Strawberry on the Lincoln Highway's southern route, part 6.

These wonderful photos show Strawberry’s two locations. The location of the Strawberry House has been a source of confusion for me. The secret is realizing there were a total of four Strawberry Houses over the years. Irad Barry built the first roadhouse in 1858 along what is now Highway 50. There is a state rock monument describing the first location just west of the gas station. It was here that a second larger lodge was built and stood until a fire destroyed it in 1867. The photo above shows the huge structure.

Strawberry cabins in 1920. We are facing east. Click photo for closer look. “McCarthy Album 04, Photograph 068,” California State Archives Exhibits,

After the disastrous fire of 1867, the new owner, Charlie Watson, re-built the station, but a bit up the road, just before the bridge crossing the American River. The photo above shows this new location. It was this location that would see the rise in automobile traffic after the turn of the century. This spot would be owned by the Watson and Martin Families from 1867 to 1938. While autos did pass down the old Swan-Henry Road, the Lincoln Highway in 1913 breathed new life into the old rest stop. For the next 16 years, the place was a beehive of activity as American's took to the road in their new Model T's.

Strawberry Resort on the Lincoln Highway, The photo above is courtesy of Laura Bantz

In 1929 the Great Depression was upon us, and the acquisition of automobiles and traveling slowed down as well. Who had the money to do it? The second reason business slowed was the highway's re-routing in 1931 from the old Swan-Henry Toll Road/Lincoln Highway to today's route. This bypassed the old resort and, combined with the Depression, helped in its eventual demise in 1939, just before World War II.

In 1939 Fred Baumhoff built the structure we know today as Strawberry Lodge along the new Highway 50. This would make the third location of the famous Strawberry House/Lodge/Resort. Fred’s Resort didn’t have much time to become a success as World War II roared into the 1940s, and men and equipment were in short supply. In 1943 Fred sold the business, and it had some success in the 1950s and 1960s, but people and their driving habits changed, and no one wanted to stop and take in the fresh air and views anymore.

Today the resort sits somewhat forlorn, waiting for its next big break or its next big disaster. Until people slow down and stop to smell the flowers once again, it will likely be a place that most just speed by on their way to somewhere else.

Our next stop along the southern route of the Lincoln Highway will be the Georgetown Junction, a wide spot along the road today, but back in the 1800s a major crossroads.

Map showing the sites of the three Strawberry buildings. Click map for a larger view.

A crossroads on the northern route of the Lincoln Highway, Part 5

The 1913 route of Lincoln Highway from the Second Summit outside Verdi to Truckee is likely some of the least visited sections of the old road. This route was active with transcontinental drivers until 1926 when the Truckee River's new route was completed. That Truckee River route is the path that Highway 40 took, and Interstate 80 follows today. The Dog Valley route soon lost most of it’s its traffic and became what it is today, a back road, little traveled, filled with history.

Map of entire area discussed. Click map for a closer view.

The above map shows the general location, from Verdi, NV., to Truckee. The yellow symbols are Trails West “T” markers placed on the old emigrant route. The markers are placed on or directly next to the original trail. In between the signs, the route is often undetectable, and that is why my lines from one marker to the next are often straight. We don’t know the actual route, yet.

Before reaching the Stampede Reservoir, we come to a famous crossroads mentioned by the emigrants and still existing today. Henness Pass Road, which we had been traveling on, continues west towards Camptonvile. Our road, the Lincoln Highway and DFDLWR, will become Dog Valley Road. We will use Stampede Reservoir Road to get over the dam and around the lake.

Map showing crossroads and Stampeded Reservoir. Click map for larger view.

In the lake, we can see the line representing the road going around two small islands that are visible when the lake level drops. The small iron bridge that used to cross the now flooded Little Truckee Rive may still be located under the water. The road then rises out of the reservoir and passes by a parking lot that was, unfortunately, built right over the road. The sign below explains what was lost.

Descriptive sign at Stampeded Reservoir. Click the sign for a larger view.

