Michael Hamm wrote to tell us about his film project, The Greatest Auto Race on Earth, which recounts the 1908 NY to Paris auto race, much of which traveled the Lincoln Highway in the U.S. The 2-hour show is now available on DVD. Hamm, founder of Frame 30, which produces various film projects, served as writer, director, and producer; it took eight years of planning and two years of filming. The project won the EP Ingersoll Award from the Society of Automotive Historians, the Special Jury Award from the Houston International Film Festival, 2 Platinum Pixies from the American Pixel Academy, and 3 AMPIAs.
Amazingly, they BUILT a Thomas Flyer, German Protos, and Zust as full scale running picture cars for the film.
Van & Bev Becker of Iowa sent a reminder that it was 20 years ago today that George Preston appeared on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson to tell some of his endless stores about the Lincoln Highway.
The March 20 Cedar Rapids Gazette mentioned it in the “Times of Our Lives” column by Jim DeLong, along with the above photo by Drake Hokanson:
20 years ago: 1990
March 23: Belle Plaine resident George Preston said he was treated “just like the President of the United States” when he appeared on the “Tonight Show” with Johnny Carson.
Known for his entertaining stories of the Lincoln Highway, the 79-year-old Belle Plaine native at one time operated a gas station on the highway adorned with advertising signs from the 1920s and 1930s.
The Salt Lake Tribuneran a feature story (and the photo below) about the retirement of Jay Banta as manager of Fish Springs National Wilflife Refuge, an oasis along the Lincoln Highway in dusty central Utah. Banta, long-time LHA member and membership director, has managed the preserve for the past 19 years. He’s also become an authority on fabled rancher and auto-service provider John Thomas, who pulled motorists from quagmires a century ago.
Jay Banta, known for his long beard, strong opinions and passion for all things wild, is calling it a career this week, exactly to the day he came to the most remote national wildlife refuge in the lower 48 states as its manager. How far off the beaten track is Fish Springs? Consider that the only way to reach the refuge is on a dirt road along a path that once served as the route for the Pony Express, the first transcontinental telegraph and the Lincoln Highway. The dirt roads are so bad that Banta always purchased lifetime warranties on tires, shocks and mufflers.
After working at Fish Springs as a seasonal employee in 1981 and 1982, Banta dreamed of coming back to the 17,992-acre oasis in the desert. It was established as a refuge in 1959 to provide habitat for migrating and wintering birds. “I think some people are possessed by this place,” he said. “I was possessed.”…
Banta has built a new house in Torrey where he plans to retire. He has part-time work lined up, including working as a barista to support his coffee habit.
A family posted their home video of a road trip in Utah, crossing Fisher Pass on the Lincoln Highway while on their way to Simpson Spring. This was one of the shortcuts sanctioned by the LHA. They even stop briefly at the new monument to Carl Fisher. UPDATE: Sorry, the video has been tagged private.
With Spring weather arriving, don’t forget that the 2010 Lincoln Highway Driving Maps CDs are now available through the Lincoln Highway Trading Post.
LHA mapping committee director Paul Gilger notes that, although you can view the 2010 map files with earlier versions of DeLorme, it is best to view the new maps with the new 2010 DeLorme program, as DeLorme adjusted a significant number of new vector points. The 2010 CDs and DeLorme program are available through the LH Trading Post, and purchases in part support the LHA: http://www.lhtp.com/Store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=8&products_id=137
There are many improvements to the maps this year, including the three Chicago Feeder Routes. Paul says, “A big thank you goes to Jan Shupert-Arick and Fred Sachtleben who sent me a full-size scan of a wonderful 1921 Rand McNally Auto Trails Map of the entire Chicago area. The map has 34 auto trails mapped out, and has the LH routes clearly marked.”
Here’s a partial list of some of the map improvements and additions for 2010: New York: new Eastern Terminus sign at Times Square. New Jersey: confirmation of 49th Street from JFK East to JFK West. Pennsylvania: addition of all 70+ Pennsylvania Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor murals, exhibits and roadside giants sculptures. Washington DC Loop: possible alternate route through Bel Air now shown, Zero Milestone added in White House Ellipse. Ohio: adjustments made to 1918 alignments through Canton, Mansfield & Lima, new brick monument locations added. Indiana: adjustments of routes through Ft Wayne, Eastern Feeder Route to Chicago (from Dyer) added. Illinois: Southern Feeder Route to Chicago (from Chicago Heights), and Western Feeder Route to Chicago (from Geneva) added, Lincoln statue added at Chicago Heights. Nebraska: new LH historic marker locations added. Wyoming: Matthew Shepard memorial added at Laramie next to the LH, previously unknown 1913 alignment added east of Evanston. Utah: nine new map updates due to further research by Jess Petersen, new Fisher Pass Monument added. Nevada: alignment corrections made through Sparks and Reno. California: previously unknown 1913 alignment added near Auburn. U.S.: Locations of businesses and tourist spots featured in the PBS documentary A Ride Along the Lincoln Highway added.
