Posts Tagged ‘Lincoln Highway’
June 10, 2009
A DVD written and produced with the Indiana State curriculum for 3th and 4th grades features the Lincoln Highway. “The Lincoln Highway Story” was produced by Ed Chamberlin and narrated by Bruce Chamberlin with guest appearances by Dr. Patrick Furlong, Professor Emeritus, Indiana University, South Bend, IN and Jan Shupert-Arick, author and past president of the Lincoln Highway Association.
The DVD chronicles the history of the Lincoln Highway. Chapters include: background about the Highway, Carl Fisher’s and Henry Joy’s influence in the development of the Highway, the Lincoln Highway Association and the part it played in promoting the Highway, route determination, the Ideal Section in Indiana, the success of the Highway and the rebirth of the Lincoln Highway Association. This DVD was produced by Chamberlin Video Productions, Mishawaka, IN.
Cost is $10 plus $2.95 for shipping and handling from the Hannah Lindahl Children’s Museum, 1402 S. Main St., Mishawaka, IN 46544, (574) 254-4540, http://www.hlcm.org/.
Tags:curriculum, DVD, historic highway, history lesson, Lincoln Highway
Posted in film/video, highways, history, Lincoln Highway, transportation, travel | Leave a Comment »
June 9, 2009
The Johstown Democrat ran a story about the recreation of the 1919 U.S. Army Transcontinental Motor Convoy being run by the Military Vehicles Preservation Association. The original trip covered 3,250 miles and took 62 days to complete. The 90th anniversary convoy departs Washington D.C., on Saturday, June 13, and will arrive in San Francisco 26 days later on July 8. Here are some of planned stops on Sunday, June 14:
Drive through McConnellsburg 8:30 am.
Old Bedford Village about 11 am – 2 pm.
Parade through Everett, Bedford, and Schellsburg.
Onto Somerset County and Flight 93 National Memorial.
Stop in Stoystown about 4:30; Main Street will be closed and a brief ceremony is planned at the Hite House.
Arrive at Westmoreland Mall in Greensburg about 6 pm, where there will be a display depicting the historical significance of the 1919 convoy.
NOTE: times are subject to change — and like the original convoy, I think that celebrations and traffic will constantly put them behind schedule.
Tags:1919, 90th anniversary, antique vehicles, Bedford PA, Convoy, Lincoln Highway, Military Vehicles Preservation Association, U.S. Army Transcontinental Motor Convoy
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, Road trip, transportation, travel | 2 Comments »
June 8, 2009
The centennial recreation of Alice Ramsey’s pioneering trip across the U.S. has already garnered coverage in the LA Times, NY Times, and PR Web. In 1909, Ramsey became the first woman to drive across the U.S., accompanied by three female companions and publicity people from her carmaker, Maxwell. Much of the trip followed what would become the Lincoln Highway four years later.
Emily Anderson (right) is recreating the cross-country trip in a 1909 Maxwell over the same route. Emily and her group leave New York City on Tuesday, June 9, for a five week journey to San Francisco. They launch from 1930 Broadway, near Lincoln Center, at 9 am. For those who wish to visit, they will bring the car over the Queensboro Bridge around 6:30 am and be on Broadway by 7:30. They will stop in Tarrytown, New York, for a quick photo op at the old Maxwell Briscoe Motor Co. plant where Maxwells were built for many years.
Emily will be joined by friend and navigator Christie Catanie of Colorado. Also traveling in separate vehicles will be her dad Richard Anderson, who built the Maxwell from pieces, and his wife Margaret. Also along will be chief mechanic Tim Simonswa and his wife Barb.
You can track the journey at www.aliceramsey.org and click on the map marked “Follow Along.” They hope to visit the LHA conference in South Bend, Indiana, on June 16.
Tags:1909, Alice Ramsey, cross-country trip, Lincoln Highway, Maxwell auto, women pioneers
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, Road trip, transportation, travel | Leave a Comment »
June 5, 2009
My Lincoln Highway Companion book hit Amazon and bookstore shelves a couple weeks ago. It’s literally a companion to my Greetings … book but also, I hope, a companion to anyone thinking of traveling the road. Reaction has been overwhelmingly kind, like this from LHA president Bob Dieterich:
This book is fantastic! The color maps are clear and easy to read. The photos are excellent. And the contents are superb. The places described in this book are unique and fascinating.
A couple tiny errors have shown up, one being the location of Stosh’s Barber Shop – the description correctly places it in Batavia, Illinois. So why in the photo caption did I write Rochelle?! Don’t know but if we produce a revised or updated edition, I’m ready.
Route 66 News also gave LHC a positive review — read it HERE. Ron Warnick kindly writes that it “truly shines with descriptions of choice motels and restaurants by Butko and a slew of contributors.”
He notes that some locales just don’t have people able to review motels or restaurants, most glaringly in Reno and Sparks, Nevada. This was surprising to me too but shows how the Lincoln Highway is still in the early stages of providing for modern tourists. Route 66 handles this with a volunteer program, Adopt a Hundred, that monitors places for inclusion in the Route 66 Dining and Lodging Guide.
For those considering buying it, Lincoln HIghway Companion does include both state maps plus regional maps that cover every mile of the road at 1″ to every seven miles. There are also selected city maps at 1″ = 1 mile.
Tags:book review, Lincoln Highway, my new book, road guide, Road trip, Route 66 News, travel, vacation planning
Posted in food, highways, history, Lincoln Highway, lodging, Road trip, roadside, travel | 2 Comments »
June 4, 2009
A 20-foot tall, 1,600-pound steel quarter with George Washington’s profile is the newest of five Roadside Giants planned along Pennsylvania’s 200-mile Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor. The quarter is located east of Bedford, Pennsylvania, near the Down River Golf Course in Everett. It was dedicated last Wednesday to acknowledge students from Bedford County Technical Center who were involved in its design and creation. The sculpture was created at MDL Manufacturing in Bedford; owners Mari-Pat and Doug Lingsch invited the students into their plant.
