Still More Indiana Us 50

[mobilene]

I finished my drive along US 50 in Indiana on Saturday. I favored the old alignments, of which there are many between Shoals and the Illinois line. My ABBs are downright maddening between these two points -- I can hardly make heads or tails of their directions. My 1910s and 1920s Indiana highway maps, despite their statewide scale, were actually more helpful. I believe that US 50's original alignment through Shoals was actually perpendicular to its current alignment!

 

First, a couple scenes from current 50, both just west of Shoals. The view from Overlook Park:

 

Scenes from US 50 by mobilene, on Flickr

 

And Jug Rock, a rock formation just off the highway but hidden by brush. You have to know it's there.

 

Jug Rock by mobilene, on Flickr

 

In Shoals, I stood on the corner of US 50 and Main (old 50). This is old 50 coming in from the north, er, east.

 

Shoals, Indiana by mobilene, on Flickr

 

And here's old 50 going out to the south, er, west.

 

Shoals, Indiana by mobilene, on Flickr

 

I headed south on Main St./old 50. My old maps suggest that old 50 followed Main St., to where it merges into Spout Springs Rd., and then followed Spout Springs to where it Ts into State Road 550. Then it's west on 550 to the next town, Loogootee (pronounced like "low goadee"). There's a great rock formation on Spout Springs Rd.

 

Rock formation on Spout Springs Road by mobilene, on Flickr

 

Here's the westbound view on 550:

 

State Road 550 by mobilene, on Flickr

 

More to come.

 

jim

[Keep the Show on the Road!]

Jim,

 

Some more really nice shots! They put me "right there.

 

A good map is worth a thousand words in the ABB! I used some old strip maps and the Automobile Blue Books together on the Olympia to Chicago National Parks Highway expedition. It was a case where 1 + 1 = 3. Together they were terrific. But often times, (most of the time) we don't have detailed contemporary maps, so the ABBs are the only resource.

 

Indiana was much better described than say Idaho or Montana, so you are fortunate. And you are adding to the knowledge base.

 

I have enjoyed your US 50 explorations!

 

Dave

 

Keep the Show on the Road!

[mobilene]

Time for more!

 

Old US 50 south of Loogootee. It's weird. It used to come into Loogootee from the south on what is now SR 550, then almost immediately turn around and head back south down what is now US 231 to what is now CR 100. This is CR 100. It hasn't been 50 in a looooooong time.

 

Old US 50 by mobilene, on Flickr

 

US 50 bypasses the town of Washington today, but a great root beer stand is on the old alignment in town.

 

Mason's Root Beer by mobilene, on Flickr

 

My root beer float was delicious!

 

Mason's Root Beer by mobilene, on Flickr

 

Strangely, old 50 doesn't go through downtown Washington. Rather, it cuts through the south side of town. My old State Highway Maps say that the previous alignment, old old 50, did sort of reach downtown. I got photos of it on my way back through later in the day.

 

West of Washington, old 50 used to cross a river with a nice three-span steel truss bridge, but it was torn out in 1990. (http://bridgehunter.com/in/daviess/018310/). Here's where the road dead ends.

 

Old US 50 by mobilene, on Flickr

 

Old US 50 by mobilene, on Flickr

[DennyG]

So that's what Jug Rock looks like. I've seen some signs and think I even kind of looked for it at least once but no luck. Now I know it's real. Next time I'll get serious about finding it then I'll celebrate with a Mason's root beer.

 

Nice pictures.

[mobilene]

Denny, click through on that photo of Jug Rock -- I've geotagged the photo so the Flickr map shows exactly where it is.

[mga707]

Wow, small world ("but I'd hate to have to paint it."--Stephen Wright)! I actually know somebody whose father was born and raised in Loogootee! He returned from WWII with his French war bride and one can imagine the culture shock she experienced, going from Paris to Loogootee, Indiana! Shortly thereafter they moved to 'big city' Indianapolis (Speedway, actually), so that probably was not quite as much of a shock for his bride!

[Steve_Colby]

Root beer in a frosted mug.... It's been a long time since I had one of those.

Thanks for the photos Jim!

 

~ Steve

[DennyG]

Denny, click through on that photo of Jug Rock -- I've geotagged the photo so the Flickr map shows exactly where it is.

I saw that and was counting on it for guidance. Are those coordinates from a GPS unit or from map placement?

[mobilene]

Map placement. I'm still too cheap to buy a GPS unit. But notice that little road just south of the marker. There's a little pulloff immediately north of that road, barely one Matrix/Vibe wide, but it's good enough. Look for a narrow trail down to the rock.

[mobilene]

He returned from WWII with his French war bride and one can imagine the culture shock she experienced, going from Paris to Loogootee, Indiana!