Once we pass Stampede Reservoir, we will have the opportunity to see five different Trails West “T” Markers showing the Emigrant Trail route. Rarely will we miss the opportunity to veer off course to take in the history of these markers. Some of California’s most interesting history is located along this stretch of road. Sometimes we can see the emigrant trail's actual route, and in those cases, we have detailed the route on our map. Wagon ruts and rust stains on rocks are often the best indicators that you're on the trail.

The photo shows Trails West “T” Marker, T-33, “To Prosser Creek”. You can vaguely see the wagon wheel ruts moving off into the distance.

Sign between Stampeded and Prosser Reservoirs. Notice the emigrant trail sign at lower left, pointing the way.

We now arrive at Prosser reservoir where once again we find the old road has been flooded by a reservoir, in this case, built-in 1963. You pass over the dam to get around the lake, and once past the reservoir, our next stop will be Truckee.

There is a great side trip to the Donner Party Campsite, where that family and others overwintered while the rest of the wagon train was caught at Donner Lake, then known as Truckee Lake. Monica and I visited that a year or so ago and put together this short video.

The area from Summit One on Henness Pass Road to Prosser Reservoir is one that we will visit again. We would love to make the drive on Henness Pass Road from the crossroads we described to Comptonville, which is quite a distance filled with all sorts of history. There are also a couple of T Markers and old building sites we need to explore. It’s beautiful out there, and with the added history, it is an area that could fill a lifetime of exploration.

Our next adventure, Part 5 on the Lincoln Highway’s northern route, will be in Truckee, a very historic town.

Dog Valley to Truckee on the northern route of the Lincoln Highway, Part 4

We are now on our way up Henness Pass Road, leaving Verdi and headed towards the “First Summit.” The First Summit is where the emigrants then descended to Dog Valley to camp and feed their animals. The Lincoln Highway does not head down to the valley but follows a ridge above the valley.

First summit. Click photo for larger view.

Here at First Summit was Bauer’s Hotel, 1865. I couldn’t find any more information on this hotel, nor could we see any hotel's physical signs. We always find it fascinating to think there was so much traffic on this road that hotels were needed every so often. Looking at the panorama photo above, we can see the Lincoln Highway headed towards the Second Summit, a road heading down to Dog Valley, the direction the emigrants traveled, and the road to Verdi.

Dog Valley as seen from the Lincoln Highway, looking north-east.

Just past the First Summit, we round a curve and the view of Dog Valley is spectacular. We intend to head down to the valley next year and check out a Trail West “T” Marker on the old trail through the valley the Emigrant Trail soon heads back up from the valley to what’s known as “Second Summit”. The Trails West “T” marker pictured below describes the scene.

Trail West “T” marker at Second Summit. Click photo fro closer view.

The road from Verdi to Prosser Reservoir is all dirt and fairly easy to travel. The first section up from Verdi to First Summit is a beautiful example of the “washboard effect”. Once at the summit the road is easy to drive, dusty in the summer, and not recommended in the winter. In the map below we can see a portion of the Lincoln Highway headed into Stampede Reservoir, which of course was not there during the early parts of the 20th Century. We will take up that portion of the adventure on our next installment of the Lincoln Highways northern route from Verdi, NV through California.

Map showing area and some key features. Click map for a closer view.

Satellite view showing Verdi off in the distance and the climb up to the first summit. Looking southeast. Click map for a closer view.

Verdi to Henness Pass Road on the old Lincoln Highway northern route, part 3

Dog Valley and Henness Pass Road from Verdi to Truckee is one of the most historic in California. Besides being the Lincoln Highway's original route, this was also the Dutch Flat Donner Lake Wagon Road (DFDLWR), and before that, an emigrant trail.

The first wagon train across The Sierra was the Stevens, Townsend, Murphy party, guided by Caleb Greenwood, a trapper, in 1844. They took the only way known to them, from the area known today as Verdi. They followed the Truckee River down its narrow canyon. This was a brutal passage as the emigrants often found themselves in the water working their way upstream. It may be that they were the only wagon train to use this passage as a newer, easier route had been discovered.

