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LHA 09 Conference Planning Meeting

November 2, 2007

The Lincoln Highway Assocation’s Indiana Chapter will hold a meeting and dinner in Plymouth on Friday, November 16 to plan the 2009 LHA national conference in South Bend, June 16-20, 2009. There are countless roles you can play, from helping with the Tin Can Tourists vintage trailer club to planning snacks to contacting sponsors to scouting tours to staffing tables.

5:30 pm – meeting at Marshall County Historical Society, 123 N Michigan St/Old US 31, Plymouth, IN, (574) 936-2306.

6:30 pm – dinner at Opie’s Deli, 114 N Michigan, across from the museum. They serve sandwiches, wraps, salads, soups, etc, using many locally made products. It is in the former J.C. Penney building, renovated last year and now called the City Center.

Those needing accommodations will find a Holiday Inn Express at the intersection of US 30 and N Michigan St/old US 31, (574) 936-2444.

For more information, contact LHA Indiana Chapter President Ken Locke at <warotary@kconline.com>.

IN map

Tags:2009, conference, highway, IN, LHA, Plymouth, South Bend, trailer
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Lincoln Highway Kiosk in Aurora, IL

November 1, 2007

A Lincoln Highway kiosk debuted October 3 in the Phillips Park Visitor Center, 1000 Ray Moses Drive, Aurora, Illinois. The kiosk, including a computer terminal, is a project of the Illinois Lincoln Highway Coalition. An official unveiling is being planned.

IL Aurora kiosk 2

Phillips Park, along Hill Avenue/Lincoln Highway just south of the city, is already known to LH fans as a former overnight auto camp opened by the Aurora Automobile Club about 1923. A brick pavilion with fireplaces was recently restored and augmented with interpretive plaques and brochures for attractions along the LH.

Coalition Associate Director Diane Rossiter (who provided the top two photos) says the 3-sided kiosk recounts the basic history of the LH and highlights a few of the state’s most interesting stories. The main feature tells the story of the Mooseheart Child City and School to the north on IL 31/LH. Moose members from across the U.S. raised $12,000 and then literally helped build the first paved section of the Lincoln Highway in front of the building. In appreciation of their efforts, the state later paved an extra 10-foot-wide section still visible in front of Mooseheart.

The computer is hooked to the coalition’s website, which has information about events and communities along the LH in Illinois. Web site visitors there or at home can also send “E-Postcards” or share a travel story to be posted online.

IL Aurora kiosk 1

Other projects of the coalition include an Interpretive Center at the Dixon Welcome Center and a traveling exhibit currently at the Flagg Township Museum, 518 4th Ave, Rochelle (open Thur – Sun, 11 am – 4 pm). The exhibit will move at the start of 2008. Here it is at in July when I saw it at the Joliet Area Historical Museum:

IL Joliet exhibit

The coalition publishes a visitor’s guide, available at the each LH town’s chamber or welcome center, at highway rest stops and info centers across the state. You can also email info@drivelincolnhighway.com or call toll free (866) 455-4249.

Tags:Aurora, Dixon, exhibit, IL, Joliet, kiosk, Mooseheart, museum, pavilion, Rochelle
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Bear Drama at Donner Summit Bridge

October 31, 2007

LHA map committee chair Paul Gilger tells us that the big story along the Lincoln Highway in California last month was the rescue of a bear hanging from the Rainbow Bridge atop Donner Summit.

CA bear 1

According to the Tahoe Daily Tribune, the 250-pound bear climbed over the edge to avoid cars about 3 pm Saturday, Sept. 15, then got stuck and hung on overnight until being rescued around noon Sunday. Claw marks could be seen in the concrete railing where the bear tried to stop itself from falling.

CA bear 2

A passerby got a net from an Army surplus store and strung it beneath the span, then an animal control official shot it with a tranquilizer dart. A pole was used to push the bear off the girder, then about a dozen volunteers safely lowered the bear 80 feet to the rocky ground below as about 100 spectators cheered. Truckee Animal Control Officer Dan Olsen said the joint effort included help from his organization plus The BEAR League, Nevada County Animal Control, the California Highway Patrol, and rock and tree climbers.

CA bear 3
Photos courtesy Town of Truckee Animal Control, and special thanks to its Manager Dan Olsen.

Follow-up and more images HERE.

Tags:bear, bridge, CA, Donner Summit
Posted in highways, roadside, travel | 6 Comments »

Oldest Operating Gas Station in the US?

