Violence sadly came to Northern Illinois University along the Lincoln Highway in DeKalb, Illinois (pop 43,000) yesterday when a former graduate student entered a lecture hall and opened fire, killing six, wounding 15, and then killing himself. The campus has 25,000 students about 65 miles west of downtown Chicago. The university’s home page has details, and more information is available at the Chicago Tribune here. NIU has scheduled a news conference for 9 am CST on Friday, February 15. A Mass is set for 12 noon at Newman Catholic Student Center, and an Ecumenical Prayer Service will be held at 7:30 pm.
Archive for the ‘history’ Category
Tragedy along the Lincoln Highway in DeKalb, IL
February 15, 2008Auburn Cord Duesenberg to host sculptures
February 14, 2008The Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum, 25 miles north of Fort Wayne in Auburn, Indiana (off the Lincoln Highway but a popular diversion), will exhibit automotive bronze sculptures created by nationally acclaimed artist Alexander Buchan, and his grandchildren Alex, 11, and Adeline, 6, from March 14 through April 12. Buchan worked as Chief Design Sculptor at General Motors for 38 years.
Above: This painted bronze sculpture by Alex Buchan (edition of 35) depicts a 1920 Indian motorcycle with a side car called the ‘Flexi’ being driven by Pop Dwyer.
The public is invited to attend the free exhibit opening on Friday, March 14 at 7 p.m. at the museum, where Buchan and his grandchildren will be on-hand to discuss their work. Included in the exhibit will be a very rare 1910 American Underslung automobile and a customized Buchan sculpture of the car and its owners.
The Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum houses more than 120 antique and special interest cars plus related exhibits on three floors. The museum is in the 1930s headquarters of the Auburn Automobile Company and is a National Historic Landmark. Group and family rates are available. The museum is open daily from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. year round.
Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum
1600 South Wayne Street
Auburn, IN 46706
(260) 925-1444 x30
http://www.acdmuseum.org
Early Autos film, sometimes comic, inc/ US 50 NV
February 13, 2008Here’s an educational film (well, somewhat) from perhaps the late 1940s showing the impact and follies of early autos. The short film begins and ends with old-car fans driving early autos in period dress along US 50 (often the same as the Lincoln Highway) and US 395 in Nevada. Much of the rest shows early clips of how they could be a challenge to operate. The disruption they brought to city streets is quite a contrast to today’s “good ol days” view — though it is comical to watch a crowd of kids chase one of the newfangled contraptions.
Sacramento PBS to run LH segment – Wed 7pm
February 12, 2008Sacramento’s KVIE-TV/channel 6 (PBS) occasionally runs a show called “Street Signs” that explores the history behind local street names. This week’s episode will include a segment on the Lincoln Highway. In the Sacramento/Stockton/Modesto area it will be broadcast on channel 6 at 7:00 p.m. Pacific Time on Wednesday, February 13. It may show in other areas too – check local listings.
California LHA director Bob Dieterich says, “Norm Root and myself were interviewed and I spent two days with the producer and a cameraman filming sights along the highway in the Sacramento, Auburn, Davis, and Galt areas. If one watches closely they may see a glimpse of the map from the top of your blog.”
The above photo (courtesy of KVIE-TV) shows Bob on a short segment of the Lincoln hidden in bushes beside Taylor Road/US 40 in Penryn between Sacramento and Auburn.
Film – Recreating Alice Ramsey's 1909 drive
February 2, 2008Summer 2009 will be the centennial of the first woman to drive across America, Alice Ramsey. In honor of that groundbreaking event, Emily Anderson and a co-pilot will leave New York City on June 9, 2009, for San Francisco. They’ll follow the same route over 41 days in the same type car as Alice used (a 1909 Maxwell, restored by Emily’s dad), with celebrations along the way. Here’s a 4-minute trailer about the next Alice’s Drive.
2008 LHA conference info online at two sites
January 31, 2008Fans of historic roads will want to attend the 2008 Lincoln Highway Association conference in Evanston, Wyoming, this June. Conference coordinator Shelly Horne has begun posting info at www.lincolnhighwayconference2008.com about the area and what attendees will see. He will add more in the coming weeks.
Conference registration and art show information can be found at:
www.lincolnhighwayassoc.org/conference/2008
Here is the basic information:
Lincoln Highway Association 16th Annual Conference
“Rails, Trails, and Highway Tales”
Best Western Dunmar Inn, 1601 Harrison Drive, Evanston, WY
Tuesday, June 17 — Welcome Dinner buffet
Wednesday, June 18 — West Tour to Echo Canyon
Thursday, June 19 — Seminars; Awards Banquet
Friday, June 20 — East Tour to Ft. Bridger and Granger; BBQ dinner in tent
Saturday, June 21 — Mountain Man Breakfast at roundhouse, rides on UPRR turntable; annual business meeting
South Bend touts improvements to Lincoln Way
January 30, 2008A press release from South Bend, Indiana, describes the city’s participation in Commercial Corridor Façade Improvement and Residential Enhancement matching grant programs, which aim to enhance neighborhoods and business districts through joint public and private investment. A portion of the Lincoln Highway there is benefitting from these efforts.