Sign at the Von Schmidt Obeilisk park in Verdi, at the California border line.

That newer route was the road we are about to travel on. In 1845 Caleb Greenwood, not wishing to repeat the Truckee River route, discovered the way we are venturing on. This route avoided the waters of The Truckee and used the ridge tops and not the canyons for travel. This was the same route the Donner Party followed on their way west.

Map showing both new and old routes from Verdi to Truckee. Click map for larger view.

Starting in 1864, this route was also the Dutch Flat Wagon Road, which became quite busy as travelers headed west and even busier during the silver boom in Nevada with thousands traveling east. Automobiles started using this road in 1901, and in 1913 the Lincoln Highway Association chose this way for its northern route. From 1864 to 1926, this was the main route into California from points east.

Automobile traveling west on the new Truckee River Route of the second generation Lincoln Highway, soon to be Highway 40. Photo from Lincoln Highway Traveler Newsletter.

The Dog Valley route as it was called was being prepared for it’s inclusion as the new state highway when in 1926 it was decided to build the more expensive, $889,894, and difficult Truckee River route. The Dog Valley Route would have been completed for $94,000. Apparently politics played a role in the new routes construction. After 1926 all traffic was diverted down the newer Truckee River Route, Highway 40. The Dog Valley Route was abandoned and became a county road.

Trey standing by Trail West “T” marker #24. The quote by Emigrant Isaac Wistar commented that “large pines, firs and cedars abound…some of which are fully six feet through.”

As we head up Dog Valley Road, it changes to Henness Pass Road, and we spot our first Trails West “T” marker, describing the immense trees, some 6 feet wide! The emigrant trail likely followed the present-day road's general route, though likely they used the sides of the hills for passage. In the photo above the Lincoln Highway is behind the photographer by about 10 yards.

Satellite image showing location and features. Click map for a closer view.

From this point up to the first summit, the road is quite rough, with the washboard effect very evident. Shake, rattle, and roll!

Verdi, Nevada to the California line on the northern route of the Lincoln Highway, Part 2

In our last post about Verdi, we explored the east side of town with its dirt Lincoln Highway and old metal bridge. That post can be found here. Now let’s head back into town, following the old road as we head towards the California border.

The photo above shows Verdi and a bridge in the distance. This photo was taken by the Central Pacific Railroad around 1868, and shows a wagon heading up the road on the far right. I wonder if this bridge is the earlier version of the Crystal Peak Toll Bridge.

Click the photo for a larger view. Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

As we approach the town, the Lincoln Highway makes a sharp right to cross the railroad tracks. There is a Nevada Historical monument by the tracks that mentions the “Great Train Robbery” that occurred here on November 4-5, 1870, by five desperadoes. The train was the Central Pacific Overland Express. $41,600 in gold coin was taken, and after a two-state search, they were all caught, tried, and convicted. More info here. 

Verdi History Center.

Sign mounted on Verdi History Center.

Once across the tracks, leave the first generation Lincoln Highway and turn left on 2nd Street, the second-generation highway. Just a couple of houses down on the left is the Verdi History Center. We have yet to come by when it’s open, but on the front of the building is a Lincoln Highway sign and a George A Wyman way-point sign.

George Wyman was a true pioneer, being the first person to cross the country on a motorized vehicle in 1903, fully ten years before the LincolnHighway. He rode and walked his motorcycle from San Francisco to New York, mostly following the railroad tracks. You can read more about this fascinating man and his epic journey here.

If you continue west on the 2nd generation Lincoln Highway, and just before the bridge, pull off and into Crystal Peak Park. There we can see the famous last crossing of the Truckee River. Above, we can see the Trails West “T” marker describing this place. There were 26th previous times that the emigrants would have to get wet crossing the river. It was quite tiring, and to reach the last crossing was something to get excited about.

We love these quiet places that, at one time, witnessed humanity on the move. Looking at the actual crossing below, we can well imagine the wagons, oxen, and people heading into the river from this side and exiting on the other.

The famous 27th emigrant crossing at the Truckee River, Verdi,Nevada, looking west.

Click photo for a larger version.

