The interstate highway system that we now enjoy is typically
ascribed as the brainchild of President Eisenhower (thus the name, the Dwight
D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways) and as part
of national defense/readiness, but the roots of an interstate system go back as
far as 1903 and Teddy Roosevelt and it was his cousin Franklin Delano Roosevelt
who was the real founder of the interstate system. FDR in his quest to put people to work, and
as congress was becoming increasingly tired of the CCC and WPA and other ABC
agencies, pushed the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1938 through the
legislature. This tasked the Bureau of
Public Roads with creating a feasibility study of a toll-based road system that
would entail three north-south, and three east-west super highways. The resulting report said that a toll-based
highway system could not be self-supporting and it recommend a nearly
27,000-mile toll free highway system, this plan would be the basis for what
became the interstate highway system.
After Roosevelt’s death, Harry Truman in 1949 choses to pursue the
American Housing Act as part of his “Fair Deal” and lets the highway system
drop, which Eisenhower will pick up again in 1955.
Prior to the interstate highway system roads tended to be
maintained by organizations or private individuals as a commercial
endeavor. Revenues were generated by
tolls and by the sale of land next to roads. The Lincoln Highway, the first
interstate highway was an example of this and was created and maintained by the
Lincoln Highway association. Highways
and roads varied widely in their size, construction techniques and materials.
The White Way Highway, which I-70 follows in part, ran from Chicago to Colorado
Springs, and consisted of a gravel strip that A. E. Blackney and Everett
Lindsay of Frankfurt were paid to paint a white stripe on every other telephone
pole for 1,161 miles, for 15c/pole (http://www.barnesks.net/Hwy9.html). At the time, the White Way was the only
organized highway to go through Missouri and Kansas, it ran east west from
Corning to Kirwin, links Chicago with Denver, financed by the Atchison
Commercial Club ( https://kswhiteway.wordpress.com/highway-history/) , a group
of community leaders, who felt that it would enhance business in communities
along the route. And that it did, in many towns, the White Way became the main
street of the town.
Perhaps it was Eisenhower’s involvement in 1919 in the U.S.
Army’s first transcontinental convoy, which took two months to drive across the
U.S. to assess the readiness of America’s roads that
made(https://www.transportation.gov/content/celebrating-50-years-eisenhower-interstate-highway-system)
him pick up the idea of highway system and order the creation of the “Grand
Plan”. The Grand Plan was a 10-year plan
to improve safety, reduce traffic jams, reduce traffic-related litigation,
increase economic efficiency, and provide for the national defense. This lead to the passage of the 1956 Federal
Aid Highway Act which made highways uniform and provided funding through
highway user taxes, federal gas and other motor vehicle related taxes. Eisenhower was insistent that the highways be
“pay-as-you-go” constructed and long term financed.
On November 14th, 1956, just west of Topeka, between
Valencia and Maple Hill, the first section of I-70 was the first section of
interstate highway to be opened up in the nation. Finished in June of 1970, I-70 stretches 424
east-west across the state at a cost of $155.6 million (this does not include
the turnpike). East from Salina was
made with Portland cement and west with asphalt. This was the beginning of the
40,000 mile national Interstate highway system which is the U.S.’s largest public works project.
1903—Teddy Roosevelt, “ The faculty, the art, the habit of
road building marks in a nation those solid, stable qualities which tell for
permanent greatness…I say, we should have a right to demand that such a nation
build good r
oads. Much more have
we the right to demand it from the practical standpoint.” (TR at Odeon Hall, St. Louis, MO to the
National and International Good Roads Convention, April 29,1903)
1907—Wilson v. Shaw the Supreme Court decided that the
commerce Clause of the Constitution gave Congress the authority to construct
interstate highways.
1910—Golden Belt Highway.
Running from Kansas City to Colorado Springs it was marked by “belts” of
yellow paint on telephone poles, much like trail markers today, the yellow
“belts” assured travelers that they were following the right path. This is now Highway 40.