October 30, 2007

I drove some of the Lincoln Highway’s Washington DC Feeder route on Monday. If you’ve read the LHA’s official history, you’ll know that after the route announcement in 1913, DC leaders tried to get the city on the LH, even having President Wilson plead their case, but were turned down. Impassioned LH researcher Craig Harmon kept digging to find that in 1915, LHA President Henry Joy changed his mind and put DC on the route – but only as a feeder, like at Chicago, with red-white-red signs.

The DC Feeder ran from Philadelphia south through Wilmington, DE; Baltimore, MD; DC; north to Rockville, MD; and on to Gettysburg, PA. The LHA never acknowledged it in its road guides or institutional history book.

Much of the feeder route south of Gettysburg is now US 15, or former US 15, such as through Emmitsburg, MD. South of there in Thurmont, I bought gas at the oldest station I’ve seen pumping in a long time, maybe ever. The c. 1920 station is at the corner of Emmitsburg Rd (MD 806/old LH Feeder/old US 15) and Church St. Anyone know of any older stations still operating?
Thurmont Gas Stn 1

Thurmont Gas Stn 2

Tags:feeder, gas station, MD, Thurmont, Washington DC
Posted in highways, roadside, travel | 4 Comments »

Waffles in Chambersburg, Coffee in Gettysburg

October 29, 2007

Unlike most cities in PA, neither Chambersburg nor Gettysburg ever got a LH/US 30 bypass, so the route through the center of each town is often congested. You might hesitate to stop, but it’s not that hard to find a spot or get back into traffic. In Chambersburg, head a block south (109 S Main St) to grab breakfast or lunch at Molly’s. Its traditional name is the Molly Pitcher Waffle Shop, named for a Revolutionary War hero.

PA Molly 1

Theo Katsaounis cooks and sometimes delivers the food himself while Annamarie Erkson handles the work out front. They took over just eight months ago and bring some Greek flair to the menu. You’ll find traditional PA Dutch chicken with gravy over waffles, or try Anna’s Bananas Foster with a buttery rum sauce over caramelized bananas on a Belgian waffle. Omelettes are made open faced, that is, baked in a mini-casserole dish. OPEN Mon-Sat 8am-3pm.

PA Molly 2

About a block west of Gettysburg’s square is the Ragged Edge Coffeehouse (110 Chambersburg St). Open 7 years, it offers a range of coffee and teas, fruit smoothies, breakfast sandwiches, and pastries with some seating inside or on a patio.

Get PA coffeehouse 2

Get PA coffeehouse 3

It’s a fashionable hangout for the college crowd but draws a broad clientele. The coffee shop is next to what was built in 1916 as a lavish theater-turned-early auto garage named Eberhart’s then Epley’s, seen in vintage postcards. OPEN daily 6:30am-9pm.

Get PA coffeehouse 1

Tags:Chambersburg, Coffee, Gettysburg, Molly Pitcher, PA, Waffle
Posted in highways, roadside, travel | 5 Comments »

Road Trip to Gettysburg, PA

October 28, 2007

Lots of miles and lots of photos. Here are some highlights from the drive eastward.

A c. 1980 Honda Gold Wing waits beside a 1928 LHA concrete post in Everett, east of Bedford. If you’re traveling US 30, make sure you exit into the towns along the way.

PA Everett cycle 2

Carolyn Courts sign – love the wavy “air conditioned” lettering!

Carolyn Courts

Traveler’s Rest Motel and restaurant.

Trav Rest

Wiltshire Motel, Breezewood.

Wiltshire Motel

The LHA loved to photograph Sideling Hill looking west. Here it is while driving east.

Sideling Hill

One of the LH Heritage Corridor Pump Parade gas pumps at Oak Forest Restaurant.

Oak Forest Restaurant

Lincoln Lanes east of Chambersburg, with a pin on the roof and new murals.

Lincoln Lanes

LL mural

A Ford and boattail Buick Riviera for sale at Route 30 Motors, Fayetteville.

Ford & Riviera

Mister Ed’s Elephant Museum, the place for candy, peanuts, and offbeat souvenirs. We’ll save details for a future report.

