About …

Folks had long dreamed of a road across the US, and by the early 1900s, some trails were given names and marked on maps, but the Lincoln Highway (proposed in 1912) is often called the first coast-to-coast highway due to its widespread support, constant improvements, and (mostly) consistent marking. When US highways were numbered in the 1920s, much of the LH became, or was replaced by, US 30, along with US 1 in the east and US 40, and 50 in the west. But this is a simplification – many original portions of the LH are local streets with no route number, and segments are often lost in fields or forest.

I’d rather be driving the LH than writing about it, but I love to share discoveries, recommendations, vintage photos, and postcards with others online and through my books:

• Roadside Attractions

• Roadside Giants

• Greetings from the Lincoln Highway

• Klondikes, Chipped Ham, & Skyscraper Cones: The Story of Isaly’s

• Diners of Pennsylvania

• The Lincoln Highway: Pennsylvania Traveler’s Guide

Learn more about them at www.brianbutko.com which I’ve titled “Fun Stuff Taken Seriously” and that’s how I feel. Topics like the Lincoln Highway are fun to explore but are not fluff: the history and the people involved are valid subjects for study.

NOTE: This blog is completely the creation of me – Brian Butko. I write and research all content. Occasionally I repost images and info from other sites with appropriate credit and links. Many friends and strangers submit info and images, for which I’m extremely grateful.I am not a news agency or image bank, and no content or images should be taken and used elsewhere without permission. You can contact me at brian [at] brianbutko.com

BB@Rosevear’s Ranch, NV
That’s me at Rosevear’s Ranch, Nevada, once a Lincoln Highway oasis.

3 Responses to “About …”

  1. John Worthington Says:
    October 19, 2008 at 12:57 pm | Reply

    I bought your book becasue I have a great interest in tracking down info/pictures on a particular diner in Langhorne (Oxford Valley) PA

    My Grandparents, Edward and Alma Worthington owned and operated Mom and Pops in the 1940s and 50s.

    While I have a few relics of the diner, I have been unable to track down any info. There was a brief mention in your second book about a diner that advertised in Tail Gate magazine as being on the site of the former Mom and Pops diner. But that is all.

    DO you have any leads I can follow?

    John Worthington

  2. Glee Willis Says:
    November 19, 2008 at 2:24 pm | Reply

    Hi Brian —

    Kathleen Dow suggested that I make sure you know about
    our Lincoln Highway digital collection at:
    http://www.knowledgecenter.unr.edu/specoll/photoweb/lincolnhwy/

    Also, I don’t know if you know about my husband’s mural
    about Alice Ramsey’s historic drive across the U.S. as
    the first woman to do so.

    http://www.newsreview.com/reno/Content?oid=24481

    Her route pre-dated the Lincoln Highway but there is to
    be a centennial re-ride of Alice’s journey in a 1909
    Maxwell-Brisco next year. See: http://aliceramsey.org
    The two videos on the site are really inspirational.

    Cheers,

    Glee

  3. Matt Murphy Says:
    February 6, 2012 at 2:13 am | Reply

    Brian –

    I just started following your blog, since I’m working on developing my own blog on U.S. 40/the National Road (http://exploreroute40.wordpress.com/). Thanks for all your great information on the Lincoln Highway (though a separate road, still similar issues), and I hope to mirror some of that info on my site as well. Do you have any tips for getting started, or where do you get your information?

    Thanks again,
    Matt

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