The photo below shows Mari-Pat and Doug Lingsch, owners of MDL Manufacturing in Bedford. Leah R. Cominsky, LHHC Marketing/Project Manager, says, “They had a lot to do with the project in terms of allowing the students to work on laser cutting the details of the Giant at their facility, plus they helped the students to order the materials that they would need to complete the Giant. They are such great, kind-hearted people, and Mari-Pat was on the Community Committee for the school to help them along the way with the design of the quarter.”
The Altoona Mirror reported that:
Meetings for the project began in March 2008, said community committee member Karen Bowman. Finishing touches at the site, such as landscaping and stone, will be added in the fall by students….
It took about three days to build the form, one day for it to set and another day to pour concrete….
Assistance on this project was provided by New Enterprise Stone & Lime Co., BC Stone, SKE Design and Rockland Manufacturing.
For Wednesday’s dedication, student Chelsea Long of the tech center’s Culinary Arts project created a matching 3-D cake in the shape of the giant quarter with assistance from instructor Pattie Liebfreid.
Tags:giant quarter, Lincoln Highway, PA, Road trip, roadside giant, roadside landmarks
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, Road trip, roadside, signs, travel | 1 Comment »
June 2, 2009
Fred Hammer wrote to say hello after reading my post on the history of his family’s motel along the Lincoln Highway in Kearney, Nebraska: “I grew up in that motel — watched it grow from 8 rooms to 35. My dad was one of the founders of the Best Western chain and took pride in that organization…. In the landscaping I donated to the university, I had three brick columns placed in the southwest corner, similar in shape to what was at the motel — and, in one of the columns, there is embedded a plaque which has a miniature imprint of the motel sign” So next time you’re in Kearney, take the time to find the honorary landscaping and plaque on Watson Blvd. at 19th Street.
Tags:giant sign, highway history, Kearney NE, Lincoln Highway, Nebraska, vintage motel
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, lodging, roadside, signs, travel | 1 Comment »
June 1, 2009
Hobo Day 2009 was held May 23 along the Lincoln Highway in Bucyrus, Ohio, at the Toledo & Ohio Central railroad station. The Crawford County Post reported that hundreds attended the annual event at the Victorian station, which is being restoredHere is a photo of the station and event by Doug Foreman from the paper’s story:
Train equipment on display included offbeat equipment such as a velocipede, pocket watches, and the bell from president Lincoln’s funeral train. Antique vehicles included a 1916 Maxwell truck and 1930 Ford Model A coupe.
Tags:annual festival, Bucyrus OH, Hobo Day, Lincoln Highway, Model A, Ohio, train station restoration
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, transportation, travel | Leave a Comment »
May 29, 2009
A new custom Visa Platinum® Rewards Card offers scenes from the Lincoln Highway and benefits the national Lincoln Highway Association. Five different scenes representing the coast-to-coast road are available.
Some of the specs:
• $50 donation to LHA by the bank when you first use the card, plus ongoing contributions.
• 0% Introductory APR on purchases and balance transfers for 6 months.
• Earn points and bonus points at online and neighborhood retailers.
• Redeem points for merchandise, tickets, gift cards or travel rewards.
• No annual fee and no additional cost to you.
Get more information at www.lincolnhighwayassoc.org/.
Tags:highway scenes, historic highway, Lincoln Highway, Visa helps an old road
Posted in highways, Lincoln Highway, travel | Leave a Comment »
May 28, 2009
Paving the Way: The National Park-to-Park Highway is 2-part program airing on PBS that recalls the journey of 12 motorists who followed the 5,000+ mile circular highway in 1920. The Park-to-Park Highway connected all 12 of the national parks at the time; the 1920 trip took 76 days. Leading the tour was famous AAA trails “pathfinder” Anton Westgard. Check local listings to see when it will air in your area.
ABOVE: Route map provided by Terry Coolidge, Wellspring Digital Studio.
ABOVE: Photo by A.G. Lucier, provided by John T. Hinckley Library, Northwest College, Powell, Wyoming.
Producer/director Brandon Wade told me that the video was inspired by Lee and Jane Whiteley, who wrote about the highway and the famous tour in their 2003 book, The Playground Trail: The National Park-to-Park Highway. Lee and Jane are known to Lincoln Highway fans for their pioneering work researching the LH route through Colorado, including a small but info-packed book, The Lincoln Highway in Colorado. To learn more about the film, visit pavingtheway.tv where you can also purchase the DVD for $24.95.
Tags:1920 auto trip, AAA pathfinder, COlorado, Lincoln Highway, National Park to Park Highway, National Parks, park highway, PBS, Westgard
Posted in film/video, highways, history, Lincoln Highway, Road trip, transportation, travel | 1 Comment »
May 27, 2009
The third Roadside Giant sculpture along the Lincoln Highway in western Pennsylvania will be unveiled today. The Community Installation Celebration for the Central Westmoreland Career & Technology Center’s “Packard Car with Driver” will take place at 1 pm at the entrance to the Westmoreland Chamber of Commerce and the Mt. Odin Golf Course, on the original Lincoln Highway. Guests will enjoy a “giant” Packard Cake, in the same shape as the giant, but edible! Photos of the installation courtesy Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor.
Tags:Greensburg PA, highway history, highway sculpture, history, Lincoln Highway, PA, Road trip, roadside giants, travel
Posted in highways, history, Lincoln Highway, Road trip, roadside, signs, transportation, travel | Leave a Comment »
Lincoln Highway News 