 

Loogootee is a culture shock for anyone, even now! :-)

[mobilene]

More, more, I'm still not satisfied!

 

A dead-end bit of old 50 west of Wheatland, IN.

 

Old US 50 by mobilene, on Flickr

 

Where modern four-lane 50 begins to veer to bypass Vincennes, old 50 forks away. Dig that crazy single center stripe. I saw a lot of that on Knox County roads.

 

Old US 50 by mobilene, on Flickr

 

As old 50 winds its way into Vincennes proper, this ancient US 50 shield still stands watch.

 

Business US 50 shield by mobilene, on Flickr

[DennyG]

Root beer in a frosted mug.... It's been a long time since I had one of those.

Thanks for the photos Jim!

 

~ Steve

 

Indiana seems to be holding on to those better than most. I just now posted a picture of a Lafayette, Indiana, mug I drained in June and the gallery already had a shot of a mug I emptied a couple years back. It wasn't quite in Indiana but didn't miss it much. It

was on the Ohio side of a town that straddles the border.

[Keep the Show on the Road!]

A couple of those road shots could have been made in 192X, they evoke the feeling of the of the time so well.

 

Of course the root beer joint is a gem. Any place that still exists where I might have taken a swig as a kid is aces by me.

 

As far as culture shock is concerned, isn't Speedway the home of our esteemed forum leaders?

 

Jim, three cheers for your reports on US50!

 

Dave

 

Keep the Show on the Road!

[mobilene]

Root beer in a frosted mug.... It's been a long time since I had one of those.

 

Unfortunately, mine came in a to-go cup. But that didn't diminish its excellence. And the fact that a sweet young lady with a bright smile came out to greet me and take my order (as I photographed the sign) made it all the better!

[mobilene]

A couple of those road shots could have been made in 192X, they evoke the feeling of the of the time so well.

 

Of course the root beer joint is a gem. Any place that still exists where I might have taken a swig as a kid is aces by me.

 

As far as culture shock is concerned, isn't Speedway the home of our esteemed forum leaders?

 

I think the road shots from my most recent post are of roads built in the late 20s, so hey, you're not so far off!

 

Yep, our esteemed forum mods live in Speedway. I live four miles north of Speedway; you'd think I'd've met up with our fearless leaders for a short trip or at least a burger by now! Pat's reached out a couple times, but our schedules nevery sync. Somehow my life stays too busy.

 

jim

[Steve_Colby]

Indiana seems to be holding on to those better than most. I just now posted a picture of a Lafayette, Indiana, mug I drained in June and the gallery already had a shot of a mug I emptied a couple years back. It wasn't quite in Indiana but didn't miss it much. It

was on the Ohio side of a town that straddles the border.

 

Denny,

The last tall frosted mug of root beer I had was from A&W. I lived in Tempe, AZ for a while, in 1969, and there was an A&W stand on Apache Blvd. If memory serves, a tall frosty cost 50 cents.

 

~ Steve

[mobilene]

Old US 50 makes its way into Vincennes on Washington St., and then jogs over slightly to 6th St. and then to downtown. A number of great older homes line 6th St., though not all of them are in this nice of shape.

 

Old house by mobilene, on Flickr

 

Originally, 50 hooked a right onto Main St., which is quite lovely. Here it is from its westernmost end, by the Wabash River.

 

Vincennes by mobilene, on Flickr

 

50's next alignment was one block south, on Vigo St., where the lovely Lincoln Memorial Bridge still stands. It's so named because this is about the spot where young Lincoln crossed into Illinois with his family.

 

Lincoln Memorial Bridge by mobilene, on Flickr

 

But before this bridge, there was a combination bowstring arch truss and covered bridge at Main St.

 

 

About a half block of brick road remains, leading up to the place where the old bridge approach would have been. Today, a concrete road begins there and curves northward along the river. (You may recall from my Illinois US 50 trip last year that the old road on the Illinois side is brick, too, but is somebody's driveway today!)

 

The old brick road by mobilene, on Flickr

 

Main St. in Vincennes is a must see if you're into historic preservation. Lots of buildings dating to the mid-late 1800s, and many of them have been restored or at least reasonably cared for. This is the Second National Bank building.

 

Second National Bank by mobilene, on Flickr

 

This is the Pantheon Theater building, which needs a little love but has a group soliciting funds to help restore it.

 

Pantheon Theater by mobilene, on Flickr

 

This storefront caught my eye because of all the glorious Vitrolite. It isn't original to the building, though.

 

Glorious Vitrolite by mobilene, on Flickr

 

Next time: Old old US 50 between Vincennes and Washington (to the east) and a 1909 three-span iron bridge.