mga707
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Posts posted by mga707
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Took the Lewes--Cape May ferry (US 9) across the mouth of Delaware Bay just about three weeks ago on my first trip to the East Coast in 8 years. What a neat 80-minute crossing!
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How awesome that it is still there (and perfectly readable) some 90 years or so after it's inception!
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The Harry Truman National Historic Site in Independence, MO, is definitely worth a day's visit if you're in the Kansas City area.
The site has both the Truman library and museum, as well as the home on Delaware Street that, as I found out from reading "Harry Truman's Excellent Adventure", was the only house that President Truman ever owned! It was in Bess Truman's family and was their home until Harry became Vice-President in 1945 (he was only VP for three months when FDR died). Harry and Bess returned to their unpretentious but comfortable home when he left office in 1953, and Harry lived there until his death in December 1972 (just one month before LBJ's sudden death--Harry's funeral was LBJ's last public appearance). Bess continued to live in the home until her death a decade later. A great place to visit!
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Since I am the only one so far in this thread to actually remember Truman as President, I must add my personal assessment, as pronounced at the time when he was running for president in 1946 against Thomas Dewey. “Truman tells the truth and Dewey goes do do.”
Why I remember that profound bit of 1st grade “political speak,” I don’t know! Could it be because the political dialog is about the same today? I guess some things never change! 
Dave
Keep the Show on the Road!
1948, not '46. Sorry for the nit-pick!
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I read and enjoyed that myself not long ago and even briefly met the author on a stop in Richmond, IN. With luck, there will be a review in an upcoming issue of American Road Magazine.
Regarding Jim's "amazing to think that something like this ever could have happened" comment, Truman had no secret service protection and no pension when he left office. He received both later. Starting with George W, Secret Service protection goes away for ex-presidents after ten years. When that happens, GWB will be the first ex-president since Truman without government paid guards hanging around. Maybe he'll take a road trip then
Mr. Algeo brings up this fact in the book, and, funny enough, makes the same conjecture!
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I just finished reading a new book that I'm sure anyone who frequents these forums will absolutely love--it's the best work of non-fiction that I've read in quite a while.
The book: "Harry Truman's Excellent Adventure" by Matthew Algeo. Chicago Review Press, 2009.
In the summer of 1953, during Mr. Truman's first year as an ex-President, he and Bess took a classic road trip--in their brand new 1953 Chrysler New Yorker!--from their home in Independence, Missouri, to Washington DC, Philadelphia, and New York City (to visit daughter Margaret). No advance notice to anywhere they were staying (save for the Reserve Officers Association convention in Philly that Harry had agreed to address), no Secret Service protection--ex-prezes didn't receive that perk back then, and no AC in the Chrysler!
The author recounts Harry and Bess' trip, and retraces the exact route in the present time (2006-2008).
The writing style is excellent, and once I started the book I did not put it down until I was finished. A great reminiscence of the pre-Interstate days of road travel that we celebrate on here, and a reminder of how much has changed in the past 56 years.
Read this book--you'll love it!
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I have been looking ahead to the location where Dolph and Hopkins carved “MONUMENTAL HIGHWAY” into the cliff. It looks to be on the Hopi Reservation and we will need a 4 wheel drive to reach the site. Does anyone know about permits to travel on back roads on the reservation?
Dave
Keep the Show on the Road!
Hi Dave--
Unlike some tribes in Arizona (the Hualapai, for example), to the best of my knowledge neither the Navajo nor the Hopi require 'back road permits' as long as one stays on tribal routes. As I surmised in an earlier post, the road in question is Navajo/Hopi route 7, so I don't think a permit will be required. 4WD would be good idea as the road is unpaved, and based upon my experience with unpaved roads in Navajo/Hopiland, it will have areas of fairly deep sand and, if it has been rained on recently, muddy areas as well.
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Combs Ridge has only one break, and that is where the modern and 1950’s highways start down the long man made ramp to Comb Wash. If Dolph and Hopkins didn’t go through that gap they had to travel in the San Juan River (they didn’t!) or take the pioneer trail of the 1870’s Hole in the Rock Mormon party down San Juan Hill (southern tip of Comb’s Ridge). The grade is so steep the pioneers took 7 teams of horses to pull their wagons up, and it nearly killed the teams.
By 1912 there was a three times a week stage between Bluff and Mexican Hat, and it is very unlikely that the stage routinely used such a grade either. So the stage must have taken the gap route, and that is my best guess for the route of the Motor Men, until one of our members or old road pros proves me wrong.
