Notes
From Wikipedia:
"The Lincoln Highway was the first road across the United States of America. Actively promoted by entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, the Lincoln Highway originally spanned coast-to-coast from Times Square in New York City to Lincoln Park in San Francisco through 13 states: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, and California. In 1915, the 'Colorado Loop' was removed, and in 1928, a realignment relocated the Lincoln Highway through the northern tip of West Virginia. Thus, there are a total of 14 states, 128 counties, and over 500 cities, towns and villages through which the highway passed at some time in its history.
"The first officially recorded mileage for the entire Lincoln Highway was 3389 miles in 1913. Over the years, the road was improved and numerous realignments were made. By 1924, the Lincoln Highway had been shortened to 3142 miles. Counting the original route and all of the subsequent realignments, there is a grand total of 5869 miles.
"Conceived in 1912 and formally dedicated October 31, 1913, the Lincoln Highway was America's first national memorial to President Abraham Lincoln, predating the 1922 dedication of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. by 9 years. As the first automobile road across America, the Lincoln Highway brought great prosperity to the hundreds of cities, towns and villages along the way. Affectionately, the Lincoln Highway became known as 'The Main Street Across America.'
"The Lincoln Highway was inspired by the Good Roads Movement. In turn, the Lincoln Highway inspired the National Interstate and Defense Highways Act of 1956, which was championed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, influenced by his experiences as a young soldier crossing the country in the 1919 Army Convoy on the Lincoln Highway.
"The Lincoln Highway Association (LHA), originally established in 1913 to plan, promote, and sign the highway, was re-formed in 1992 and is now dedicated to promoting and preserving the road. The LHA, with over 1100 members throughout the United States and overseas, has active state chapters in 12 Lincoln Highway states. The association maintains a national tourist center in Franklin Grove, Illinois, in a historic building built by Harry Isaac Lincoln, a cousin of Abraham Lincoln. The LHA holds yearly national conventions, and is governed by a board of directors with representatives from each Lincoln Highway state."
The original route of the Lincoln Highway across America. Map from Wikimedia Commons.
