Paul Harrar writes about the collection of historic Lincoln Highway photos at the University of Michigan, in particular the highway around Donner Summit.
- The Lincoln Highway around Donner Summit, Paul Harrar, Loving Nevada County, December 1, 2011
80 years ago: Lincoln Highway in Colorado bypassed and paved
In 1931, the Colorado spur of the Lincoln Highway between Greeley and Fort Morgan was bypassed with a straighter route, paved with concrete.
- Historical Hindsights: Greeley and Fort Morgan linked by new highway in 1931, Peggy Ford Waldo, Greeley (Colo.) Tribune, December 1, 2011
Applying the success of roads to rail
Alex Marshall of Governing magazine argues that the transition from private initiatives like the Lincoln Highway to a state-owned, federally-coordinated system of highways was crucial to the successful development of a road network in the United States, and that passenger rail needs similar innovations in “bureaucratic infrastructure” to become as successful.
- A Lesson for Passenger Rail, From Roads, Alex Marshall, Governing, December 2011
Dublin, CA to install Lincoln Highway signs
The city of Dublin, California is planning to install four Lincoln Highway signs along Dublin Boulevard, which was the Lincoln Highway’s alignment through the city. The cost of buying and installing the signs will be covered by the Dublin Historical Preservation Association.
- Dublin Boulevard to Showcase Historic Lincoln Highway, John M. Zukoski, Around Dublin (Dublin, Ca.), November 30, 2011
Folsom, CA honors man who brought historic bridge back
The city of Folsom, California has dedicated the 1893 Folsom Historic Truss Bridge after Donald Alden, who spearheaded efforts to have the bridge returned to the city after it sat in Siskiyou County from 1931 to 2000. The bridge carried Lincoln Highway traffic until it was bypassed by the adjacent Rainbow Bridge in 1917.
- City honors man who engineered historic truss bridge’s return, Laura Newell, The Folsom (Ca.) Telegraph, November 30, 2011
96 years ago: Seedling mile in Kearney, NE completed
The Kearney Hub’s “This Week in History” column briefly covers the seedling mile of the Lincoln Highway in Kearney, Nebraska, completed in 1915.
- This Week in History, Kearney (Neb.) Hub, November 11, 2011
Owner of Duarte’s Lincoln Highway Garage dies
This article was written by Michael Kaelin, recording secretary of the California Chapter of the Lincoln Highway Association.
Francis “Frank” H. Duarte passed away on November 22, 2011. He was the last business owner of the iconic Duarte’s Lincoln Highway Garage in Livermore, California.
Frank was born in 1915, the year of the Panama–Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, a magnet destination and banner year for development of the early Lincoln Highway.
Frank had just turned 96, and had returned to Livermore in 2008 from Applegate, where he had retired in 1977. He had owned and managed Duarte’s Garage since his discharge from the Army Air Corps in 1945. Previously, he started working for his father, Frank, at the garage in 1934, later enlisting as an aircraft mechanic in 1939.
Mr. Duarte is survived by 2 nieces, Kathy Erickson of Scottsdale, Arizona and Donna Kosch of Everett, Washington. Services for him on December 14 were private, and Frank was interred at St. Michael Cemetery in Livermore. Donations in his name may be made to the Duarte Garage Museum, now operated by the Livermore Heritage Guild.
Coincidentally, the California Chapter is holding its winter quarter meeting at Duarte’s Garage on January 7, 2012. It will be a joint meeting with the Livermore Heritage Guild after a luncheon at Beebe’s Restaurant at the Livermore Golf Course.
The oldest concrete highway in Missouri, and what’s left of it
James Baughn of the Southeast Missourian writes about the oldest concrete highway in Missouri, completed in 1921, and how it is being obliterated by trucks rebuilding river levees.
- What’s left of the oldest concrete highway in Missouri, James Baughn, The Southeast Missourian (Cape Girardeau, Mo.), November 25, 2011
Mapping the Lincoln Highway through the Utah desert
The Desert Research Institute, part of the Nevada System of Higher Education, has precisely mapped the Lincoln Highway through the Utah desert west of Salt Lake City.
Be sure to check out their photo tours of the 1913 and 1919 routes. It takes a little while to load, and there is no indication that a tour is loading, so be patient.
Thanks to Rachel Quist for the tip!
- Lincoln Highway — Through the Great American Desert, Desert Research Institute
Old diner being restored for Lincoln Highway museum
An old diner is being restored to its 1930s glory and will become the focal part of the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor’s Lincoln Highway Experience Museum, being built in Unity, Pennsylvania.
- History on menu at vintage Serro’s Diner, Deborah Brehun, Ligonier (Pa.) Echo, November 23, 2011