The popular Niland’s Cafe in Colo, Iowa, will reopen December 5 and operate three days a week through the winter.
The Nevada Journal revealed the joint plan between the city of Colo, which owns the historic Reed-Niland property, and the Colo Development Group, which manages the property for the city:
Ben Weir, president of the development group, said Missy Bitters, of Colo, will be overseeing the day-to-day operation of the restaurant…. Previously, the city and development group have leased the restaurant to those who have operated it…. Weir said the development group won’t heavily advertise the opening at first, because “we want to allow Missy to get in and get organized … and get her feet wet.”
Bitters said hours of operation will be 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays. She said one of the things the restaurant will bring back from the past is the loose meat sandwiches that historic owner John Niland made popular for the restaurant.
Above is Colo city clerk Scott Berka at the Niland’s Cafe counter.
Our friend RoadDog wrote about a public art project celebrating the bond between Northern Illinois University and the DeKalb/Sycamore communities. More than 50 fiberglass painted Huskies were sponsored by individuals, businesses, and organizations. Each came as a pair: a 40-inch tall dog and a 20-inch pup.
On Thursday took a trip out to Dekalb and Sycamore and enjoyed looking for them. This was based on Chicago’s Cows on Parade. Really liked the Illinois Lincoln Highway Coalition’s “Lincoln on Lincoln” with the fiberglass Huskie sporting a Lincoln beard. Also liked “Paw McCartney” complete in Sgt. Pepper’s uniform and mustache.
Here’s an image of Lincoln at the state fair from the ILHC, and below is Paw from huskiesonparade.com/. ILHC director Diane Rossiter says:
ILHC sponsored “Lincoln” and “Abe” as part of this project. Lincoln is 40″ tall and is standing proud on the corner of 1st Street and Lincoln Highway in DeKalb. Abe is 20″ tall and is allowed to visit many places throughout Illinois. He has gone to the Illinois State Fair in Springfield and was on exhibit in Freeport, Illinois for the celebration of the Lincoln/Douglas debates. Keep an eye out for Abe at future outings!
Huskies on Parade culminated during NIU’s Homecoming weekend when the dogs rode in the Homecoming Parade. The Huskie pups will be auctioned off, with all proceeds going to the February 14 Scholarship Fund. You can still check the Lincoln Highwy for Lincoln and 300 E. Harvestore Drive for Paw. For more info contact info@huskiesonparade.com or (815) 753-0835.
It’s not often we report on Route 66 here at Lincoln Highway News, but an icon of that two-lane road has been destroyed in a fire. The Rock Cafe of Stroud, Oklahoma, was not only a popular stop along Route 66 since the 1930s, but had gained fame a couple years ago when owner Dawn Welch served inspiration for Sally the Porsche in the Disney/Pixar film Cars.
As you can see in my photo above, they celebrated the connection with little cutouts of the car characters. Read all about the fire, and plans to rebuild, on Ron Warnick’s Route 66 News. To see this image larger, CLICK on my photo below to go to my Flickr post – to see it even bigger, once there you can click “ALL SIZES” above the image.
US 30 eastbound was closed for 8 hours overnight as fire destroyed the Hollow Tavern in Unity Twp, Westmoreland County, just west of Ligonier, and about 40 miles east of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Built 1939-40 as a restaurant and hotel along the Lincoln Highway in the Loyalhana Gorge, it was perhaps best known for a small concrete causeway across the water. The 2-lane LH ran past its door, but when westbound lanes were moved to the other side of the water in the 1950s, half their customer base disappeared. They fought for, and won, the small access crossover.
The location, popular for its view, had housed a gas station and sandwich stand since the 1920s. The area was known as Kelley’s Hollow but acquired the Sleepy Hollow moniker from one of the owners’ habit of dozing in his rocking chair. The building resembled a big log cabin, and its old wood construction made fighting the fire difficult. Click HERE for no-narrator 1-minute video of the blaze from KDKA-TV (after a 15-second commercial).
