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GOOD NIGHT.
>>> IF YOU ARE LOST, YOU ARE
RAIL LOST.
>> TRAILBLAZERS WITH A LONG,
WINDING IDEA.
TO BUILD A ROCK ROAD FROM
COAST-TO-COAST GO WAY BETTER
THAN A MUDDY ROAD.
>> THE MUD, BLOOD, SWEAT AND
THE GEARS.
>> A LITTLE BIT OF A LIFE
AND DEATH EP ENDEAVOR.
>> HOW THEY CREATED THE
ULTIMATE ROAD TRIP, THE
LINCOLN HIGHWAY. >> I’M STUART VARNEY, THIS
>> I’M STUART VARNEY, THIS
IS AMERICAN BUILT.
>> BASEBALL, HOT DOGS, APPLE
PIE AND CHEVROLET.
WHAT ACCOUNTINGWHAT ECONOMY
-- WHAT COULD BE MORE
AMERICAN THAN A ROAD TRIP. AMERICA WAS BEAUTIFUL, BUT
AMERICA WAS BEAUTIFUL, BUT
ITS HIGHWAYS WERE A MESS.
>> THINK MUD.
AND PAVED ROADS IF THERE
WERE ANY, WERE IN CITIES.
>> CARS MADE THE WORLD
SMALLER.
>> AT THE TURN OF THE
CENTURY THERE WERE A FEW,000
PEOPLETHOUSAND PEOPLE WHO
WERE STARTING TO BUY
AUTOMOBILE, PEOPLE WITH MORE
MONEY, WHO COULD AFFORD THE
NEWFANGLED LOUD, HORSELESS
CARRIAGE.
>> SOME OF THE MOST SPORTS
DRIVERS DEBATED, WAS IT
POSSIBLE TO CROSS AMERICA BY
CAR?
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA,
1903.
IN A BAR AT UNIVERSITY CLUB,
A GROUP OF EARLY CAR GEEKS
OFFERED 50 BUCKS TO ANY MAN
BRAVE ENOUGH TO TRY.
>> TO THINK THAT THE CAR
COULD CROSS THE COUNTRY WAS
REALLY AN I’M POSSIBILITY.
>> DR. JACKSON ACCEPTED THAT
CHALLENGE.
>> IT IS A BLITZ OF A LITTLE
BIT OF A LIFE AND DEATH
ENDEAVOR.
>> DR. JACKSON FACED A
SERIES OF ROADBLOCKS.
>> IT WAS AN EXCURSION.
HE PICKED UP A BULL TERRIER
DOG ON THE WAY, THEY HAD TO
FIND GOGGLES FOR THE DOG
BECAUSE OF THE DUST.
>> IT TOOK 63 DAYS, WHEN
JACKSON AND CREW ARRIVED IN
NEW YORK CITY, THEY WERE
WELCOMED WITH FANFARE.
>> ALLOWED PEOPLE TO SEE THE
POSSIBILITY THAT A CAR COULD
CROSS THE UNITED STATES IT
IS THE SAME AS FLYING TO
MARS, IT JUST SEEMED
IMPOSSIBLE.
>> AMERICA’S ROADWAYS NEEDED
A MAKEOVER, ENTREPRENEUR
STEPPED UP, CARL FISHER.
>> CARL FISHER WAS SOMETIMES
CALLED CRAZY CARL BECAUSE OF
THE STUNTS AND BIG IDEAY HES
HE WOULD PULL OFF.
>> HE.
ED TO SEE AUTOMOBILES
EVERYWHERE.
>> FISHER PROPOSED A TRUE
COAST-TO-COAST ROCK HIGHWAY.
>> THE IDEA OF A HIGHWAY WAS
OUT LANDISH ENOUGH, AND
PAVING IT IN ROCK WAS CARL
FISHER’S BIGVISION.
>> TO HELP FUNDS THE BIG
VISION HE TURNED TO KING OF
CARS.
>> TO HENRY FORD.
>>> THE MODEL T OPENED UP
AMERICAN ROADS, UNTIL THEN
THE CARS WERE EXPENSIVE AND
OWNED BY MOSTLY WEALTHY
PEOPLE.
>> FORD, WAS NOT KEEN ON
PRIVACY FUNDED ROAD.
>> HE THOUGHT ROAD BUILDING
WAS TOO BIG OF A PROJECT TO
RAISE PRIVATE FUNDS FOR.
>> CRAZY CARL WAS NOT READY
TO GIVE UP.
>> CARL FISHER IS ONE OF THE
ORIGINAL 4 FOUNDERS OF THE
INTDINDY 500, HE KNEW A LOT
OF PEOPLE IN AUTOMOBILE
INDUSTRY.
>> THIS WAS A GOOD IDEA FOR,
BEST WAY TO SELL MORE CARS
AND PARTS FOR CAR WAS TO
BUILD HIGHWAYS FOR THOSE
CARS TO DRIVE ON.
>> EVEN WITH SUPPORT OF HIS
BUSINESS BUDDIES, FISHER
COULD NOT MUSTER THE PRIVATE
FUNDS HE NEEDED.
>> ORIGINAL GOAL WAS TO
RAISE $10 MILLION IN 1912.
AND THAT IS AFTER THE
ASTRONOMICAL.
>> HE DID GET SUPPORT OF
PACKER PRESIDENT HENRY JOY.
>> HENRY JOY WAS A DETROIT
NATIVE.
