Archive for the ‘transportation’ Category
November 23, 2009
The G.C Murphy Company was once one of the titans of the 5 & 10 trade. Not as well known as Woolworth’s or a competitor that followed, K-Mart, it nonetheless boasted more than 500 stores in the eastern U.S. One of them was along the Lincoln Highway / Penn Ave. in Wilkinsburg, Pa., and though it closed long ago, the letters remained on the facade until last week. The store was one of two in the relatively small town; this was likely one of the last G.C. Murphy Co. signs to remain intact in its original location.
Jason Togyer, who published a book about the company just this year, also runs a web site Tube City Almanac about local news and included this update recently (and loaned use of the above photo):
Targeted by corporate raiders in 1985, the G.C. Murphy Co. was taken over by Connecticut-based Ames Department Stores, which closed more than 100 of its variety stores … but the Wilkinsburg store — the 39th in the chain — was spared.
In 1989, the Wilkinsburg store and 130 others were sold by Ames to McCrory Stores Corp., which went into permanent decline in the 1990s and finally closed all of its remaining locations in 2002….
The Wilkinsburg store is now part of Brooklyn, N.Y., based Rainbow Shops Inc., a low-priced clothing chain for women and children.
Two sign companies donated the battered letters to the G.C. Murphy Co. Foundation, which hopes to restore and preverve them.
Tags:5 & 10 history, G C Murphy, Lincoln Highway, Murphy's store letters, store closing, western PA, Wilkinsburg PA
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, signs, transportation | Leave a Comment »
November 17, 2009
The Mountain View Inn east of Greensburg, Pa., a long-time landmark along the Lincoln Highway, was sold earlier this year. Reports were that the new owners wanted to build a shopping plaza, and indeed, people have been writing about the inn’s destruction. Here’s a note from blog reader John: “the original section of the hotel has been razed. The only sections saved from destruction are those built this decade.”
The Pittsburgh Tribune Review reported last month that asbestos concerns had halted the dismantling following an auction of its all its contents. A state Department of Environmental Protection inspector “ordered the building secured until it could be examined to determine if asbestos is present. As a result, Altman dozens of successful bidders had to wait to collect their purchases.
Brothers James and Daniel Snyder …
purchased the property for more than $2.5 million after the inn, restaurant and bar closed in January. The real estate developers plan to raze part of the structure to make way for commercial development. The sale included the inn, 14 acres and a house on the property…. The hotel’s Mountain Laurel wing overlooking Route 30 will be retained as a 53-room lodge run by about 10 employees, according to plans presented this week to township officials.
Tags:development, Greensburg PA, historic inn demolished, hotel history, Lincoln Highway, Mountain View Inn, PA history, Road trip, roadside
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, lodging, roadside, transportation | 2 Comments »
November 6, 2009
Scott Berka (city clerk of Colo, Iowa) wrote to say Niland’s Cafe at the Reed/Niland Corner in Colo, Iowa, will host a man walking the Jefferson Highway from Winnipeg to New Orleans. The Colo Development Group invites all to attend on Monday, November 9, at 9:00 a.m. The one-stop gathering of classic roadside businesses is at the intersection of the E–W Lincoln Highway and the N–S Jefferson.
ABOVE: Standing on the Lincoln Highway and “above” the Jefferson Highway at Reed/Niland Corner. BELOW, Berka at the cafe counter.
The Winnipeg Free Press reports that Mike Conlin from New Orleans and Gary Augustine from Prince George, B.C., have already departed Winnipeg, the northern terminus of the Jefferson Highway.
“People are right into this stuff and, with the baby boomers all ready to retire, and into that age where you’re more into history, I’ve got a feeling that that highway is going to come back,” said Conlin.
The Jefferson Highway, established in 1919, was the first north-south transcontinental road to span the North American continent, named for the third U.S. president of the United States. It runs through Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas, ending in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Tags:Colo Iowa, cool cafe, Iowa, Jefferson Highway, Lincoln Highway, New Orleans, walking the continent, Winnipeg
Posted in food, highways, history, Lincoln Highway, Road trip, transportation, travel | Leave a Comment »
November 4, 2009
I reported on September 2 about David McLane crossing the U.S. to document life in small towns along four major highways in the U.S. As he says on ohmynews.com, “It is NOT a survey but an attempt to come a fuller understanding of the land and the people which comprise significant parts of America but are typically un-represented by main-stream media. This is the third section and reports on traveling from San Francisco to New York City on the Lincoln Highway.”
ABOVE: Sueko and Dave, 49th Street & Seventh Avenue, New York City.
