With Wintry weather hitting much of the country, here’s a newsreel from more than a half-century ago reminding us of the dangers atop infamous Donner Pass. The Lincoln Highway crossed the Sierra Nevadas here starting in 1913. The 222 passengers aboard the “City of San Francisco” were stranded for days in up to 20 feet of snow. This newsreel, with dramatic music and narration, details their rescue. The pass is of course named for a party of overland emigrants who were trapped by early snows.
Archive for the ‘transportation’ Category
Newsreel: 1952 Donner Pass blizzard strands train
December 5, 2008Lincoln Highway Companion inches to next stage
November 27, 2008For weeks I’ve been proofreading a design draft of my next book, Lincoln Highway Companion. Though I’d like to think I sent off a masterpiece, corrections from my editor and volunteer readers proves that there’s always room for improvement.
The 15 or so readers have caught misspelled words or street names that have changed or found listings for places that have closed. The maps were only half done, being that they were such a massive part of the project, so they are receiving tons of additional info—street names, landmarks, geographic feature notations, and letters keyed to Must-See attractions.
Hardest to take are the businesses that were included that have since closed. I’m not only sad for the effort that I (or guest writers) put into those stories, but the road is one bit less interesting each time a place closes or is demolished.
I’m proofing so many different aspects, and comparing to so many original sources and maps, that it’s eating away weeks of free time. I’ll be taking a few days now at Thanksgiving to try to finish it.
Indiana Lincoln Highway book cover ready
November 24, 2008The cover to The Lincoln Highway across Indiana has been released, showing a classic view of one of the Lincoln Highway’s cast-iron state line markers—this one at the Illinois border. The book was written by Jan Shupert Arick for the state’s LHA chapter. It will retail for $21.99 when published in Spring 2009.
Ibapah Trading Post a Lincoln Highway must-stop
November 21, 2008Ibapah is along the original Lincoln Highway that crosses the Utah desert between Salt Lake City and Ely, Nevada. You’ll need most of a full day to drive the dirt roads between those points but you’ll also see Orr’s Ranch, Fish Springs, Gold Hill, and other unpopulated outposts.
The Ibapah Trading Post is bound to become one of the Lincoln Highway’s must-stops, much like Oatman, Arizona, draws travelers to a desolate part of Route 66. I’ve been corresponding with Carolee Johnson at the post in anticipation of my next book, Lincoln Highway Companion. The big news is they now have a cabin for rent along with the old country store.
Carolee wrote:
We are trying to make this stop on the Lincoln Highway a little more inviting as funds become available, and people are welcome to stop through in June to watch real Western Cowboys rope and brand the livestock, and check out a real Old West ghost town. The buildings in the town are all still there as it was at one time the main stop for the overland stage between Chicago and Sacramento. There are stories of bandits coming to rob gold, mined out of the Queen of Sheba Gold Mines, out of the safe in the store where it waited for the overland stage. Efforts were foiled when the store owner was tipped off and hid the bars of gold in the ashes of the old pot belly stove. We still have the safe that was rolled out and blown up with dynamite by the bandits. Needless to say they didnt get the gold. This stop on the Lincoln Highway is teaming with US history and deserves to be on the map. I very much appreciate what you are doing for the history of the Lincoln Highway, and hope this helps a little.
Fisher Lincoln Highway monument in Utah update
November 7, 2008Rollin Southwell sent an update on the monument he’s spearheading for Carl Fisher, father of the Lincoln Highway. It is planned for the top of Johnson/Fisher Pass on UT 199 between Clover and Terra, Utah. Architect Steve Ehninger recently announced construction and the dedication dates.
After a decade of planning, they are working on permits and approvals with hopes to be finalized by January 14, 2009. Construction could start April 9 and be completed by July 8. This includes a rock surround, asphalt paving, signage, and a beacon. Dedication is planned for August 12, 2009.
Read more at a site about the Fisher Pass monument or Rollin’s blog for more info on Fisher.
Phil, running Lincoln Highway, into Pennsylvania
November 5, 2008
As reported on October 10, Phil Rosenstein is running across the U.S. to raise awareness and funds for the charity of The Mario Lemieux Foundation, which does great work in cancer research and supporting families affected by cancer. From California west, Phil followed Route 66 but since Illinois he’s been on the Lincoln Highway. After 2,950 miles, he’s just reached Pittsburgh, with about 350 more to go. Below are his notes from the past few days, as he crossed Ohio and West Virginia:
I arrived in Pittsburgh this afternoon. Actually, just outside it in Bridgeville at the Mario Lemieux Foundation offices. With plenty of time to spare for Thursday’s Pittsburgh Penguins game. The next two days look to be busy for “rest days”. Interviews, tour of the Children’s Home of Pittsburgh, hockey game, etc… And, of course, the usual stuff: laundry, shower, charge phone, eating.
Oct 30 = I got stopped by the police today less than 10 minutes into my running. That’s a new record. My first words to the officer were “Well, THAT didn’t take long today!” The Ohio fields were actually kind of pretty as I finally got to see them in the sunlight. The temperature got up to 55 degrees but it never felt that warm because of the strong, cold wind blowing into my face. I think the wind and the recent heavy mileage lead to me feeling slow and tired for the afternoon’s journey from Bucyrus to Galion. The short 12 miles actually took forever to run. I laid down on the side of the highway for a bit to rest and eat peanut butter. Then, I put on the MP3 player. I’ve very rarely put it on during the day, but I think it helped pick up my mood and then my pace as I made decent time into Mansfield. A total of 43 miles today to get to the Rest Area. But I slept outside this time, since the caretaker was there later than I wanted to wait to claim the unisex bathroom as mine for the night. At least it was a beautiful night outside.