Also, click on the image above for a brief text report from WTAE-TV.
More than 50 officials, friends, and members of the Wiggin Family and Lincoln Highway Association braved chilly temperatures to dedicate a marker that honors both the Lincoln Highway and Wiggin’s Trading Post that opened there in 1924. The ceremony was held Saturday, December 8, 2007, at 15600 S. Harlan Road in Lathrop, California.
Above: At the Lathrop marker dedication, from left to right: Bob Dieterich, James Lin, Gary Kinst, Paul Gilger, Norm Root. Lloyd Johnson, Mike Kaelin, and Carolyn Lignos. The plaques read: (top) Lathrop Sunrise Rotary; (middle) America’s First Coast to Coast Road Established 1913; (bottom) 1924-1967 Site of Original Wiggin’s Trading Post Serving Travelers Along The Lincoln Highway.
Francis Wiggin’s Granddaughters, Janet and Patti, presented photos to master of ceremonies John Serpa (SEE BELOW), a member of LHA and the Lathrop Sunrise Rotary Club. Marine Corps League Detachment #109 from Modesto presented the colors, and Boy Scout Troup #425 from Lathrop led the singing of the National Anthem and the unveiling of the monument.
A Marine Corps League Certificate of Appreciation for Loyalty and Patriotism was presented by John Treantos, Commandant of #109, to Mr. Dalwinder Dhoot for flying the American flag continuously 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for 14 years at Joe’s Travel Plaza. Dhoot and family own the new Best Western Hotel at the site, and graciously allowed the Rotary to erect the marker. Mr. Dhoot then invited all guests to join the grand opening festivities for the 3-floor, 81-room hotel and provided complimentary food and beverages.Speakers included:Kristy Sayles, Mayor of Lathrop.Norm Root, President, California Chapter of the LHA (SEE BELOW).
Thanks also go to:Gabe Young, cement and engraving of stone monument.Brian Green, Signarama of Tracy.Stephen Dresser, President, Lathrop Sunrise Rotary.Dolores Delgado, Chief of Police, City of Lathrop.Charles Edwards, Boy Scout Troup #425 Leader.Richard Wiggins, Grandson of Francis Wiggins.Mary Kennedy, President, Lathrop Chamber of Commerce.And I again thank Gary Kinst for helping with info and images for this report.
A marker was dedicated Saturday, December 8, along South Harlan Road at Thomsen Street in Lathrop, California, to commemorate the Lincoln Highway and a family business that once occupied the corner. Francis Wiggin opened Wiggin’s Trading Post along the Lincoln Highway south of Stockton in 1924. He carried Gilmore Gasoline, then in 1932, began selling “Indian Head” Gasoline, which he had patented. He also sold Indian souvenirs, learned from his days working with the Buffalo Bill Wild West Show.
Francis Wiggin’s son Francis Porter Wiggin II and his wife Ruth had seven children: Frank, Paul (b. 1934), Richard (b. 1936), Tom (b. 1940), Janet (b. 1946), Don, and Patti (b. 1955). Above, Wiggin’s grandchildren Janet and Tom ride a play horse/burro in 1949. Near the pumps might be one of their brothers.
Son Francis II joined the business around 1936, and Francis Sr. passed away in 1950. The Trading Post closed in 1967, but grandson Richard operates (but has it for sale) Wiggin’s Trading Post in Chilcoot, California at 94139 Highway 70. Another Wiggin’s Trading Post is said to be in Arizona but the location and owner are not known.
The Lincoln Highway went south from Stockton through Lathrop on what is now Harlan Road on its way to Tracy. I-5 now closely parallels the old road. Information about the ceremony will follow in a separate post. Thanks to Gary Kinst for helping with info and the image.
Another interesting shot from John and Lenore Weiss is this distinctive but abandoned gas station located somewhere in the middle of the US – that’s all I’ll say to start since RoadDog guessed the last one pretty quickly! Know where it’s at? Please leave your guesses by clicking Comments below the picture.
