Indiana Lincoln Highway


	Historic Sites Surveyors Needed To Document Indiana's Lincoln Highway Corridor - September 15^th Training Session - South Bend. A historic sites survey training session will be presented by Todd Zeiger, Director of the Northern Regional Office at Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana office, (also the home of the Lincoln Highway Association National Office) in South Bend on Saturday, September 15th at 10 a.m. Volunteers are needed to conduct the survey across the northern Indiana counties where the Lincoln Highway routes ran in 1913 and then in 1928 with a new alignment. The Counties are Porter, Lake, La Porte, St. Joseph, Elkhart, Noble, Whitley, Allen, Whitley, Kosciusko, and Starke. Surveyors will be utilizing existing surveys, updating listings and adding sites that were not surveyed. Roadside architecture will be the focus of this project. Volunteers may survey their local sites or volunteer to assist in other counties. Interested individuals or organizations may contact Bill Arick at 260-471-5670 for more information about this volunteer opportunity and effort to protect and preserve the integrity of the historic Lincoln Highway corridor.


	Heminger Travel Lodge, Plymouth. Restoration work continues on the Heminger Travel Lodge in Plymouth. In 2005 a $350,000 Federal Transportation Grant was received by Turning Point Housing to rehab the old Tourist lodge into a Woman's Shelter. The colonial revival style building located at 850 Lincolnway East in Plymouth was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001. Photo - courtesy Kurt Garner


	2009 Lincoln Highway Association National Conference to be held in South Bend The Indiana LHA Chapter invites interested persons to participate in the planning of the 2009 LHA national conference to be held at the Holiday Inn and the Century Center in downtown South Bend, June 16-20, 2009. A special invitation is extended to roadside artists and authors relating to the Lincoln Highway, as well as those interested in the 100^th anniversary of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the 200^th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth, the 90^th anniversary of the U.S. Military Convoy on the Lincoln Highway and the 100^th anniversary of Alice Ramsey's transcontinental drive. The conference planning committee is seeking individual, corporate sponsors and organizations as partners in what is sure to be an extraordinary LHA gathering honoring Lincoln, Carl Fisher, and Indiana's automotive heritage. Contact Jan Shupert-Arick for information relating to the conference at 260-471-5670. We're also looking for people interested in the Dixie Highway history in Indiana, Illinois and Michigan. As part of the LH Association national conference we'll be traveling from South Bend to Indianapolis to visit Carl Fisher sites. We'd like some talking points about the Dixie along the route as well as historic images and stories for the conference booklet and tour highlights. Anyone with Dixie Highway information or in participating in the conference, please contact Jan Shupert-Arick at janshupert@yahoo.com. Please type DIXIE HIGHWAY in the subject line. Thanks for your interest in the LH, the Dixie, and Carl Fisher! CLICK HERE for a PDF Conference Brochure. Historic Bridges Historic bridges are an important part of the heritage and transportation system of Indiana . Recognizing the value of Indiana 's historic bridges, the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) has commissioned a project to study historic bridges and develop a process to manage and preserve this valued resource. INDOT, assisted by historical consultants from Mead & Hunt, is completing the project. As a first step, Mead & Hunt prepared a historic context of transportation and bridge building in Indiana through 1965. A copy of the report, Indiana Bridges Historic Context Study, 1830s -1965, is available for public review at the project website: www.in.gov/dot/programs/bridges/inventory/index.html. INDOT invites individuals and groups with an interest in historic bridges to review and provide comment by January 15, 2007. Submit comments by completing the Indiana Historic Bridge Inventory Form available at the project website or send comments directly to INDOT at the contact listed below: Christopher Koeppel, Administrator, Cultural Resources Section, Office of Environmental Services, Indiana Department of Transportation, 100 N. Senate Avenue , Room N642, Indianapolis , IN 46204. E-mail at ckoeppel@indot.IN.gov , (317) 232-5161. Valparaiso Valparaiso does it up right. Their streetscape improvement project included marking the Lincoln Highway with vinyl Lincoln Highway sign stickers on all street signs within the city route, Lincoln Highway banners downtown, and the placement of a Lincoln Highway marker with a new marble interpretative monument. The marker and monument were unveiled at a special ceremony on Lincoln's birthday, Monday, February 12th. On hand for the festivities were Lincoln Highway Association Vice-President Jan Shupert-Arick, and new Executive Director David Hay. From NWI.com, "On the 198th birthday of Abraham Lincoln, some 50 Valparaiso area residents stood outside City Hall to commemorate the historic Lincoln Highway with a memorial marker unveiling. One of the few remaining original highway markers, it once lined the first coast-to-coast continuous route through small-town America along 3,389 miles of road. The marker, donated by Kouts resident James Kosanke and his daughter Sue Yates, now symbolizes the deep history of the Valparaiso community. The cast concrete marker with a medallion on top was one of 3,000 that were placed along the route by Boy Scouts in 1928. "We're really proud of this because downtown is the heart of the community. There's a rich heritage in this community and we want to honor this history," said Bill Hanna, city administrator.


	The marker and an additional informational monument are part of a larger project of the Redevelopment Commission to rebuild and revitalize downtown Valparaiso. The Lincoln Highway monument accompanies banners along the route in Valparaiso, part of a project of city intern Ali Mitchell. Streetscapes, lighting, and brick pavers also are planned, funded by the commission. Lorelei Weimer, executive director of the Porter County Convention, Recreation and Visitor Commission, said the monument is important to tourism. "It's about economic development -- getting people exposed to these great towns America has," Weimer said. The highway was the vision of Hoosier Carl Fisher, who envisioned connecting the nation through a continuous route in 1913. The highway still connects towns. Representatives from La Porte and South Bend attended the unveiling to speak of the larger community and value of neighbors.