Dave
Keep the Show on the Road!
Dave--
Enjoying this story!
While certainly no expert, I have driven nearly all of the major roads in the Four Corners area...and a few of the not-so-major ones!
After consulting my trusty AAA "Guide To Indian Country" map--a fantastic Auto Club of So Cal map that I have worn out several copies of--I will concur with your hunch that the "Motor Men" of 1917 used what is now basically the US 163 alignment to cross Comb ridge between Bluff and Mexican Hat.
Can't wait to hear more, and would love to be able to be part of any future 'expedition' to find the elusive inscription somewhere south of Red Lake!
Mike
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I rode Nevada Route 722, which is an alignment of Lincoln Highway. It was opened in 1925, but within a handful of years, folks were wanting it to go back to the old alignment (via the town of New Pass). You can read about my trek through Nevada here. Lots of pics too.
It is in my top five favorite roads of all time.
-Eric
Eric--
Don't know why I didn't come across it earlier, but I finally read about your June '08 trek across Nevada tonight. Very interesting! I've never been west of Ely on 50, so it makes me want to go all the way across the state.
Anyway, I read where you speculate that Carson City might be the smallest state capitol city in the US. It turns out not to be so. With a 2000 census population of over 52,000, Carson City is larger than quite a few other state capitols, including the capitol of your state, Olympia. Montpelier, Vermont, is the smallest state capitol, with a 2000 population of just over 8,000. I believer that Pierre, South Dakota is next, coming in at around 17,000.
Ah, but Carson City would be quite a bit smaller if not for a trick they pulled a few decades ago (sometime in the 1980s, IIRC). They did the Nashville/Jacksonville/Indianapolis trick of annexing the entire county into the city limits. If just the urbanized area was in the city limits the population would probably be no more than about 25,000. Still not the smallest, but about half of the 'official' figure.
...and if you want to stump people, ask them what the LARGEST state capitol city is. Almost nobody guesses it correctly, unless they live in my state. It's that 'bad example' up the road, Phoenix! The only state capitol city with over a million residents, about 1.5 mil to be more specific.
Just some rather useless US geographic trivia for you...
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That 1859 bridge in Carlyle is one pretty bridge! Assume it is still open for pedestrian use?
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Another possible side trip:
If you are interested in 'bagging' NPS sites on your travels (as I am), Pinnacles National Monument (east entrance) is about a 30-mile each way side trip south from Hollister (on the more southerly of Dave's two 'blue routes' above) on CA SR25.
I haven't been there--it and King's Canyon NP are the two main NPS sites I have left to 'bag' in Cali--but it looks interesting.
Like Colorado's Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP (and my own state's Grand Canyon), Pinnacles has two separate entrances (east and west) that are not connected by road. According to my NPS references, the east side is by far the more 'developed'.
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Not to sound like a certain polarizing radio talker, but dittoes to the above two posts from me as well...
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mga707
Ruby sounds like a treat. Where did I read about it? Have you mentioned it before?
Keep the Show on the Road!
I haven't mentioned it on here before, but Ruby is well known among ghost town fans. It's a small site (nowhere near the size of Bodie CA, for example), but it is a first-rate example of a "true" ghost town; i.e., one with a population of zero.
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It's a grand building, with plenty of character. You can almost see the children running around it in your photo.
There is a similar old school house at a well-preserved southern Arizona (Santa Cruz County--NW of Nogales) ghost town called Ruby. Ruby is privately owned, gated and fenced, and can only be visited by guided tour with advance notice. Which is great since it keeps the buildings preserved and the vandals and other riff-raff out!
Anyway, Ruby has a similar old two-room schoolhouse, last used in the WWII years. And outside in the playground they still have the swings and a really cool--and high!--metal slide. Which you can't have today! Liability issues, you know--junior may fall off and crack open his head!
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This is just too good...
I think how about we organize a little group and take on this route?
Right now we are a bit north of it all, health problems being solved, but how about in the fall... meet in Bliff maybe?
We can then put this mystery... to rest. How exciting and unique it would be to document it all...
Be well... Ara & Spirit
The fall would be the best time to go, weatherwise. From mid-Sept to mid-Nov weather is usually just about perfect. From about the end of June/first of July until mid-Sept you run into the monsoon season issue, and all travel on unpaved rez roads should be done in the AM. They can become mudbogs very quickly if a summer afternoon thunderstorm dumps on them!