Oct 31 = There were lots of hills today. Nothing too steep, just long and steady. I was once again feeling tired and struggled for a while. The MP3 player picked me up once again. After a cool morning, it warmed up nicely. By noon, I was running in just a t-shirt and shorts for the first time since central Illinois. I ran 28 miles into Wooster where I ate dinner and then a few more miles to East Union where I slept behind a church for the night.
Nov 1 = I only ran a quick 30 miles today into Canton, Ohio. I met Nancy from the Mario Lemieux Foundation there and she took me to her parent’s house in Wadsworth for the night. Before that, we loaded the stroller into her SUV and I had the chance to run 3 miles without it. It felt so nice. I can’t wait to run in a race again without having to push this thing around anymore. It was nice to wash my clothes with actual detergent and a washing machine for the first time since Chicago. The clothes smell much nicer than just rinsing them out in a sink and letting them air dry.
Nov 2 = Downtown Canton and the neighboring community were quite depressed. It was a good thing it was so cold out and early on a Sunday morning – I think the junkies were too cold or too tired to bother with me. 5 miles later and then the weather and the locations were wonderful. I am real glad I decided to take 172 East here. The hills were tough, but the beauty of the region was something else. Plus, almost no traffic to deal with. It was just a pleasure to run today and it made me realize once again just how lucky I am to be able to spend my day running through the countryside. I stopped for a bit and finished off the pancakes leftover from breakfast and the pasta we cooked the night before. I took this picture of a horse I was talking with for a bit near Guilford Lake. He didn’t say much but we enjoyed each others’ company. 35 miles today to get to Lisbon. I ate a huge dinner at an all-you-can-eat pizza buffet before sleeping at the county fairgrounds. I slept up on the main stage.
Nov 3 = Today I found a bunch of money on the side of the road. Even for a state beginning with a vowel. I had been having a hard time distinguishing the real coins from all the fake ones I had been seeing in Ohio. The fake ones are the same size, shape and color of real coins but are completely smooth. I have no idea what they are used for or where they come from, but they have been all over the place in Ohio. Beautiful weather once again today. I took a picture of a couple of signs on the bridge from Ohio into West Virginia. The signs confused me and I hope you as well. I think they only make sense to bureaucrats. Anyway, I then did the best crossing-the-state-line dance I can do while on a bridge with virtually no shoulder. A few miles later I stopped at a ’50s diner for a hot fudge sundae. They had seen me earlier and asked what I was doing. They liked it so much the sundae was free. Nice! Up and down one more hill and I had the chance to do the proper crossing-the-state-line dance as I crossed into Pennsylvania! I slept in a nice couple’s yard for the night looking up at the stars.
Nov 4 = Just a quick 20 miles today and I took it real easy. Most of the morning I had no shoulder, so I was on the grass, but aside from that it wasn’t too tough and I certainly wasn’t going fast despite being a downhill day. Here’s an oddity – I found enough money on the side of the road today to get a free milkshake. In a state that starts with a consonant! Now, to get ready for a couple days of activities and fun before finishing this crazy adventure off.
PBS Lincoln Highway DVD available for pre-order
October 27, 2008
It won’t ship till after the show airs nationally, but A Ride Along the Lincoln Highway DVD is available for pre-order from PBS.
The DVD includes 5 extra segments as listed on the back cover below plus we’ll have more information about them later this week. Above is a screen shot from the end of the program; note the cover has changed slightly since the program was finished, as seen in these images provided by producer Rick Sebak.
Reviews starting for PBS Lincoln Highway show
October 22, 2008
Reviews are starting for Rick Sebak’s A Ride Along the Lincoln Highway, airing next week. I’ll tell you more about what’s in it in the coming days, but here’s a review from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette‘s Rob Owen that went out on the Scripps wire. An excerpt: “Fans of Sebak’s love letters to Americana won’t be disappointed as he visits both ends of the highway – at Times Square in New York City and next to a bus stop in San Francisco – and many locations in between…. Unlike past Sebak productions, ‘Lincoln Highway’ offers more of a historical focus with less emphasis on oddball Americans (or maybe Lincoln Highway enthusiasts just aren’t prone to saying wacky things).”
North Platte video features Buffalo Bill's ranch
October 17, 2008This video about things to see in North Platte, Nebraska, includes the world’s largest railroad classification yard, its famous WWII Canteen, construction of the 9-story-tall Golden Spike tower, and Buffalo Bill’s Scout’s Rest Ranch, long a Lincoln Highway attraction.
Great Race US-only event to launch Saturday
October 16, 2008Following up on my posts of February 17, 2008 and July 8, 2008, the delayed commemorative re-run of the 1908 New York-to-Paris “Great Race” will come to life later this week. Since the race was delayed in May (now set to start April 25, 2009), Luke Rizzuto and other fans have organized a US-only event called The Longest Auto Race Centennial. Riding with Luke will be Jeff Mahl, great-grandson of George Schuster, winner of the grueling 1908 race. Here is a great video of Luke Rizzuto and his 1918 Chevy:
The 3,700-mile cross-country event will start in New York City on October 18, 2008, and finish in San Francisco on November 8. Much of the 21-day route will follow the Lincoln Highway from coast to coast — click HERE for a full itinerary. All are invited to log onto their website and join the tour for even one day with no fees or rigid regulations.
Luke’s wife Joan-E Rizzuto wrote me, “The excitement and momentum are building significantly, considering we only took over the organizational part of it six weeks ago. Who knew? It must be that this race is NOT about money or glory, but was born out of people’s desire to authentically and respectfully honor those early-day automotive pioneers. Those participants had no roads, AAA service, gas stations or auto parts stores to make their journey less challenging. If you read the accounts of what George Schuster encountered, it is truly humbling.”
Lincoln Highway News 