You’ll wanna check out Chris Kennedy’s new CD, Postcards from Main Street, a collection of 11 odes to small towns, 2-lane roads, and a simpler, slower life. Sounding like 1970s singer songwriters such as James Taylor and maybe Gordon Lightfoot, Kennedy and his acoustic guitar sing of your favorite cross-country road on the fourth track, “Looking for the Lincoln Highway.”
Here’s an excerpt:
thieves have long since stolen, the bronze of Lincoln’s head; but an arrow and an L still point the way in white, blue, and red;
for any wistful wanderer weary of the Interstate … who needs to go, down the road….
the Lincoln’s mostly gone now, pieces of it last; but not many of us see them, ’cause we’re drivin by so fast…. so as you do your ramblin, as you hear the highway call; try to read the fading letters on the crumblin old brick walls; try to scratch beneath the surface of that monster Interstate; you know there’s memories off Route 30 but the days are gettin late, they’re bound to go, down the road….
The CD covers feature postcards from Kennedy’s hometown of Rock Springs, where he is Associate Professor of Communication at Western Wyoming Community College. You can get your CD by sending $15 to Chris Kennedy, 108 South Main St, Rock Springs, WY 82901.
Kathy Miller, Publisher/Co-Editor of The 66 News, wrote to say that Lenore Weiss passed away today after a battle with cancer. Weiss and her husband John recently published Traveling the Historic Three about the intermingling near Chicago of the Lincoln Highway with Route 66 and the Dixie Highway. Lenore also regulary sent news to this blog. Learn more about their work at www.il66authority.com/. Arrangements for a final goodbye and celebration of her life will be held on February 25, 2010, from 4 to 8 pm and on Friday, February 26, 2010, from 9 to 10:30 am at
Patterson Funeral Home
401 East Main/Highway 113
Braidwood, IL 60408
815-458-2336
Funeral Mass will be at 11 am on February 26, 2010, at
St. Rose Church
600 S. Kankakee St.
Wilmington, IL 60481
Donations in memory of Lenore may be made to one of these two:
Hospice of Kankakee Valley
482 Main Street Northwest
Bourbonnais, IL 60914
Phone: 815-936-3370
The Flat-Coated Retriever Foundation – Cancer/Health Fund
Please make check payable to: The Flat-Coated Retriever Foundation – Cancer/Health Fund
Mail check to: Cheryl Kistner/FCR Foundation Treasurer
27941 W. Flynn Creek Drive
Barrington, IL 60010
Her obituary is in the Joliet, Illinois, News-Herald.
David Schwartz writes from California with a question:
Forty years ago, I rode Route 30 on my Honda Superhawk 305 from Pittsburgh to New Jersey to visit my girlfriend. Somewhere east of the Ship Hotel, I stopped for gas and a snack at a roadside establishment that had a large yard full of pottery figurines and lawn ornaments. The owners made and painted the stuff themselves. Do you have any idea what the name of the place was and if they or their successors are still in business?
Does anyone else recall this pottery business that would have been near Bedford, Pa.?
Friend Road Dog just wrote about his recent trip from Dixon to DeKalb, Illinois. Sorry to say he reports that the The Beacon Inn restaurant in Rochelle is now a Chinese buffet and that the lighthouse was removed from its sign. Here’s a view in 2005, after it had been remodeled from the original.
The City of Dixon, Illinois will host the 2010 Lincoln Highway Association National Conference from June 22 – 26. The fun-filled event will feature bus tours of historical sites, a book and collectibles sales room, an art show, a cruise night, a session of presentations, and a visit by President Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln.
Amazingly, the Illinois Chapter worked hard to contain costs and rolled back the registration cost to the 1999 price!
The Quality Inn and the Comfort Inn are the two official main hotels for the Conference. The Loveland Community House will be the location of two banquets, the book room, the art show, and the conference speakers. It will not be within walking distance of the hotels but they will help with carpooling.
Tuesday, June 22
Board of Directors Annual Meeting
Evening Welcoming Banquet
Wednesday, June 23
Bus Tours, East and West
Thursday, June 24
Bus Tours, take opposite tour
Friday, June 25
Speakers
Evening Awards Banquet
Sunday, June 26
Post-Conference Triangle Tour: Lincoln Highway, Dixie Highway, and Route 66, Starts in Joliet
Click the map above for a full-size view of the Lincoln Highway.
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Another fun book! The Ship Hotel: A Grand View along the Lincoln Highway recalls the greatest roadside attraction along the coast-to-coast road.
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