>> HE WAS WEALTHY MAN, AND
NEVER NEEDED TO LEAVE HIS
DESK, AT THE SAME TIME HE
WAS QUITE AN ADVENTURER.
>> SPANISHER FISHER WAS THE
BRIGHT IDEA GUY, THE PACKER
PRESIDENT, JOY, HE WAS THE. IMPL
>> FISHER HANDED JOY THE
KEYS AND JOY HIT THE GAS
PEDAL, UNDERSTOOD THAT
PRIVATE FUNDING WAS NOT
ENOUGH IT NEEDED A PATRIOTIC
IDENTITY.
>> HENRY’S FATHER WAS
ABRAHAM LINCOLN’S BOSS AT
ILLINOIS CENTRAL RAILROAD,
HENRY GREW UP WITH STORIES
TOLD FIRST HAND FROM HIS
FATHER ABOUT LINCOLN.
HE TOLD CARL FISHER, THIS IS
A GREAT IDEA, LET’S NOT CALL
IT THE COAST-TO-COAST ROCK
HIGHWAY.
LET’S MAKE IT AS A MEMORIAL
TO ABRAHAM LYNNION. LINCOLN.
>> THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY
ASSOCIATION.
>> THEY SAW IT AS A
PATRIOTIC DUTY TO HONOR
PRESIDENT LINCOLN TO HELP
BIND THE COUNTRY WITH THE
LINCOLN HIGHWAY.
>> CHOOSING THE NAME WAS A
SMALLSNAP, CHOOSING THE
ROUTE WAS A SLOG.
>> WHEN WORD GOT OUT THAT
THEY WERE PATH FINDING A
ROUTE THAT WOULD GO FROM NEW
YORK TO SAN FRANCISCO, A LOT
OF TOWNS TRIED TO CONVINCE
THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY
ASSOCIATION TO PUT THEIR ROAD THROUGH THEIR TOWN.
ROAD THROUGH THEIR TOWN.
>> JOY A’S FIRSTRY PRIORITY
WAS KEEP IT SIMPLE.
>> PROPOSED LINCOLN HIGHWAY
WOULD BE A PATCHWORK OF
IMPROVED ROADS AND BRAND-NEW
ONES STRETCHING FROM TIMES
SQUARE TO SAN FRANCISCO,
WHEN IT WAS CONNECTED IT
WOULD COVER OVER 3300 MILES
ACROSS 12 STATES, THE
LARGEST MEMORIAL TO A HUMAN
BEING EVER, IT WOULD REQUIRE
LOCAL MUSCLE, ALL THE WAY.
>> LINCOLN HIGHWAY
ASSOCIATION WOULD GET LOCAL
PEOPLE INVOLVED.
THEY HAD EACH STATE HAVE AN
ORGANIZATION AND THEN WITHIN
THAT STATES, THERE WOULD BE
LOCAL COUNCILS.
THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE AT THE
TIME GOT INVOLVED.
>> THE DIFFERENT CREWS HAD
THE SAME PROBLEM TO SOLVE,
HOW DO YOU BRIDGE ROADS FROM
MUD TO -- BRING ROADS FROM
MUD TO ROCK.
>> ANYTHING BETTER THAN DIRT
WOULD BE AN IMPROVEMENT.
SO THEY WERE STILL AT THE
EXPERIMENT WILL AGE OF WHAT
WOULD BE A BETTER ROAD.
>> AT THE END OF 19TH
CENTURY, THE INTRODUCTION OF
POURED CEMENTS WAS A GAME
CHANGER.
>> THE IDEA OF PAVING ROAD
IN CONCRETE WAS
REVOLUTIONARY, PEOPLE COULD
NOT BELIEVE YOU COULD POUR
LIQUID CONCRETE TODAY AND
DRIVE ON IT TOMORROW.
>> HENRY NEEDED TO MAKE
AMERICA CRY OUT FOR
CONCRETE.
HE CREATED THE ULTIMATE
TEASE, THE SEEDLING MILE.
>> THEY WOULD TAKE A
PARTICULARLY MUDDY SECTION
OF THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY, THEY
WOULD RAISE ENOUGH MONEY TO
PUT IN A DEMONSTRATOR MILE
TO SHOW PEOPLE, THIS IS WHAT
AN IMPROVED ROAD COULD
REALLY BE LIKE. >> JOY PLANTED THE FIRST
>> JOY PLANTED THE FIRST
SEEDLING MILE IN MULTA,
ILLINOIS.
>> THEY WOULD BE IN DIRT AND
MUD WITH LUMPY SERVICE THAN
THERE WAS CONCRETE, THERE
WAS NO BETTER SALES PITCH
THAN DRIVE A MILE OF
CONCRETE, SAY THIS IS WHAT
WE NEED ACROSS THE NATION.
>> ILLINOIS DRIVERS GOT A
ONE MILE TASTE TEST, THEY
WANTED MORE.
JOY WAS A MASTER PR MAN, HE
PLANTED THE SEEDLING MILES
IN NEBRASKA, IOWA, OHIO AND
INDIANA, AMERICA WAS SOON
HOOKED.
>> THERE WERE OTHER PLACES
ALONG THE LINCOLN HIGHWAY
WHERE PEOPLE REALIZED, THIS
IS WAY BETTER THAN A MUDDY
ROAD.
>> IT WOULDN’T BE A SMOOTH
RIDE YET.
>> THEY PUT RATION ON THE
MEN FOR WATER AND A GUARD AROUND THE WATER TRUCK.