The S.S. Grand View Ship Hotel was perhaps the best-known, most-visited landmark along the 3,300+ miles of Lincoln Highway. The famous roadside attraction was 17 miles west of Bedford, Pennsylvania, but unfortunately burned in 2001. With my Lincoln Highway Companion book ready for the editors, I’m starting on my next book, a fun look at the Ship. I first wrote about the Ship in 1989 and have been gathering information, recollections, and photos since then.
People took lots of snapshots there, and though they probably took movies, few of those surface, so it’s exciting to see this rare film from 1972! (Total time 3:32) Roger Shaulis shoots out the back window as they speed east on the Lincoln Highway through the Seven Mile Stretch, passing coal trucks. About 45 seconds in, they arrive at the Ship and go to the deck for the view and some goofing. The family jumps on the Turnpike for the final minute, passing through three tunnels on their way to New Jersey.
Like the Mystery Photos we sometimes run on weekends, there are likewise lots of postcards that we wonder “whatever happened to that place?” This beautiful linen card from the Curt Teich Company pictures the Country Club Motor Lodge and Coffee Shop, 2665 Parley’s Way, Salt Lake City, Utah. It advertised 55 “strictly modern units” and “Sun Porch and Modern Coffee Shop for Convenience of Guests.” It’s named for The Country Club across the road, one of the West’s oldest courses (founded 1899) and still an elegant, private 18-hole course. Today, housing separates the two just west of the tangle of ramps where I-80, I-215, and UT 186 meet.
This card, postmarked Aug 4, 1949, was sent by a child:
“We got here right today We will be back to Sacramento California soon We are haveing a nice trip so good-by and I will see you soon from Mary Jean”
What’s left at the site today? The phone number is now a private residence. A Yahoo aerial view shows it still there, but you can buy for a condo at the Country Club Ridge subdivision at the same address. Price for #310 is $649,000 for 2,065 sq ft, built 2007. Are we a year too late…?
The Iowa Lincoln Highway Association is organizing its first-ever River to River Motor Tour across Iowa for August 8-10, 2008. All cars are invited, and classic car owners can rest easy that no gravel alignments will be on the official route. Participants can join or leave the tour at any point.
Above: The newly wiidened bridge between Omaha, Nebraska and Council Bluffs, Iowa, 1924. (Univ of Michigan, Special Collections Library, lhc2218)
Starting in Clinton, highlights will include:
• Site of the Lyons-Fulton Bridge in Clinton
• Walk on the abandoned Lincoln Highway west of Lowden
• Restored Youngville Café in Benton County
• World-famous Lincoln Highway Bridge in Tama
• State Center, the “rose capital of Iowa”
• Tour restored Reed/Niland corners in Colo
• Lincoln Highway Clubhouse in Jefferson
• Drive on the brick Lincoln Highway in Woodbine
• Hitchcock Nature Center near Honey Creek
Registration is $20 per vehicle for Iowa LHA members or $30 per vehicle for non-members that registers that person for a one year membership to the Iowa LHA. For more information, visit the Iowa LHA website or contact coordinator LHA Iowa director Jeff LaFollette, who has previously chaired motor tours along Route 66 in Illinois, at jefflaf@peoplepc.com or (563) 349-3047.
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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Here’s an image of Lincoln at the state fair from the ILHC, and below is Paw from huskiesonparade.com/. ILHC director Diane Rossiter says:
Huskies on Parade culminated during NIU’s Homecoming weekend when the dogs rode in the Homecoming Parade. The Huskie pups will be auctioned off, with all proceeds going to the February 14 Scholarship Fund. You can still check the Lincoln Highwy for Lincoln and 300 E. Harvestore Drive for Paw. For more info contact info@huskiesonparade.com or (815) 753-0835.
Lincoln Highway News 