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I am not exactly sure of where I am or what I am doing, but I came across Dave's post in this form regarding my father, Dolph Andrus, of Monumental Highway fame. I have a copy of the original log of the 1917 Maxwell trip, plus a lot of small pictures. I also did make an attempt to find the rock wall carving "Monumental Highway" and enlisted the aid of Arizona Highway Department who sent me a 1912 Arizona Map with where they thought the carving might be. It is located near the border between the Hopi and Navajo regions, and we were advised not to stray off of the main dirt roads. It is logged in as being 6.2 miles from the Redlake Trading Post, before the left fork that leads to Blue Canyon. I hope someone can locate the carving, if it still exists.
Wow, this really makes me want to ditch work, get in the car and head due north across my state to my beloved Navajo/Hopiland!
Getting out my Benchmark "Arizona road and Recreaction Atlas", and using your location as described above, it appears that said carving should be visible from Indian Route 7, a mere 6.2 miles or so from US 160. Route 7 is indeed one of the "main dirt roads" in the area. Of course, one of the charms of Navajo/Hopiland is that such "Indian Routes" are rarely, if ever, signed, and one must use ones own judgement and map skills when coming to the proverbial "fork in the road" to ascertain which fork to take!
I would not imagine that this carving would be that hard at all to locate, given a vehicle with decent ground clearance and good (dry) weather.
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heh, Collectible Automobile! I read that one cover to cover, and have subscribed for 15 years.
Me too...since 1987!
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Somebody's simply got to 'liberate' those old maps!!
Edsel's a '59, Second year out of the 2 1/2 years they were sold, and the last 'real' Edsel. The few '60s that were built were just rebadged Mercs with different trim. This one's got lots of chrome, so it's a higher-end Corsair model.
Dave, that's a perfect "Car Spotter" shot for "Collectible Automobile" magazine. Send it in!
IIRC, Maxwell was the failing auto firm that W. P. Chrysler took over in 1924 to found the Chrysler Corp. Now failing itself, sadly...
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Really nice shots, Dave!
The Hotel Waterville remind me of the lovely old Hotel Vendome in Prescott (AZ), although the Waterville looks substantially larger and is a decade older than the Vendome. They both have the same 'look' though, and similar neon signs!
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Ah, I bet it is (I don't see ads), thanks. Seen it? Any good?
-Eric
No, I haven't seen it yet. Plan to pick up the DVD at some point. I do have "Horatio's Drive", which you also mentioned. Now that was quite a feat--driving coast to coast in 1903!
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Speaking of the founding... I've heard (and should know) that PBS made a documentary about the National Parks Highway. I'd assume it's about the drive they did (sort of like the amazing documentary Horatio's Drive).
Assume you mean "Paving the Way" which is about the similarly-named but different National Park To Park Highway. There's a banner ad about it at the top of this very site.
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Did anyone notice the location of the Shell gas station in the picture? Right in the middle of the road?! Great shot!
Jason
...not to mention the mid-street parking! Agreed, a fine photo find!
(...can one still go dancing on University Street in Seattle?)
Wish I could ID all, or at least some, of the cars, but when you get pre-55 or so my car spotter skills get pretty hazy!
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Dave--thanks for the quick reply. It is a cool sculpture, and quite "Burning Man-esque"!
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Bliss,
That is good news. Hopefully there will be man similar stories across the nation as the economy starts to climb back out of its hole. Thanks for making this day a better one!
Off topic: Dave, just curious: Is the photo in your post from Burning Man?
On topic: (rant on) With the state of Illinois having to close or limit hours at these historic sites, it's really great (sarcasm) that they have had to waste so much money due to the sleazy shenanigans of Blago The Clown...(rant off)
Us 60 East Of Phoenix
in Midland Trail / U.S. 60
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Ditto as to the Salt River Canyon stretch of 60 between Globe and Show Low as being a 'must drive'. The stretch just west of that segment between Superior and the Miami/Globe area is no slouch either.
The New Mexico portion of 60 can't match either of the two Arizona portions above for white-knuckle mountain curve thrills, but the part west of Socorro (Catron County) is scenic. Don't miss the Very Large Array/multiple radio telescope site between Pie Town (is that a cool town name or what?) and Socorro.
East of Socorro (and the Rio Grande), two of the three Spanish Colonial missions (Abo and Quarai) that make up Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument sit just off of 60 (the third, and largest, Gran Quivira, is a bit farther south). Well worth a visit.