DEKALB, Ill. — From southern Cook County to the Mississippi River, a road created in 1913 — and still known by its original name — meanders through Chicago's suburbs before cutting a path across the fertile farmland farther west.
It is Lincoln Highway, America's first coast-to-coast highway, and it once stretched 3,400 miles from New York City to San Francisco. Illinois' 179 miles represent just a small portion, but history buffs and others in search of a unique, sometimes quirky road trip can find plenty along it to spark their interest.
"Illinois is fortunate to be the only state to have a designation as a national scenic byway," says Bonnie Heimbach, who as project director of the Illinois Lincoln Highway Coalition helped secure that distinction. She also helped persuade state transportation officials to fund scores of red, white and blue signs to guide motorists.
Heimbach also deserves much of the credit for a series of 10-by-20-foot hand-painted murals along the highway. The murals, with gazebos that offer historical information and trivia, are coalition projects that can serve as any journey's cornerstones.
"When we're done, it will be a collection of 36 murals," Heimbach said of the project, which began in 2009 and is expected to be completed for the highway's 2013 centennial. They're in communities from Lynwood, a suburb abutting the Indiana state line, to Fulton, on the Mighty Mississippi.
The federal government didn't get into highway building in a big way until the late 1920s, when routes started getting numbers instead of names. Earlier roads were funded by visionary industrialists who recognized the importance of automobiles in America's future.
As the well-signed highway zigzags its way across the Land of Lincoln, the sights to see include this representative sampling:
Cass Street Bridge, Joliet. An early, significant example of what's known as a rolling lift bridge, this span was built in 1920 and carried Lincoln Highway traffic across the Des Plaines River. The bridge is now along U.S. Highway 30, the route the old road follows through several Chicago suburbs.
Blakely House, Plainfield. This 19th century, cubic Italianate home sits on the northwest corner of Division and Ottawa streets. U.S.G. Blakely, a newspaper publisher and early proponent of modern roadways, spent many an hour watching Lincoln Highway traffic.
Auto camp shelter, Aurora. Along what's now Hill Avenue, the city of Aurora has restored the brick shelter that once served the highway's early travelers, who were sometimes called "motor hobos," as signage explains. A hand pump, still there but not functional, provided water for parched throats and radiators. Four fireplaces provided cooking facilities. The shelter is a short walk from the parking lot at the Phillips Park golf course.
Mural, Ashton. The mural in this Lee County village is one of the coalition's newest, having been completed in 2011. It depicts the town's Pavement Jubilee, which in 1920 drew a whopping 10,000 people for two days of festivities celebrating the paving of Lincoln Highway here. Band concerts, street dances and auto races were among the Jubilee's highlights.
Lincoln Highway Association National Headquarters, Franklin Grove. Just five miles west of Ashton — and 95 miles west of Chicago — the village of Franklin Grove witnesses a steady stream of pilgrims who come to visit the national headquarters of this group, which still celebrates the nation's first "interstate."
People from such far-flung countries as Mongolia and South Africa have visited this combination museum and gift shop chock-full of Lincoln Highway memorabilia.
"You never know who's going to walk in the door," said Lynn Asp, who serves as the association's volunteer secretary, answering mail from around the world.
Since 1999, the headquarters has been in a two-story building made of rare St. Peter sandstone quarried nearby. It was built in 1860 as a dry goods store by Henry Isaac Lincoln. He was a cousin of Abraham Lincoln's, for whom the early roadway is named.
Chicago Tribune photographer Scott Strazzante shot these photos with his smartphone, using the Hipstamatic app, which adds borders and creates enhanced, unpredictable color. See more of his photos at chicagotribune.com/lincolnhighway.
If you go
The Illinois Lincoln Highway Coalition (866-455-4249, drivelincolnhighway.com) publishes a hefty brochure with listings of what there is to see and do along the road.
The Lincoln Highway Association National Headquarters (815-456-3030, lincolnhighwayassoc.org) in Franklin Grove is open seven days a week year-round.
Northwest Indiana's Lincoln link
When much of Lincoln Highway consisted of dirt tracks, a 1.3-mile stretch through Dyer and Schererville, Ind., consisted of four paved lanes.
Promoted by industrialist Carl Fisher, whose company once manufactured all of America's auto headlights, the so-called "Ideal Section" was a showcase for road builders worldwide.
"This gave farmers a chance to realize how much better their lives would be if they could transport not only their families to church on Sundays, but transport their produce on a paved highway," said Cynthia Ogorek, a historian and author of "The Lincoln Highway Around Chicago."
A marker and a bench on the south side of the highway (across the street from Dyer's Dunkin' Donuts) celebrate the Ideal Section.
One of Ogorek's favorite spots is Teibel's Family Restaurant (219-865-2000, teibels.com), where U.S. 30 crosses U.S. Highway 41 in Schererville. It opened in 1929 as a 12-seat diner near the family's motor court. Patrons were lured by fried chicken dinners selling for 50 cents. Chicken remains one of the menu's top sellers, though it now costs $14.95. That's still a bargain because, as the menu points out, "Our Famous Fried Chicken Dinner is always all you can eat."
Cynthia Ogorek's book is available through her website, centerofknownhistory.com.
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