Customer Reviews

The Lincoln Highway: Coast to Coast from Times Square to the Golden Gate

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Michael Wallis, author, movie voice over (sheriff in Cars) also authored Route 66 that has sold over 500,000 copies. He joined Pulitzer-prize winning photographer Michael S. Williamson to pay tribute to the America of a bygone era.

During this era, Americans got into their cars and drove across the country to sightsee or visit another city or family who has moved away.

The Great American Road Trip takes us across the middle of the country across California, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York--3 states and 3,389 miles.

"If Route 66 was the `Mother Road'--as John Steinbeck wrote in his classic novel, The Grapes of Wrath, then the Lincoln Highway is this country's "Father Road." Named after the 16th president, this highway is for travelers, not tourists--people who will take the change to be lead to memorable places or people that are off the beaten path.

The extensive photo gallery date back to 1910, some taken recently, others from Williamson's personal collection. You don't have to read a word to get the idea of the people and places along the route. But you will not want to miss Wallis' wonderful telling words.

The Lincoln Highway was so named in 1919, however it wasn't long before all highways got numbers, so it is also known as Hwy. 30. Unlike modern freeways that are straight slabs of concrete, this highway is a "crooked path" that reflects diversity of cafes, theatres, signs, people, bridges, etc.

Nothing is predictable on the Lincoln Highway--and what more fun could a trip be than unpredictable.

A fun book to look at and reminisce by the photos, postcards, stories, maps--even if you've never been in those area, they are the down-home America of another time.

Armchair Interviews says: A great gift for someone from those areas or who is a true traveler at heart. It will be enjoyed by all.

This weighty coffee table book is rich with details and photographs, the long corridor of the Lincoln Highway appreciated by a new generation of travelers since the 1980s, a relic of our American past rediscovered by enthusiastic tourists motoring from state to state, the distinctive landmarks that define the vast geographic landscape of this country. Beginning with New York, the chapters address a parade of states: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada and California, from east to west, a staggering panorama of roadside attractions, motels, restaurants and tourist attractions, a great scavenger hunt for the bizarre Americana of which we are so proud. Unable to release the quirky icons of our history, the ever-changing city landscapes retain relics of the past, signs and buildings that refuse to be relegated to obscurity.

How easy it would be to replace history with more modern pretensions; yet there is a reluctance to deny the eclectic images of a memorable America where individualism triumphs over corporate blandness. In text that addresses the particulars of each state and vivid complementary images, the book defines each place and the people who live there, their stories and family histories, generations of articulated hopes and dreams. These are the folks who fought world wars and settled in unfamiliar places, their tales speaking of a respect for hard work and the joy of accomplishment. Illinois boasts the Abe Lincoln Motel and the historical road alignment of the Lincoln Highway and Route 66, which run on the same road for three blocks trough Plainfield, Illinois. Nebraska has a chapter of the Lincoln Highway Association; since 1988, the city of Shelton has sponsored the annual Lincoln Highway Festival and Antique Car Show.

Heading west, Interstate 80 has made devastating inroads on the once-booming commerce along the (imaginary) border between Nebraska and Wyoming, a sad reminder that harried motorists and truckers haven't the luxury of visiting the old places. But the history is there for those with the inclination to bypass Interstate 80 for the Highway towns, Pine Bluffs, Burns and Hillsdale, all used as rail sidings by the Union Pacific. In the Pacific Time Zone, Nevada is rife with iconography, the giant figure of Wendover Will in West Wendover, the familiar miner's image that adorns the façade of Hotel Nevada in Ely, accoutrements of hardscrabble miners dotting the state all the way to Reno, "The Biggest Little City in the World". California, my home state, gets the shortest shrift in this impressive compilation of facts, Placerville singled out, as well as the restored Auburn Hotel in Auburn.

Although many historic landmarks are preserved here in photographs, there is an unfortunate tendency for the economics of the present to prevail over the nostalgia of the past. But for a brief time, traveling along Lincoln Highway from the east coast to the west, I am thrilled to rediscover the intimate face of this proud country. Accessible and refreshing, this book affords a great journey through the not-so-recent past. Luan Gaines/2007.

I was very excited to receive this book, as I received my college degrees from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Il....I discovered during my time there that the main street through the old town was part of a national highway, so I was eager to explore it further.

I started to read this book, and found it interesting because of the amount of history that it covered in each state. But the further I got, the more I was annoyed by the writing. The writing seemed very simplistic, and I think it would be adequate for, say, a fifth grader. I almost felt insulted by the lack of any sophistication. On the other hand, the photographs are wonderful!! I think I will stop reading the book and just look at the photos instead; then I will feel as though I've gotten my money's worth.

Excellent book, well written with many classic photos. Would highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the Lincoln Highway.

Very well written--this book makes you want to get in your car and drive. We are planning our next vacation to cover just a part of the Lincoln Highway.

I first heard about this and it's companion book about Route 66 on NPR, so I decided to borrow it from my local library. It was so delightful that I purchased it for my mother (she is 79) and she was very pleased with it, too. I would highly recommend it for anyone who is over 40 and has warm and fuzzy road trip memories from childhood.

Having read Wallis' big highway book about Route 66, I guess I was expecting more out of the Lincoln Highway offering. But, comparing the two, the Lincoln Highway had a rather 'phoned in' feel and read to it. Not that its bad, it's a fine book, but I was expecting more from this author.

Lincoln Highway comes off much more a travel guide than the Route 66 book. The numberous and predictible stops for 'good down home road food' and 'the local dated business dating back to the days of the highway' references started to become clique especially when contrasted with the same in the Route 66 book. It was as if he was trying to recapture that Route 66 feeling, one very unique to that road, in the Lincoln Highway. The Lincoln is loaded with history, but overall lacks the folklore and myth of the great American love with travel and moving west that Route 66 has. In short, it was a hard road to top.

I've travelled both roads, and in particular the Lincoln in PA. I did feel Wallis glanced over the road in PA, while spending a great deal of time on places like New Jersey and eastern Ohio. Central PA on Route 30 (Lincoln Hwy) is a pure stretch of the route, where, in the old days, you could pretty much compare it to Route 66 in Missouri or Illinois.

Overall, a good book, but not up to the level I'd look for from this author on a topic he has come to own. Only the Tom Teague book on Route 66 tops the Wallis efforts.

What a great book to establish and chronicle the history of this very important highway in the history of our country. If you think of the internet and how it reduced the size of the world. This highway when first completed, did the same thing to this GREAT country of ours. Very interesting book about what you would see while traveling this road. Makes me want to jump on my motorcycle and head out!!!

We have started planning our trip based on this book. It is worth the money just to enjoy looking at. WE LOVE IT.

This informative book didn't disappoint. It is full of interesting information on this historic highway. The many pictures added to the enjoyment. I would recommend this book to any travel enthusiast.