	Photo courtesy Gary Sathkamp


	In Valparaiso, the early Lincoln Highway route enters the city on Joliet Road to Lincolnway, following Lincolnway as far as Garfield Street where it goes south to La Porte Avenue and follows La Porte Avenue east to beyond city limits. A series of new signs now indicates this original route.


	Ken Locke - Nomination for Indiana Lincoln Highway Director 2007-2009 It is with great pride that the Indiana Chapter officers submit Ken Locke's name to the LHA Nomination Committee. Indiana's LH Director, Jan Shupert-Arick, is currently the President Elect of the LHA and will be stepping down from the Indiana Chapter leadership in order to serve as the national LHA President. If you don't know Ken, here's a brief bio. His contact information is below. Thank you, Ken, for making time in your very busy life to be Indiana's next LHA Director! We are very excited to see you assume this state wide leadership position after so much devotion to the LH in Kosciusko County. Ken "Hawkeye" Locke of Warsaw, Indiana was born in Marshalltown, Iowa (on the Lincoln Highway!). He is an Eagle Scout and 1990 graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University with a degree in Business. He has been the Chairman of the Kosciusko County Lincoln Highway Committee since 2002 and was instrumental in the marking of the route in 2003 with new signs and a monument in Kosciusko County as well as the 75th Anniversary Patch commemorating the marking of the route by the Boy Scouts Of America in 1928. He is employed by The Salvation Army and is an active member of the Lincolnway District Boy Scouts, Warsaw Rotary Club, Sons of The American Legion and Greater Warsaw Ministerial Association. He and his wife Sina have seven children in a blended family and six grandchildren. Find out more about Ken at http://members.tripod.com/~kclocke/lincolnhighway.html KOSCIUSKO COUNTY LINCOLN HIGHWAY COMMITTEE Ken Locke, Chair, P.O. Box 1473, Warsaw, Indiana 46581-1473 Email: warotary@kconline.com La Porte The City of La Porte was awarded $943,700 for the restoration of the Historic Train Depot just off Lincolnway. The project includes the interior rehab of the Passenger Station and the Baggage House buildings as well as landscaping of the depot site. The building will house the Greater La Porte Economic Development Corporation and the La Porte Urban Enterprise Institute. The Indiana LHA Chapter presented a program in La Porte on April 17^th at the La Porte Historical Society's new museum. Historic New Carlisle Lincoln Highway enthusiasts may now visit The Old Republic, a restored 1860s home on the old Lincoln Highway in New Carlisle, Indiana. The Republic will serve as the local history museum. Dana Groves, Director of Historic New Carlisle, welcomes Lincoln Highway members to visit and is working with local residents to find photographs and stories about the Lincoln Highway. In addition you can stay at the Bed & Breakfast - The Inn at the Old Republic. Route Changes Proposed in Indiana Fort Wayne- Harrison Street / An expansion of the Grand Wayne Center in downtown Fort Wayne has resulted in the vacation of one block of Harrison Street. U.S. 30/33 Interchange / There is a proposed widening of the highway lanes in this area, but plans do not seem to threaten the remaining sections of the Old Lincoln Highway/U.S. 33 road remnants. A barbeque stand and auto camp was located just north of this site near the U.S.30/33 Interchange. Preserving Historic Buildings Along The Lincoln Highway Initial efforts are underway to save the Jefferson Township Center School , District 5, one-room school house built in 1892 in the Besancon Settlement in eastern Allen County. The Jefferson Township Centralized School that replaced the 1892 one-room school house in 1938 also stands vacant along the old Lincoln Highway. This settlement area offers a unique historical look at the Lincoln Highway heritage. Transportation Interpretive Center Planned for Plymouth, Indiana The Marshall County Historical Society and Museum has a vision for the future of transportation interpretation for Indiana's auto and highway story. Director, Linda Rippy, reports the society has purchased an adjoining building to the present museum in order to create spaces for research and new exhibitions. The museum plans to highlight the Lincoln Highway, the Dixie Highway and the Yellowstone Trail - all of which passed through Marshall County. The museum is seeking donations of artifacts and archival materials relating to the highways - items relating to Indiana are of special interest. Lincoln Highway Association members are encouraged to support this effort by making a donation or becoming a museum member. Make it a point to stop by the museum in downtown Plymouth the next time you're out on the road! Phone: 574-936-2306. Visit the museum and project at www.mchistoricalsociety.org/ Auto Camping Images The Indiana chapter is searching for images of auto camping. According to the 1924 Lincoln Highway Road Guide, the population of Schererville was 190. No tourist accommodations were available, but gas, oil, and meals could be procured. Between Schererville and Dyer the internationally famous Ideal Section of the Lincoln Highway was built in 1922 and 1923 by the Lincoln Highway Association. There was a free campsite in a grove of oak trees on the south side of the Ideal Section, just west of a farmhouse. If you have images of auto camping in Indiana, please contact Jan Shupert Arick at 260-471-5670. Speakers Bureau Several members of the Indiana Lincoln Highway Association are available to make presentations to organizations and schools. Contact Jan Shupert Arick at 260-471-5670 for further information. Brick Street Restoration Brochure A brochure on brick street restoration is now available from ARCH - Fort Wayne's Preservation organization. Contact Angie Quinn at information@archfw.org or at 260-426-5117. ARCH events: ARCH presents Heart Healthy Walking Tours of Downtown Fort Wayne every Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. Tours highlight the architecture & history of Ft. Wayne. Tours depart Barr Street Market (corner of Barr and Wayne Streets). Cost: $5/adult Children 12 and under free. Length = 1 1/2 hours/2000 steps. Following the tour, step on board the free CitiLoop Trolley to enjoy attractions & eateries.