Leaving the park, we head back towards Verdi on the 2nd generation Lincoln until we reach the first generation road and turn left onto Bridge Street. In a bit, we reach the site of the Crystal Peak bridge built-in 1928. Before this bridge, this was known as “O’Neil’s crossing.”

You can read the plaque at the bridge in the photo on at right. Click for a larger view.

Crystal Peak Bridge crossing the Truckee River.

Crystal Peak cemetery, Verdi, Nevada.

Crossing the bridge, we head past the Crystal Peak Cemetery seen above. This area was a town by the name of Crystal Peak, and here are buried some of the former residents of that long-gone place. Now we are off into California, where we stop at the Von Schmidt obelisk.

Von Schmidt Obelisk, Verdi, Nevada.

This place is fantastic! The obelisk in the protective cage was one of four monuments set in place between 1872-73 to determine the state boundary line. There are descriptive signs in this small park that will explain the importance of this spot. One such plaque is shown below.

Descriptive plaque at the Von Schmidt obelisk park.

We have come to the end of today’s adventure. Monica and I are standing in Nevada, with the road still to be driven behind us. As the sign mentions, this part of the road will become quite rough and should only be traversed during the dry season. After this spot, we will climb up Henness Pass Road towards Dog Valley, the very same valley the Donner Party camped, and countless other emigrants.

The Lincoln Highway really is your road to adventure!

Monica and I at the border between California and Nevada on the old Lincoln Highway.

Map showing location of features discussed. Click map for larger view.

The Lincoln Highway, EL Dorado County, Johnson's Pass, Part 5

John Calhoun “Cock-eye” Johnson. Photo from the California State Archives.

We continue our adventure up Meyer’s Grade near Lake Tahoe on the old Lincoln Highway. This climb was the last major difficulty for emigrants in the 1850s who had come to settle in California or gather its riches and head back home. Early automobiles would often break down under the climb's strain, and reaching Johnson’s Pass was a major relief, as it was mostly downhill to Sacramento.

Johnson’s Pass is named after John Calhoun Johnson (1822 - September 13, 1876), a native of Deersville, Ohio. Johnson was the first trans-Sierra mail carrier, who delivered mail from Carson City, Nevada, to Take Tahoe, California, and continued to Hangtown, CA (Placerville, CA). Johnson used the Truckee River Route and the Carson Emigrant Trail to deliver the mail, but these were difficult trails to travel, and he started to look for another way up and over the summit. Johnsons figured if a trail could be built starting at the north end of Carson Valley and then made to go west over the mountains to Placerville, a large chunk of the Carson River Route would be “cut-off.” Johnson built that road, and it became known as Johnson’s Cut-Off Trail, saving much time and effort for travelers. It soon became the most popular route into California for emigrants and wagon trains.

We have learned that the 1913 original alignment of the Lincoln Highway often followed these old wagon routes and emigrant trails, and this was no exception. Automobiles were still a new thing in 1913, and road construction hadn’t caught up to the new-fangled horseless carriages, so they just followed the dirt trails like this one.

T.C. Wohlbrück photo showing the building at the summit before he built onto it.

Once you reached the top of the summit in 1918, this small forest service building would have greeted you. A visionary named Theodore Clemens Wohlbrück (1879–1936), known as "T.C." was a photographer who arrived in California in 1912. He realized that the new automobile and its passengers would need supplies. TC started what he called Canteen Service Stations in three locations of the Sierra Nevada, Donner Lake, Emigrant Pass, and here at Johnson’s Pass, Echo Summit. You can read more about TC and his Canteens here.

T.C. Wohlbrück photo showing the view of the Tahoe Valley from the Summit Lodge.

The view from the Summit Lodge is famous, and TC made sure to record it in the above photo. In the lower photo, we have a modern day view from the same spot.

The view from atop Johnson’s Pass at Echo Summit, CA.

TC Wohlbrück photo showing his Canteen Service Station at Johnson’s Pass.