Gene’s Camera Store on Lincoln Way West is seen as a shining example of the commercial corridor improvements. From a press release:
Owned and operated by Mr. Jack St. Pierre since 1981, Gene’s Camera Store has recently undergone façade improvements with the help of a grant from the City’s Commercial Corridor Façade Improvement Matching Grant Program. Mr. St. Pierre made visual improvements to the west wall of his business and constructed a new parking lot in the vacant space next to the store. The parking lot, complete with lighting and landscaping, allows customers to park safely next to the store and enter through the new west door. The improvements were made possible by a City grant of $20,000, which Mr. St. Pierre matched with a private investment of $42,605.
The Lincoln Way West Steering Committee and its subcommittees (Land Use, Marketing and Safety) were formed in 1999 as part of Mayor Stephen J. Luecke’s Commercial Corridor Initiative; a Neighbors subcommittee was formed in 2003.
“In the last year, on Lincoln Way West alone, eight businesses were able to enhance the facades of their stores,” said Mayor Luecke. “Through the cooperation of local business leaders and the City of South Bend, over $140,000 was invested in this commercial corridor on which we stand. Helping these small businesses to revitalize the arteries of South Bend is imperative to the future success of our city.”
LH Around Chicago book due in March ’08
January 29, 2008The Lincoln Highway Around Chicago by Cynthia L. Ogorek will be published this March 17 as part of Arcadia Books’ Images of America series. The 128-page paperback book will have more than 200 illustrations from Geneva, Illinois, south and eastward to just over the Indiana line at Schererville so that the famous Ideal Section could be included. Early history is augmented by preservation efforts of today.
Price is $19.95 or pre-order from Amazon for $13.59 by clicking here
Updates to Libraries & Museums along the Lincoln
January 27, 2008
I’ve added more sites to the Lincoln Highway Libraries & Museums page; see the link to the right. There are many local and state libraries and museums along the route, such as the Utah Historical Society (click their photo to go to the web site). Since 1980, it has been located in Salt Lake City’s former Rio Grande railroad depot. (The LHA held a reception there during its 1998 conference.) The elaborate station was completed in 1910 at a cost of $750,000 and sold to the city in 1977 for $1, which says a lot about how transportation changed in the intervening 6 decades. The restored depot is 3 blocks south of South Temple St and 4-1/2 blocks west of Main St.
Restored Colo Motel Reopens in Iowa!
January 26, 2008Closed for 12 years, the Colo Motel has reopened, giving Lincoln Highway tourists a new-style, old-fashioned lodging option in central Iowa. It is part of the Reed/Niland corner complex that includes a cafe and gas station, both also restored. The cafe is operating and is a must-stop itself; the 1920s gas station is for display only but is set to house a country-style store.
The motel’s six rooms rent for an affordable $49.99 per night or $175 for five consecutive nights. Scott Berka, Colo city clerk, says that other than “waiting for some of the furniture to arrive,” the rooms are complete with cable TV, wireless internet, central air, pillow-top mattresses, and room service from the café. The Colo is on the forefront of restoring mid-century motels for 2-lane tourists, and also gives locals a lodging option for out-of-town guests.
Above: Stuart Huse, one of the owners of Flat-Top Concrete & Construction, the prime contractor for the project, finishes the woodwork. Above photos courtesy Scott Berka.
The roadside one-stop opened about 1920 at the corner of Lincoln Highway and US 65, the old Jefferson Highway, but declined in recent decades as the old road was bypassed. The restoration is a project of Colo Development Group and the City of Colo; it has cost nearly $1 million including $663,000 in grant funding (from the Iowa DOT’s and Federal Highway Administration’s Transportation Enhancement Funding) and about $270,000 in local donations.The one-stop
An article in the Nevada [Iowa] Journal reported on the opening, and quoted Berka and Sandy Wilfong, manager of Niland’s Café and now the Colo Motel. She praised the retro-stryle rooms and appointments such as wrought iron headboards and curtain rods, and quilts on the beds. Come Spring, Wilfong hopes to have a farmers market at the corner on Saturdays.
The motel is at 18 Lincoln Highway in Colo. Reservations are taken through Nilands Cafe: (641) 377-3663. To learn more about the complex, go to the Colo Iowa web page and click Reed/Niland corner at the bottom of the left-hand column.
Lincoln Highway News 