Mr. Ed’s

Tags:bowling, Breezewood, Chambersburg, Everett, Gettysburg, Mr. Ed's
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Kearney’s Covered Wagon Being Restored

October 27, 2007

John & Lenore Weiss recently stopped at the Covered Wagon in central Nebraska and talked with a contractor who is bringing the building, wagon, and oxen back to life. The once-busy attraction four miles west of Kearney was near the famous (and long gone) 1733 Ranch, where signs indicated the halfway point between Boston and San Francisco, 1733 miles each way. They sent two pictures that show the work underway.
Weiss Cvd Wagon 1
“The contractor remembers all of it very well!” says Lenore. “The new owner does want a 2-story building, so he is doing a fine job and will be using log siding. The oxen and wagon will be completely restored, but the oxen will stay the same colors. Inside the wagon will be an office or two, and the top of the wagon will be new canvas as well.”
Weiss Cvd Wagon 2
This is excellent news for anyone who has watched the site decline over the past 15 years, knowing the all-too-familiar fate of vintage roadside attractions. The attraction was built in 1932 by a pair of missionaries and later was run by Mr. & Mrs Boyd McClare and later Nicholas and Rose Ponticello. Kearney Planning Commission minutes from 2002 appear to approve the project that has just gotten underway.

Below are two views from its heyday, when postcards advertised that tourists could relax “and obtain worthwhile souvenirs at reasonable prices.” One of the unforgettable draws was a taxidermied two-headed calf. The two gas pumps look pretty sharp too.
BB cvd wagon pc 1

B cvd wagon pc 2

John and Lenore Weiss are known to Route 66 and now LH fans for their research, tours, and publications, including one that will soon be reviewed here that covers both famed routes plus the Dixie Highway.

Tags:attraction, Covered Wagon, Kearney, NE, restoration, Weiss
Posted in highways, roadside, travel | 7 Comments »

Hitting the Road to Central PA

October 26, 2007

I’m leaving early Saturday for 3 days on the LH to Gettysburg, PA. No, the 1960 Chevy is not my car, though it is for sale along the Lincoln just west of Minerva, OH. I did own a ’60 Pontiac and ’60 Buick years ago, but that was BK – Before Kids! – so we’ll be in our trusty blue minivan with big LH logo magnets on the side.

1960 Chevy, Minerva, OH

Tags:1960, Chevy, Gettysburg, Minerva, OH, PA, Road trip
Posted in highways, roadside, travel | 1 Comment »

And … Colo Motel to Open Soon

October 25, 2007

Colo sign 2 Just as exciting as Niland’s Cafe reopening is that the restoration of the adjacent Colo Motel is nearly complete. (That’s their sign at left.) Six units offering modern amenities in a classic décor will be available for daily rental starting December 1. The motel closed in 1995 but in recent years has been part of the one-stop’s restoration that includes a non-working gas station and operating cafe. Colo Development Group hopes to someday use the memorabilia-filled gas station as a gift shop.

Scott Berka sent the photo below of the site before restoration was started – the motel is in the middle. Click here for a much larger version.

Colo Motel small

Tags:Colo, IA, motel, neon sign, restoration
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New operator for Niland’s Café in Colo, IA

October 24, 2007

Niland’s Café, closed this summer, has reopened. The Nevada [IA] Journal reports that Sandy Wilfong has agreed to manage the property for the Colo Development Group. The food service veteran also owns Sandy’s Café in Des Moines. “‘It’s always been a dream of mine to have this style of restaurant,’ Wilfong said. ‘I signed a three-year lease, but I plan on staying here a long time.’”

Niland’s outside new

Colo city clerk Scott Berka tells me the cafe had to close from April through July while they looked for a new operator: “Cory and Tammy Strait were our original lessee’s for the cafe (they opened in December 2003). They had a three-year lease. In summer 2006 Tammy had some serious health problems and when the lease was up Cory decided to take a job that required less hours and provided benefits. We certainly appreciate the work they put forth in getting the cafe up and running.”

The one-stop, with adjacent gas station and motel, opened about 1920 at the corner of Lincoln Highway and US 65, the old Jefferson Highway. Historical displays line the walls, and a 1939 Cadillac bursts from a corner of the dining room. The car-themed menu has entrees like the Route 30 Pileup, a roast beef dinner, and fried bologna. Fridays feature all-you-can-eat fish with salad bar, fries, and cole slaw; Sundays are all-you-can-eat fried chicken.

Niland’s from station

The town and café hosted one of my most fun book signings ever in 2005, when hundreds of locals turned out, most of whom had helped restore the café and gas station, loaned artifacts and photos, or donated to the effort.

Here, Dan Halferty and Brad Snodgrass help me at the table, with Scott Berka in yellow directing the line.

Niland’s Booksigning
Here’s Scott at the counter:
Niland’s, Scott at counter
And Scott sent this picture of me signing a book for descendant John Niland with Jim Hartwig next in line.
Scott’s pic-John Niland
Stop in, even if just for a piece of pie and a big slice of fun. Cafe hours:
Tue–Thur: 6:30 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Fri–Sat: 6:30 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Sun: 7:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Closed Mondays.