Leigh and Chuck Henline of Fort Cody Trading Post in North Platte, Nebraska, stopped at the Covered Wagon west of Kearney on their Thanksgiving trip to snap a few photos of the Covered Wagon, previously reported on here. Note the office now has a second story. Here’s a closeup of the wagon, still awaiting restoration:
Or click below for a 2-photo panorama of the site. Note the houses rising behind it on what was once the 1733 Ranch:
Gianofer Fields of Chicago Public Radio is heading west, soon to pick up the Lincoln Highway. Her first stop was in Burlington, Iowa, checking out Snake Alley, aka the World’s Crookedest Street. As she says, “I haven’t even made it to the Lincoln Highway and I’m already having a great time. With about 2000 miles to go on this trip, I’d better pace myself.” Read the first day’s journal (Monday, Nov. 26) or listen to it at the Chicago Public Radio site.
Ron Warnick’s Route 66 News has an interesting story about the “Joliet Kicks on 66” campaign. That Illinois city is promoting sites along the famous Chicago-to-LA road as explained in a news story. The Kicks web site offers lots of places and things to see, including 5 good-looking, very detailed replica gas pumps. Here’s a snap of the page showing the pump at the intersection of 66 and the Lincoln Highway:
Road buffs know there’s another crossing of the two historic highways. To the west, a later alignment of 66 ran through Plainfield where 66 actually shares the road with the LH. Banners there celebrate the pairing.
Lincoln Highway fans also know that the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor in Pennsylvania established a fantastic Pump Parade a few years ago. Along the 200-mile corridor from Irwin to Gettysburg are 22 fiberglass replica 1940s pumps, though differing from these in that they were decorated by artists. Here’s one at Schatzer’s Market, a fruit and produce stand west of Chambersburg:
The famous Haines Shoe House in south-central Pennsylvania got a fresh look through the efforts of Hampton Hotels’ Save-A-Landmark program. Built in 1948, the 3-story stucco shoe and its fence were painted at no charge of materials or labor. Carleen and Ronald Farabaugh have owned the house since 2003, giving tours and selling ice cream, and occasionally staying overnight. Carleen told me there’s always work to be done but they are thrilled with what the company’s 15 volunteers accomplished: “The Shoe House was desperately in need of a facelift. Hampton’s generosity should help to preserve the Shoe House for years to come so everyone can enjoy it.” She adds that all revenue is put into its restoration.
The house was built as a promotional gimmick for Mahlon Haines to advertise his chain of shoe stores—he’d loan the shoe (actually, a work boot) free to honeymooners and retirees who lived in a town that had a Haines Shoe Store. The house was set back a bit from the Lincoln Highway, but a Route 30 bypass now runs just outside its windows.
Chris Epting, author of numerous books on roadside landmarks, was there as spokesman for the Save-A-Landmark program doing TV and radio spots: “This was another wonderful opportunity to be a part of helping to restore a vital roadside landmark. This program continues to succeed on levels that are unprecedented for these kinds of efforts, and I’m very proud to be working with Hampton Inn as we move forward to the next landmark.” Also attending was Kyle Weaver of Stackpole Books, editor of my books and working with Epting on a forthcoming Stackpole title, The Birthplace Book. The photos seen here were graciously loaned by Kyle.
Hampton donated $20,000 in supplies for the Shoe redo, and organized a collecting effort for Soles4Souls, a nonprofit organization that collects and distributes shoes for people affected by natural disasters.
Hampton Hotels’ Save-A-Landmark program has helped preserve more than 30 American architectural oddities since 2000. The Shoe has it’s own Hampton page, and an article about the event ran in the York Daily Record.
I was asked by MasterCard to be part of their online Priceless Picks campaign. There are lots of interesting places in people’s picks; I chose roadside attractions and of course included some Lincoln Highway sites. Here’s a link to mine, where you’ll find LH mentions of the fun Shoe House in Hallam, Pennsylvania, and souvenir-filled Fort Cody Trading Post in Nebraska. There’s also a photo to click of Peppi’s Diner on the LH in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania. Other picks include Wigwam Village motel on Route 66 in Holbrook, Arizona; the crazy Mexican restaurant Casa Bonita in Denver; dinos battling Civil War soldiers at Dinosaur Kingdom in Natural Bridge, Virginia; and the 1950s-era Eddie’s Grill in little Geneva-on-the-Lake, Ohio.
Click the map above for a full-size view of the Lincoln Highway.
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