Archive for the ‘Lincoln Highway’ Category
December 16, 2010
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
The Illinois Lincoln Highway Coalition has completed the next in a series of Interpretive Murals stretching along its 179-mile corridor. The mural will be on the Geneva Masonic Lodge building at 10 S. Second Street in downtown Geneva, Illinois.
This mural showcases the Lincoln Highway in Geneva’s downtown, with a streetscape featuring the local motorcycle policeman. The vintage image is hand-painted in shades from a tonal color palette, bringing the images to life. As the designated byway management agency overseeing the 179 mile Byway, the ILHC seeks ways to recognize the significance of the highway and ways to make the stories come alive. After receiving a National Scenic Byway Grant from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and an Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, Office of Tourism, Attraction Development (TAP) Grant, ILHC worked with Jay Allen of ShawCraft Signs to make this project come to life.
For more information on the Illinois Lincoln Highway, places to see and things to do, stories of the highway’s significance and history, or to request ILHC’s 2010 Visitor Guide, visit www.drivelincolnhighway.com
Tags:Geneva IL, highway history, historic highway, Illinois, Lincoln Highway, mural for highway
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December 13, 2010
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
Visitors can again enjoy an old-fashioned Christmas at the Cody ranch with a tour of Buffalo Bill’s home on Friday, December 17 from 5:30 pm-8 pm.
The 1886 mansion, 1887 horse barn, log cabin, and outbuildings are all decorated with lights. The mansion will have 18 lighted and decorated Christmas trees and decorations in the interior. There will be a large lighted and decorated Christmas tree in the barn where visitors can make their own ornament to hang on the tree. Santa Claus will be there for the children, Buffalo Bill will talk to visitors, and music will flow from the old piano in the mansion. Outside there will be roasted chestnuts, hot apple cider, and cookies. Draft horse-drawn hay rack rides will also be available, weather permitting. Admission is $5 per person at the door, children 12 and younger are free. Park entry permit required.
Buffalo Bill Ranch SHP
2921 Scouts Rest Ranch Rd
North Platte NE 69101
(308) 535-8035
Tags:Buffalo Bill, Christmas at old mansion, Cody mansion, highway history, historic highway, Lincoln Highway, Nebraska, North Platte NE, Scouts Rest Ranch
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December 9, 2010
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
UPDATE: The local newspaper now reports the diner was moved to Pennsylvania.
A vintage diner along the Lincoln Highway in New Brunswick, NJ, has been demolished, reportedly on December 7, 2010. The 1941 Fodero-brand Mack’s Diner stopped serving food in 1968. It became a grocery, then was bought in 1976 for $7,250 and operated as All Ears’ Records until criminal activity closed that business in 2005.
A 2008 article in MyCentralJersey.com noted that owner Tareq Algharaybeh was hoping to find a buyer for the dilapidated diner:
Flanked by a record shop and a mini market on French between Seaman and Suydam streets, the Mack’s turquoise shell glimpsed daylight recently. Last month, the advertising posters that have for years obscured nearly its entire facade were taken down.
For about a week, the words “Mack” and “Diner,” on either side of the brick and aluminum portico tethered to the patina of decades, were again visible.
Inside, what appears to be the diner’s original tile and wood counter teeters against the test of time. But other than the ventilation hoods, stripped of their exhaust fans, little trace remains of the diner’s days and nights as a restaurant.
But Algharaybeh, who bought the diner two years ago, says it is otherwise sturdy…. Algharaybeh, who also owns and runs Sam’s Pizza and Chicken two blocks south on French Street, has little use for this period piece. With three years left on the lease for the pizza establishment, Algharaybeh wants to move that business, which he has operated for 20 years at French and Alexander streets, onto the Mack’s lot.
Tags:building demolition, Diner, highway history, historic highway, Jersey diner, Lincoln Highway, New Brunswick NJ, New Jersey, restaurant, roadside
Posted in food, highways, history, Lincoln Highway, roadside | 3 Comments »
December 1, 2010
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
The Gettysburg Times reports that filming has begun on the second of three movies in John Putch’s Route 30 trilogy.
The first day of filming for a 19-day shoot of “Route 30, Too!” occurred in the Caledonia area, along the famous Lincoln Highway, according to director John Putch.
Other local scenes for the film are scheduled in Chambersburg, Mister Ed’s Elephant Museum in Orrtanna, the historic Round Barn, and the Totem Pole Playhouse.
“It’s three stories intertwined into one,” Putch said regarding the new film, unlike the original movie “Route 30,” which featured “three different stories” in 2008.
Putch, the son of famous actress Jean Stapleton and William H. Putch, an original member of the Totem Pole Playhouse, is an actor, producer, writer and director. He has appeared in an episode of “Seinfeld,” “Jaws 3” and various other roles as well as directed episodes of “Scrubs,” “Grounded for Life,” and “Ugly Betty.” His own film credits include “Mojave Phone Booth” (2006), “Bachelorman” (2003), “Pursuit of Happiness” (2001) and “Valerie Flake” (1999).
