FIRST -- Transcontinental Highway in the US, Cheyenne WY
N 41° 07.943 W 104° 48.996
13T E 515393 N 4553468
The Lincoln Highway is the first US Transcontinental highway, stretching from New York City to San Francisco
Waymark Code: WMXRR2
Location: Wyoming, United States
Date Posted: 02/21/2018
Views: 3
The waymark coordinates are located at the installation of a Wyoming Historical marker and an original 1928 Lincoln Highway marker at the corner of Lincolnway/US 30 and Carey Street in downtown Cheyenne Wyoming.
The historical marker reads as follows:
"THE FIRST TRANSCONTINENTAL HIGHWAY
The Lincoln Highway - U.S. Highway 30 - Wyoming Portion of Interstate 80
The Lincoln Highway was America's first transcontinental highway, conceived in 1912 specifically with the automobile in mind. Although parts of the Lincoln Highway were first used in 1908 for the famous New York to Paris automobile "Great Race", it was Carl Fisher of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, fellow industrialists Frank Seiberling of the Goodyear Rubber Company and Henry Joy of the Packard Motor Car Company who first envisioned a 3,400 mile improved, hard-surfaced road from New York to San Francisco.
At that time, except for a few metropolitan areas in the northeastern United States and some California cities, few roads existed that were anything but dirt and gravel. Rutted and dusty in dry weather, these trails were muddy at best in wet weather. All were nearly impassable in winter. It was Joy who would suggest that the proposed route be named after the 16th U.S. President, Abraham Lincoln.
The Lincoln Highway Association was created in 1913 to promote the road's construction using private and corporate donations. In July of that year the route was officially named the Lincoln Highway. Americans' enthusiasm for good roads led to the creation of many "Good Roads" clubs and associations. One of them, the Lincoln Highway Association, was able to stir the interest of the Federal Government into designating various rural routes by number in 1926.
The Lincoln Highway throughout much of the West became known as U.S. Highway 30. In Wyoming U.S. 30 would follow closely the old Lincoln Highway with only minor changes where bridges, curves, and grades could be improved. It was, however, the Interstate Highway System established in 1956 that would forever change the complexion of the original Lincoln Highway."
FIRST - Classification Variable: Item or Event
Date of FIRST: 01/01/1913
More Information - Web URL: [Web Link]
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