you breakdown, you’re toast. Much of the way we didn’t have cell service. We were in our motorhome towing our car.

 

[konradv]

Not much of the old Baltimore National Pike left except some mile markers. The route is now taken up by US 40 & I-70.