Since its release, Putch has travelled the country showing “Route 30” at various film festivals and to date the film has won 14 awards.
Tags:filming in PA, Gettysburg, highway history, historic highway, Lincoln Highway, Pennsylvania, Road trip
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, Road trip, video | 1 Comment »
November 19, 2010
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
The Indiana Lincoln Highway Association will hold a Holiday Gathering and House Tour at the Kimmell House Bed & Breakfast on December 4, 2010, starting at 2pm. The event is open to the public (pre-register by Wednesday, December 1) for only $16, which includes entrée, beverage, tax, and gratuity.
The historic property offers casual dining in addition to overnight accommodations. It is one of several bed and breakfasts along the Lincoln Highway in Indiana. Owners Dean and Deb Stoops will provide a personal tour of the property to attendees. For more information, call (574) 210-6278or visit www.kimmellhouseinn.com/.
Kimmell House Inn Bed & Breakfast
1397 N US Highway 33
Kimmell, IN 46760
Tags:highway history, historic highway, historic lodging, Illinois, Lincoln Highway, lodging
Posted in food, highways, history, Lincoln Highway, lodging, Road trip, travel | 1 Comment »
November 18, 2010
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
For years, reports have floated that the Hi-Way Drive-In Theater in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, was to close and be replaced by development. Most recently, Target has been the retailer of choice, but the drive-in along the Lincoln Highway has made clear it’s stance: posted on the marquee is “No Target did not buy us.” Top photo by Kristin Poerschke, bottom by me (Brian) on a recent visit.
Tags:drive-in theater, highway history, historic highway, Lincoln Highway, PA, roadside, US 30
Posted in film/video, highways, history, Lincoln Highway, Road trip, roadside, signs, travel | 1 Comment »
November 15, 2010
A story in the East Liverpool, Ohio, Review relates a plan to pay for making U.S. Route 30 in eastern Ohio by making it a toll road.
Route 30 is a four-lane road from Indiana to East Canton, where it remains a two-lane road the final 36 miles in Ohio through Columbiana County, except for a portion which runs with state Route 11 from West Point to East Liverpool. For more than 50 years, various people have tried to get the final segment of Route 30 in Ohio completed, to no avail.
The latest attempt involves dividing the project into three sections and doing them in phases as the money comes available. The sections are East Canton to Minerva, Minerva to Hanoverton, and Hanoverton to state Route 11 at West Point. The committee is pursuing the Hanoverton-West Point section first, a distance of 12 miles, which would cost an estimated $118 million to design, acquire the property rights of way and construct, according to Deputy County Engineer Robert Durbin….
Durbin said they believe charging a toll of $1.25 for cars and $2.50 for trucks to travel the 12-mile segment would generate enough revenue to pay for the new road in 40 years based on the increased vehicle traffic they expect to result.
Tags:East Liverpool OH, highway history, historic highway, Lincoln Highway, Ohio, toll road, US 30
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November 5, 2010
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
Van & Bev Becker send good news from Iowa that the Lincoln Cafe in Belle Plaine is about to reopen. The landmark eatery closed a year and a ahlf ago after the owner was murdered as part of a family dispute. Click the image below to watch a video report from KGAN-TV, Cedar Rapids. Check out my previous entries such as this and this.
Above, the remodeled cafe, and below, before its closure.
Tags:cafe reopening, highway history, historic highway, Iowa, Lincoln Highway, road food, travel
Posted in food, highways, history, Lincoln Highway, Road trip, travel | 1 Comment »
November 1, 2010
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
A fire has left the future uncertain for a vintage motel on the Lincoln Highway south of Plainfield, Illinois. About two thirds of the Lakeview Motel, 15824 S. Joliet Rd. at Renwick Rd., was damaged at a loss estimated at $350,000. The Plainfield Patch reports police believe the blaze started in an unoccupied room and quickly spread into the roof of the 19-room motel. The longtime maintenance manager thinks an unhappy tenant may have been the source, and said, “Out of 19 rooms, 10 of them are pretty much gone.” A photo the paper ran from before the fire (by Kevin Whaley) shows the c. 1950 motel.
The Herald-News reports that even before the fire, the village’s building inspector says multiple code violations made the buildings a dangerous place to live. He has since condemned the motel, house, and mobile homes but the owner would rather rebuild than demolish. The inspector said he’ll give the owner 30 days to figure out how to proceed: “I think people deserve better…. And it’s a prime corner. There’s a lot of potential on this corner.”
Like most mid-century motels, tourists are no longer the primary customers. One online reviewer cried “WHAT A DUMP!!!!!!: This place does not belong in Plainfield. A drug den, where there is nothing but losers & transient people there. Not even safe to park vehicle there. Should be torn down…” but a response said, “It’s not the greatest place on earth, but some people are not as fortunate as others [and] have to stay wherever they can afford and at least they have a roof over their head and not sleeping on the corner.”
Tags:highway history, historic highway, Illinois, Lincoln Highway, motel, Plainfield IL, vintage motel fire
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, lodging, travel | Leave a Comment »
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