The final installment finds Dave and Sueko trying to make their way through New Jersey to New York City. Their transmission has other thoughts, but a friendly repair shop owners gets them on their way after a few days’ delay. Read all about it and see Dave’s beautiful photos HERE.
Tags:cross-country trip, driving America, Lincoln Highway, NYC, Road trip, Times Square trailer, trailer travel
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, lodging, Road trip, signs, transportation, travel | Leave a Comment »
November 2, 2009
A ceremony was recently held in Rochelle, Illinois, to celebrate a new Lincoln Highway gazebo at the Rochelle Railroad Park off of Ninth Street. The gazebo is one of 16 along the Lincoln Highway in Illinois between Fulton in the west and Park Forest in the east. Stories appeared here and here.
Bonnie Heimbach, ILHC Project Director and Executive Director of the Northern Illinois Tourism Development Office, says they are an effort to interpret the stories of the highway: “These 16 gazebos represent our organization’s first ‘bricks and mortar’ project and we’re very proud of the outcome. This project will give travelers an opportunity to learn more about the Lincoln Highway as well as the community they are visiting.”
For more information on the Lincoln Highway through Illinois, including places to see, things to do, and stories of the highway’s significance and history, visit www.drivelincolnhighway.com/.
Tags:gazebo for road, highway history, history project, Interpretive Gazebo, Lincoln Highway
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, roadside, signs, transportation | 2 Comments »
October 28, 2009
The Pilot News of Marshall County, Indiana, reports that Plymouth, a town along the Lincoln Highway in central Indiana, has opened a new transportation museum that includes the famed coast-to-coast road:
A ribbon-cutting ceremony Sunday marked the culmination of the efforts of many individuals, businesses, and organizations that contributed to the expansion of the Marshall County Historical Society and Museum. Welcoming the guests for the occasion was the president of the Historical Society, Dr. Ronald Liechty. Dr. Liechty explained that the process started full steam upon receiving an INDOT (Indiana Department of Transportation) grant in 2005 to open a transportation museum….
Local resident Kurt Garner was among those in the audience with deep affection for the completed project. Garner was one of several who were instrumental in formulating the original concept of the Transportation Museum highlighting the crossroads of the Dixie Highway: 1915, Yellowstone Trail: 1912-1930, Grand Army of the Republic (U.S. 6): 1931-present, Lincoln Highway: 1913-1950s, and Michigan Road: 1826-1900.
Garner said, “It is a great asset to the county. The museum will be a huge draw across the state for those interested in discovering historic routes.”
The museum is located in the Lauer Building at 123 North Michigan St., Plymouth, (574) 936-2306 or visit www.mchistoricalsociety.org/. The above map of the town is from the LHA’s DeLorme road atlas package; click here to purchase your own — the 2007 version is on sale for $12.50, nearly 70% off while the 2010 edition is prepared.
Tags:highway history, Lincoln Highway, old highways, Plymouth IN, transportation museum, travel, vacation on 2-lanes
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, museum, transportation, travel | 2 Comments »
October 26, 2009
The Columbus Telegram reported that Nebraska has a new historical marker honoring the Lincoln Highway. The marker is near the Prairie Creek Bridge at 115th Street and 355th Avenue NW of Duncan. The 1.2-mile Gardiner Station section of the Lincoln Highway and the pony-truss bridge spanning Prairie Creek were used from 1913 to 1928, before the LH was rerouted south of the Union Pacific tracks.
The story begins with Bob and Karen Edmison, who in 2005 began the process of getting the Gardiner Station section of the Lincoln Highway listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Bob is a life-long resident of Platte County near Prairie Creek west of Duncan. He knew that the section of 115th Street, on the south side of his property along with the railroad station known as Gardiner Station, was part of the Lincoln Highway.
“Late in 2005 I contacted the Nebraska State Historical Society to ask how to get a bridge and roadway nominated for the National Historic Register,” Karen Edmison said. “I worked with the National Register Coordinator Stacy Stupka-Burda and the Nebraska State Historic Preservation Office and learned the basics of how to prepare a National Register of Historic Places nomination.”
Edmison said she submitted a rough draft of the nomination to the Nebraska State Historical Society in the spring of 2006. She said Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer L. Robert Puschendorf then took over the work using her rough draft nomination….
Puschendorf spent nearly a year completing research for the final nomination which included extensive research of Columbus Telegram archives and then submitted the nomination to the Nebraska State Historic Preservation board…. Approval from the National Park Service came in summer 2007….
Edmison said The Lincoln Highway Association, Nebraska Chapter funded the official plaque at a cost of about $2,600. She and her husband Bob provided the money for the construction of the base of the historical marker and the concrete work around it.