(http://gearyhistory.blogspot.com/2015/04/golden-belt-highway.html)
1912—National Old Trails Road Association—formed in Kansas
City from Baltimore to California, 3,096 miles long, following he Santa Fe
Trail. (1926 future president Harry
Truman, president of the Old Trails assoc. lead a fund raising drive for the
twelve “Madonnas of the Trail” monuments to be placed one in each state)
1913—Lincoln Highway the first coast to coast highway is
begun (completed in 1923) connecting New York to California
1916—Wilson’s good roads speech, “The highway is not
intended, first of all, for the pleasure vehicle. It is not intended for the mere
traveler.” In this campaign speech he
argued that highways were needed to exploit the nation’s resources, help business: the farmer, the retailer and the wholesaler;
that good road would break down provincialism and unite the nation….A network
of roads which will release all the locked up riches of all countrysides….Good
roads are necessary for every practical aspect of our lives –to draw neighbors
together, to create a community of feeling, to create those arteries….”
(American Motorist, November 1916 p. 12, “Network of Roads Will Release Says
the President)
1916 Federal Aid Road Act of 1916—aka the Bankhead-Shackleford
Act; First federal highway funding legislation in the U.S., it provided
$75million in federal money in 50/50 matching funds, funding was for rural
roads that were to be open to the public at no charge. This was to aid in
commerence and Rural Mail delivery. Limited federal funding to $10,000/mile.
1917—All states had a highway agency to administer federal
funds.
1921—Federal Aid Highway Act of 1921; aka the Phipps Act
provided 50/50 matching funds for state highway building up to 7% of roads
statewide in 11 western states.
1922—Pershing Map—General John Pershing was commissioned by
the Bureau of Public Roads to draw a map which indicated which roads were most
important to the U.S. in terms of National Defense. This was the first official topographical map
of the U.S..
1921—Victory Highway George Stanfield of Topeka proposed a
highway from New York to San Francisco honoring the WWI dead. The headquarters were in Topeka. Bronze eagles were to be placed at each
county line to remember the war dead from that county. Only 6 eagles—3 in KS, 3 in Ca were
placed. The one from the Shawnee county
line is now at Gage park, Leavenworth county line is a the Dyke Museum on KU’s
campus. Pottawatomie county eagle is at
the Wamego city Park.
(https://www.kansasww1.org/monuments-and-memorials-the-victory-highway-eagles/)
Also known as the Smoky Hill Tail.
1922—White Way Highway is built (now K-9 highway)
1925—American Association of State Highway Officials begins
planning federal highway system—east routes to
be numbered in multiples of ten.
1938—FDR’s Federal
Aid Highway Act feasibility study for 6 toll interstate superhighways;
concludes toll based is not feasible.
FDR gave Thomas MacDonald a hand drawn map with 8 superhighways for the
study.
1939—Bureau of Public Roads Division report “Toll Roads and
Free Roads” by Herbert Frairbank is the first formal descript of what will
become the interstate highway system.
1941—FDR appoints National Interregional Highway Committee
to evaluate needs of highway system and to elaborate on Fairbank’s master
highway plan.
1944—NIHC’s report recommends nearly 40,000 mile rural/urban
highway routes
1944—Federal Aid Highway Act calls for up 40,000 miles to connect routes, metropolitan areas,
industrial centers, border points and to serve National defense and to be
designated the National System of Interstate Highways.
1947—First 37,700 miles of routes for proposed and reviewed
but funds are not authorized and construction is put on hold
1952—Federal Aid Highway Act of 1952 gives $25million to fund highway system
1954— $175 million annually for 1956 and 1957 authorized
1956— Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 Resolves Interstate
Highway funding under President Eisenhower which spurs development, reining the
concepts of Fairbanks’ Toll Roads plan.
1956—October 25th—opening day of the Kansas turnpike.
Nov. 14th, 1956—first section of interstate highway in the
nation to be opened—I-70 west of Topeka.
This was the largest public works project to date
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