Credit for naming the Lincoln Highway often goes to LHA president Henry Joy, a fan of the sixteenth president, but a Colorado woman had the idea first. Frances McEwen Belford met Abraham Lincoln in 1860, when she was 21, and never forgot the man whom she called the “greatest American.” In September 1911, Belford proposed a coast-to-coast highway named for Lincoln, one year before Carl Fisher suggested his idea.
In August 1912—still a month before Fisher gathered his automotive industry friends to propose “coast-to-coast rock highway”—she had a bill introduced in Congress “establishing the Lincoln memorial highway from Boston, Mass., to San Francisco, Cal.” The bill died, but Belford did not give up, nor did she forget; years later, she wrote to Henry Joy, reminding him of who had thought of the name first. He admitted that she was first, but that “it takes more than sentiment to build a highway.” ~ from my book Greetings from the Lincoln Highway, now in its revised 3rd edition.
A number of cards were produced as the Lincoln Highway was being planned, none of which shows the final route of the Colorado Loop. The publisher of this card pictured Colorado’s 1912 Lincoln Memorial Highway at Ute Pass, west of Colorado Springs. ~Postard courtesy Russell Rein.
When I began researching the Lincoln Highway in the 1980s, there were no modern resources until Drake Hokanson published his wonderful, whimsical history in 1988. So, bit by bit, I gathered 70-year-old maps and guidebooks and kept them on the front seat as I tried to retrace the fading route. Along the way I met Lyn Protteau, the self-named “Lincoln Highway Lady,” a retired teacher who drove the route endlessly in her 1941 Chevy. She was a bit possessive of being a pioneer in appreciating and re-discovering the route, and as part of that, she took on the task of reprinting the LHA’s official history from 1935. You’ll know it if you find one published by her Pleiades Press, 1995.
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
On December 1, 1913, the Lincoln Highway had only celebrated its dedication a month earlier when the world’s first architect-designed drive-in gas station opened along the new coast-to-coast road in Pittsburgh.
Gulf’s pioneering station in Pittsburgh.
Gasoline had been sold for years at hardware stores and other businesses serving the burgeoning auto industry. There were also places selling only gasoline, even drive-in stations.
But the fuel was often kept in barrels and poured from large cans. And unlike those existing buildings or informal shacks, Gulf Oil had an architect design the new building to efficiently and elegantly pump gas and provide other services. In fact, the following year, the station would start giving away the first free oil company road maps.
The station featured a canopy to shield motorists from weather, new Bowser hand-cranked pumps, large incandescent-lit signs, attendants on duty day and night, and the checking of fluids — all new to the industry.
The station was on Baum Boulevard (the Lincoln Highway) at St. Clair Street. Baum was quickly becoming Pitsburgh’s “automobile row” (common in all cities), filling with garages, tire shops, and car dealers — even the local auto club. Baum already served the carriage trade so this was a natural outgrowth. That itself made sense since Baum connected the city to the mansions being built to the east along on Penn Avenue in Point Breeze — also the Lincoln Highway.
An informal station was already operating on the site when landowner James Mellon contracted the new station. The Mellon family was Gulf’s first and foremost investors, intertwining their Mellon Bank and Gulf Oil for decades. Gulf was an early proponent of branding gas, especially with its bright orange circle logo, as opposed to generic gas that was also often of lower quality; a branded station was a natural next step.
The station didn’t last long, perhaps as late as 1950. Since then it’s been a parking lot. In 2000, the Gulfoil Historical Society campaigned for, and helped erect, a state historical marker to the station. I visited the site today, on the station’s 100th birthday, in the Lincoln Highway’s 100th year.
Long-time Lincoln Highway advocate Rollin Southwell passed away suddenly on Sunday while in Iowa. Among the many contributions of “The Man from Utah” to Lincoln Highway history, preservation, and promotion was the conception and creation of a monument to Carl Fisher in central Utah.
Rollin’s family has planned a service for Monday, April 1, 2013, 11 am at the Twenty-Seventh East Ward, 185 North P Street (corner of 4th Ave), Salt Lake City. In lieu of flowers, Marie Southwell, Elizabeth Southwell, and Robert Southwell ask that donations be directed to the Utah State Historical Society in honor of Rollin’s love for historical research, particularly the history of the Lincoln Highway.
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO The Illinois Lincoln Highway Murals, created by artist Jay Allen for the Illinois Lincoln Highway Coalition, won first place in the Murals/Exhibit Graphics category in an annual sign contest presented by Signs of the Times magazine.