“Bob and Lenore Stubblefield of Shelton are very active in the Lincoln Highway Association, Nebraska Chapter,” Karen Edmison said. “They assisted with getting funding for the plaque part of the marker. The Nebraska State Historical Society and John Lindahl of the Nebraska Historical Marker Program worked with the foundry to get the marker cast.”
Learn more about the Lincoln Highway at www.lincolnhighwayassoc.org/.
Tags:Duncan NE, historical marker, Linncoln Highway, Nebraska history, Pony Truss Bridge
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, signs, transportation | 1 Comment »
October 20, 2009
One of the Lincoln Highway’s most impressive bridges turns 125 years old today. New Jersey On-Line reports that the Calhoun Street Bridgethat connects Trenton, N.J., a-with Morrisville, Pa., “has not only dodged the wrecking ball but is scheduled for a major restoration next year.” The two-lane 1,274-foot-long span is the only wrought-iron bridge over the Delaware River. It is also known for having a cast-iron marker denoting the Lincoln Highway; similar ones stood at each state border.
The bridge was built on the original piers and abutments that were used for the first wooden span in the nontidal area of the Delaware that opened at the site in 1861. That bridge was destroyed on June 25, 1882, in one of the greatest fires the area has ever witnessed, according to historical accounts.
The privately owned Trenton City Bridge Co. announced it would replace the bridge with a wrought iron structure to be built by the Phoenix Bridge Co. of Phoenixville, Pa, the firm that also did the internal support structure for the Washington Monument in the nation’s capitol….
And after 125 years of use, engineers have determined that judging by fatigue factors; the bridge has at least another 30 years of usefulness carrying its present vehicle weight limits of 3 tons…. [An engineer] said additional factors involved in extending the usefulness of the bridge will be the restoration of the bridge’s trusses and the installation of a new flooring system consisting of high-strength galvanized steel.
Tags:125th birthday, Lincoln Highway, Morrisville PA, old bridge, Trenton NJ
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October 19, 2009
Sometimes a story seems important enough to veer off the Lincoln Highway and onto other roads. A story in GTR Newspapers (source of the image below) about a Tex-Mex restaurant on Route 66 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and the restoration of its neon sign should serve as inspiration to any roadside business owner wondering if it’s worth investing time and money into preservation.
El Rancho Grande opened at its current spot on 11th Street in 1953 and the neon sign followed soon after. While bypasses drained traffic and other businesses withered, “El Rancho Grande held on to its customer base, stayed open and is today the oldest operating restaurant along the [city’s] old Route 66 corridor.” The sign however had faded and stopped working; new owners “felt the restoration of the sign would be the icing on the cake and it would once again reach out to passing motorists that a Tulsa tradition is alive and well.”
But showing how regulations can be out of step with public opinion:
it was determined the sign would need to remain attached to the building during restoration. Taking it down would trigger city sign permit requirements that could render the old sign totally out of compliance for further use. Therefore the sign was restored in place.
Here’s hoping citry planners will be the next to realize the vcalue in preserving and restoring vintage signs and businesses.
Tags:Lincoln Highway, Mexican food, neon sign restoration, restoring neon sign, Route 66, Tex-Mex restaurant sign, Tulsa OK
Posted in food, highways, history, signs, transportation | Leave a Comment »
October 8, 2009
The Chambersburg Public Opinion reports that the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor will hold an open house in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, to present ideas and discussions for marketing and preserving the Lincoln Highway. The open house will be from 3:30 – 4:30 p.m. in the Disabled American Veterans building, 2705 Lincoln Way West.
Representatives will discuss projects such as Franklin County’s Roadside Giant (an old fruit truck at Shatzer’s Orchard on Lincoln Way West, seen above), restoration of a 1930s diner, the MVPA 2009 Transcontinental Motor Convoy, and information about the Lincoln Highway beyond Franklin County. For information, call (724) 238-9030.
Tags:Chambersburg PA, heritage corridor, highway history, Lincoln Highway, PA
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, Road trip, signs, transportation | 2 Comments »
The G.C Murphy Company was once one of the titans of the 5 & 10 trade. Not as well known as Woolworth’s or a competitor that followed, K-Mart, it nonetheless boasted more than 500 stores in the eastern U.S. One of them was along the Lincoln Highway / Penn Ave. in Wilkinsburg, Pa., and though it closed long ago, the letters remained on the facade until last week. The store was one of two in the relatively small town; this was likely one of the last G.C. Murphy Co. signs to remain intact in its original location.
Lincoln Highway News 