mobilene Posted August 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 26, 2009 A hidden cemetery that roadmaven pointed out to me: http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/08/20/irons-cemetery/ One of the tiny towns along the route -- and the only one that has any sort of "downtown": http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/08/24/stilesville/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted August 31, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2009 A couple more: Several great old homes remain along the route: http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/08/27/gr...-national-road/ I found a brick alignment on private property!!! Bricks were laid sometime between 1922 and 1925. http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/08/31/a-...gment-of-us-40/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keep the Show on the Road! Posted August 31, 2009 Report Share Posted August 31, 2009 Jim, Almost as much as I enjoy your blog photos and stories, I get a kick out of the comments. It is fun to watch you gain more and more recognition for your excellent work! Terrific work! Dave Keep the Show on the Road! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted September 10, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 10, 2009 Annnnnd.... a place where the road's been moved twice. http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/09/07/th...lsville-part-1/ http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/09/10/th...lsville-part-2/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keep the Show on the Road! Posted September 10, 2009 Report Share Posted September 10, 2009 Annnnnd.... a place where the road's been moved twice. http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/09/07/th...lsville-part-1/ http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/09/10/th...lsville-part-2/ Jim, The new additions to the blog are great, although these old eyes need bigger map images. I wrote a whole page about the Walnut Creek bridge restoration, but decided that I am probably the only person around who wishes they had left it alone, so I’m not including it. Where did you find the Goodrich map? They did many “diagrammatical” maps, and I have one of San Diego County that is as detailed as the one you cite, but I haven’t seen a lot of them. Dave Keep the Show on the Road! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted September 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 11, 2009 I wrote a whole page about the Walnut Creek bridge restoration, but decided that I am probably the only person around who wishes they had left it alone, so I’m not including it. I have to admit, I've been ambivalent about the restoration, too. When I wrote the blog post, I was okay with it, but when I came upon the restored bridge, I was a bit disappointed. The old, decrepit bridge had more character! Where did you find the Goodrich map? They did many “diagrammatical” maps, and I have one of San Diego County that is as detailed as the one you cite, but I haven’t seen a lot of them. It was reproduced in a book called "Overland by Auto in 1913," a true story of a family who traveled from California, down the coast and then across the country to central Indiana, in 1913. It took something like eighty days, and in some places there were no roads. The Goodrich strip map was part of an actual road guide they purchased along the trip. The book said that the Indiana portion of the trip was probably the most civilized driving they encountered. I've attached a scan of the strip map, without the current-map overlay. jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keep the Show on the Road! Posted September 11, 2009 Report Share Posted September 11, 2009 I have to admit, I've been ambivalent about the restoration, too. When I wrote the blog post, I was okay with it, but when I came upon the restored bridge, I was a bit disappointed. The old, decrepit bridge had more character! It was reproduced in a book called "Overland by Auto in 1913," a true story of a family who traveled from California, down the coast and then across the country to central Indiana, in 1913. It took something like eighty days, and in some places there were no roads. The Goodrich strip map was part of an actual road guide they purchased along the trip. The book said that the Indiana portion of the trip was probably the most civilized driving they encountered. I've attached a scan of the strip map, without the current-map overlay. jim Jim, You probably know that the G’s on the Goodrich maps mark where they had placed direction signs. Now all we have to do is find one! I guess I need to develop some rational view about restoration. Even my own wife doesn’t share my view. She even prefers the restored and recreated! It’s a tough call, or maybe “to each his own,” and I appreciate your ambivalence. Walking or riding over the original bricks in the original roadbed, knowing that a 100 years ago someone else was riding or walking along the same surface, has meaning for me, and I know it does for you. But for someone who doesn’t have a mental image of the place a hundred years ago, maybe a reproduction is OK. Dave Keep the Show on the Road! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted September 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 11, 2009 I think I've figured out my issues with the bridge. It's not that they restored it. It's that they replaced the deck and railings. Even though the railings look identical -- and when the concrete turns gray with time, you may not be able to tell they're not original -- they replaced so much of the bridge that it doesn't seem like the same bridge anymore. But what they did is far, far better than tearing it down. The other 1920s concrete-arch bridges I've written about from this trip are not protected, and in the most recent Indiana bridge inventory (from last year) were not judged to be historically significant enough to make the cut. So when those bridges become unsafe, they will certainly be demolished. Those roads get so little traffic -- 10 cars a day, the latest bridge inspections estimate -- that I would be surprised if the county even replaces them. I wouldn't be surprised if they just dead-end the road at the bridges. jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted September 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 22, 2009 Another bit from the trip -- a visit to old Brazil! http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/09/17/re...-to-old-brazil/ I think I've got two more stories from this trip left -- lots of neon in Terre Haute, and the end of the old road in Indiana (with a 1919 concrete-arch bridge). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted October 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 I've finished writing up this trip. Here are the last two blog posts! http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/09/24/roadside-relics/ http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/10/01/wh...oad-fades-away/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keep the Show on the Road! Posted October 1, 2009 Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 I've finished writing up this trip. Here are the last two blog posts! http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/09/24/roadside-relics/ http://jimgrey.wordpress.com/2009/10/01/wh...oad-fades-away/ Jim, I enjoyed the signs a lot! The discussion about the Clabber Girl billboard was interesting. Clabber is raw milk that has soured and thickened, so a clabber girl must be a girl who…….you won’t hear it from me! Dave Keep the Show on the Road! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted October 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 Well, whatever a Clabber Girl is, it's Terre Haute's claim to fame! It's also pretty much the only brand of baking powder you can buy in a 75-mile radius. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keep the Show on the Road! Posted October 1, 2009 Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 Well, whatever a Clabber Girl is, it's Terre Haute's claim to fame! It's also pretty much the only brand of baking powder you can buy in a 75-mile radius. Jim, Yah, we grew up on Clabber Girl, and never asked what a "clabber" was. In fact I never thought about it until it was raised on your blog. And that was a terrific billboard, complete with the great border and clock! Dave Keep the Show on the Road! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted January 3, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 I know I blogged about my Indy-to-Illinois trip as I went along, but my blog didn't share every last detail. So I wrote one of my usual obsessively complete road trip reports for my personal site. Follow the NR across western Indiana in excruciating detail here: http://jimgrey.net/Roads/NationalRoadWeste...diana/index.htm jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennyG Posted January 4, 2010 Report Share Posted January 4, 2010 A nice piece of work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_Colby Posted January 5, 2010 Report Share Posted January 5, 2010 Nice piece, Jim! What screw is loose in some of us that makes seeking out abandoned roadways and bridges such a pleasurable experience? I know my wife doesn't understand but she enjoys the ride... Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted January 6, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 6, 2010 I don't get it myself! I just roll with it! jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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