Now the murals are competing in the Signs of the Times 2013 Readers’ Choice Awards. They need YOUR help. It’s EXTREMELY easy and fun to see the competing projects.
Every mural is a hand-painted, unique work of art. So far, 29 have been installed. Upon completion, the series will be one of the largest works of public art in the country.
Visit https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/8DV5THL and vote for your 3 favorite projects, including of course the murals. Voting is limited to once per computer and concludes on February 8.
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 7 announced that the Village of Sutherland, Nebraska, recently was given technical assistance in the form of a comprehensive report for redeveloping a number of former gas stations in its downtown. Most notable is c 1930 cottage station. There is a beautiful photo of it online by photographer Jeffrey Bebee; click his photo to access it, and go to his site to see more:
According to the EPA:
At the core of the technical assistance are four abandoned gas stations located along U.S. Highway 30, which runs through downtown Sutherland and is the former Lincoln Highway. The abandoned gas stations may pose potential environmental and public health hazards due to underground storage tanks that remained after the stations closed. By addressing the tanks, including potential contamination and liability issues, these sites can be made viable for reuse that benefits the community while removing community eyesores and transforming the sites into community assets. The redevelopment of these sites can spur further revitalization in the area.
“The technical assistance provided to the Village of Sutherland allows the community leaders to restore four Brownfields properties to beneficial use for the community,” said Karl Brooks, EPA Region 7 Administrator. “This is a clear example that shows how being environmentally conscious can bring positive growth and development for our small rural communities.”
The Illinois Lincoln Highway Coalition proudly announces that partner vendor ShawCraft Sign Company and company president Jay Allen received the second place award in the 2012 International Sign Design Contest presented by Signs of the Times magazine for production of the ILHC Mural Series in the Best Murals/Banners category. The winning project features the Coalition’s series of large-scale murals designed and fabricated by ShawCraft’s lead designer Jay Allen; each mural is a striking, hand-painted work of public art, communicating the significance and history of the early Lincoln Highway.
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
The Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor will present “Pennsylvania’s Roads: From the Lincoln to Eisenhower” at 2 pm, March 11, at the Lincoln Highway Experience, 3435 Route 30 East, near Kingston Dam in Latrobe. Presenter Jeffrey Kitsko will explore the history of the Lincoln Highway, the PA Turnpike, and the Interstate Highway System as envisioned by President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Jeff will also discuss roadway construction from the time of the named auto routes and the importance of preserving the Lincoln Highway. He brings his expertise on the history of Pennsylvania’s roadways particularly as the webmaster of the award-winning site www.pahighways.com.
Advance reservations are required. Visit www.LHHC.org to make reservations through PayPal or call (724) 879-4241. A fee charged per person will include light refreshments.
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
Illinois Lincoln Highway Coalition has installed the next in the series of Interpretive Murals along the 179-mile Illinois byway corridor. The mural on a township building at 11008 West Lincoln Highway/US 30 in Frankfort, Illinois, depicts the actual Eagle Scouts and Scout leaders who made a Nationwide Safety Tour along the Lincoln Highway in 1928.
The tour was a promotion of the Lincoln Highway and the Scouts’ plan to place concrete markers along the route. The story of their adventure giving safety daily demonstrations, “good road turns,” and helping out wherever needed is told in the mural. Specifically named is Eagle Scout Bernie Queneau, now age 99 and still one of the Lincoln Highway’s leading supporters.
For information on the Lincoln Highway in Illinois, including places to see, stories of the highway’s significance, or to download an Illinois Lincoln Highway Visitor Guide, visit drivelincolnhighway.com/.
LINCOLN HIGHWAY NEWS IS A BLOG BY BRIAN BUTKO
Recent blog posts from “Endless streams and forests” have visited a number of Lincoln Highway locales. The writer, Jenny, lives in Asheville, North Carolina, but has traveled far and wide; many of her posts are about the outdoors and “landscape viewed through the filter of history, literature, art, or philosophy.”
Lincoln Highway travels so far have been mostly across Pennsylvania, such as a visit (above) to Williams Deluxe Cabins in Exton.
Click the map above for a full-size view of the Lincoln Highway.
Like this blog? You'll LOVE my books!Lincoln Highway Companion features detailed maps and places to eat and stay. Click the book to buy it on Amazon.
Click the Greetings book below to purchase the ultimate guide to the history and route of the Lincoln Highway!
Another fun book! The Ship Hotel: A Grand View along the Lincoln Highway recalls the greatest roadside attraction along the coast-to-coast road.
And for those who LOVE diners, click the book below to purchase our completely updated guide to the history, geography, and food of Pennsylvania's Diners!
Lincoln Highway News 