Lincoln Highway History

HISTORY OF THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY THROUGH STATE CENTER, IOWA
 

The idea of building a coast-to-coast highway across the United States was proposed in1912 by Carl Fisher, founder of the Indianapolis Speedway. He called his proposed road the Coast-to-Coast Rock Highway. It captured the public’s imagination and desire for good roads. Henry Joy came up with the idea of naming the highway after Abraham Lincoln and became the main spokesperson for the highway.

On July 1, 1913, the organization was officially incorporated as the Lincoln Highway Association. The Association set up a system of "consuls" along the highway. They represented the highway in local affairs, assisted visitors, and let the headquarters know of matters concerning the highway.

From the beginning, there were conflicts over which routes the Lincoln Highway should follow. This was true for State Center. In fact, the conflict over the route through State Center predates the creation of the Lincoln Highway Association. In May of 1913, a representative of the State Center Business Association went before the Marshall County Supervisors, arguing that the route of the transcontinental highway proposed by the American Automobile Association should not be changed. This route turned south a half mile east of LaMoille, went south for a half-mile, and then turned west and on into State Center. It then turned north on Geneseo (Fifth Avenue SE) for three blocks before turning west down Main Street. Then it turned north on Oneida (Third Avenue NW) for three blocks to Ewing (Third Street NW) before turning west. It went west to the city limits where the highway turned north for a quarter of a mile before turning west at the T-intersection going to Colo. This became known as the “south” route. A. A. Moore, the county representative of the American Automobile Association, proposed a second route, which turned north a half-mile east of LaMoille and then turned west just south of Linn Creek and the Chicago Northwestern Railroad tracks. This route ran along the south edge of LaMoille and west, passing along the north edge of State Center. This became known as the “north” route.

Marshall County and the State of Iowa designated the “south” route as the main highway through the county. But A. A. Moore became the Lincoln Highway Association county consul for Marshall County and continued to push for the “north” route. In April of 1914, the State Consul for the Association assured State Center leaders that the “south” route through State Center would become the official Lincoln Highway route and the “north” route would only be temporary while work was being done on the “south” route. It was not until July of 1922, however, that the road markers were changed from the “north” to the “south” route. A. A. Moore, now the Central District Consul for the Lincoln Highway Association, did not take part in ordering the relocation of the road.

In 1923, the City of State Center and Marshall County contracted to pave Primary Road Number 6 (Lincoln Highway) through State Center. Prior to this the City and County had made a number of improvements to the main highway running east and west across Marshall County. The City installed curb and gutter on Main Street in 1917 and graveled the route through town in 1918. The County brought the route to grade, rounded the corner going west to Colo, and graveled the route from Marshalltown to the Story County line, excluding the City of State Center, in 1918. The route was designated Iowa 6 in 1920.

The 1923 plans called for changing the route to take advantage of a new railroad underpass planned for the street running along the city’s western corporate line. The new highway would extend another block west on Main Street and then turn southwest to Second Street, running four blocks west to the corporate line, then north through the underpass, finally connecting to the current highway at Third Street NW, then Iowa 6 (Lincoln Highway). Because the underpass was not built as planned, this change would not be made until 1930.

In 1925, the Lincoln Highway across Marshall County and most of the route through State Center was paved. In 1926, they paved the last section of the Lincoln Highway in State Center. This was Oneida (Third Avenue NW) between Main Street and Ewing (Third Street NW), then Iowa 6 (Lincoln Highway). Also, in 1926, Iowa 6 became U.S. 30.

All U.S. highways were now numbered instead of named. The original Lincoln Highway Association disbanded in 1927. Its last official action was the placing of 3000 concrete markers along the highway. The Boy Scouts placed these in 1928. One of these markers still sits at the corner where Main Street curves and connects to Second Street SE, near the corner of Schilling Baseball Field.

In 1930, State Center reached an agreement with the state to complete the Second Street paving to the new highway 30 which would be constructed following a reconstructed Fourth Street route connected by a sweeping curve to the highway, now running along the western corporate line through the railroad underpass. This remained the U.S. 30 route through State Center until the construction of a four-lane bypass on the southern corporate line in 1963. This is the current Highway 30 route.