TC Wohlbrück arranged a lease with the Forest Service to add to and develop the cabin as one of his Canteen/Service Stations. In the above photo, we can see the enlarged Canteen waiting for customers. The sign on the right mentions there is no illegal parking on the Lincoln Highway in the Eldorado National Forest. The photos of the Tahoe Basin were taken from just below the stairs, looking east.

The view from Johnson’s Pass looking east.

Pictured below is a Trails West historical “T” Markers at Johnson’s Pass. Each marker quotes from an emigrant diary about the very spot you are standing. In the next installment of our Lincoln Highway Adventure through El Dorado County, we will look around The Johnson’s Pass area and take a rare look inside the canteen.

Trail West “T” marker at Johnson’s Pass.

Map showing location and features at Johnson’s Pass.

Exploring the Lincoln Highway in El Dorado County, Part 1

The Lincoln Highway was America’s first transcontinental highway in 1913. You could cross the country following local roads, but piecing them together into one grand cross-country trip was difficult. What the Lincoln Highway did was put a route that you could follow on a map, and along with directional signs, you could head out from Times Square, New York, and follow the road all the way to the Palace of the Legion of Honor in San Francisco.

In California and Nevada, unlike other states, the Lincoln Highway spit into two separate routes. One route entered California near Verdi, Nevada, and roughly followed the current Interstate 80 to Sacramento. The other “scenic route” entered California at Stateline, Nevada, and roughly followed the current Highway 50 through Placerville and into Sacramento. Once in Sacramento both routes followed the same path to San Francisco.

The map above, which is interactive, can be found here at the Lincoln Highway Association website. I have marked the map with the location of the two routes and their entry spots along the border between Nevada and California. A motorist back in the day would make the decision on which route to follow when they were in Reno. It’s in Reno where the road splits and follows the two different routes. Leaving Reno the motorist headed down to Carson City and up and over the mountains to Stateline and South Lake Tahoe.

The photo above was taken at Stateline sometime after 1928. We are looking into Nevada from the California side, as we can see the Nevada state line sign on the right. The red arrow is pointing at a Lincoln Highway concrete directional post. 2,436 of these posts were installed by the Boy Scouts of America on September 1, 1928 at 9:00 AM, across the country. This was the Lincoln HighwayAssociation's final act as the Highway was now numbered, Highway 50, and the association disbanded. Since we know the date these markers were placed, any photo with the posts shown is after September 1928.

In the above photo we see a couple of tired looking scouts and their marker in 1928.

In our next blog post we will be traveling down Pioneer Trail, headed west on the old Lincoln Highway. The next stop will be along Pioneer Trail at a very cool old bridge site and a Trails West “T” marker letting us know this is also the old pioneer Johnson’s cut-off trail. The original 1913 route of the Lincoln Highway often followed the older pioneer trails over the mountains of California and Nevada, making it a great road to follow and experience our amazing history.

Big Bend, crossroads in history.

This is an intriguing photo taken by T.C. Wohlbruck of the Big Bend Ranger Station on the Lincoln Highway. We know it’s a TC Wohlbruck photo by the distinctive handwriting and numbering on each of his photos. These photos were taken with the idea of using them as souvenir postcards at his three canteen service stations located in the Sierra Nevada's high country.

Big Bend is rich in history as a resting place along the old Emigrant Trail, the Dutch Flat/Donner Summit Wagon Road, a county road , The Lincoln Highway, Highway 40, and today Hampshire Rocks Road. We see the Lincoln Highway passing by the Big Bend Ranger Station building on the left in the above photo. The road makes a sharp right-hand turn as it heads east, up the mountains towards Donner Summit.

At this time, Highway 40 was still a dream, so the Lincoln Highway followed the old Dutch Flat Wagon Road, which had been built by the Central Pacific Railroad to ferry men and supplies up the mountain for Transcontinental Railroad construction in the 1860s. Once the road was built, the Central Pacific opened it as a toll road, which was very popular. Once the railroad was completed, much of the traffic took the train instead of the wagon road, and the railroad turned it over the counties it passed through. In this case, it became a Placer County Road until 1913 when it became part of the Tranconental Lincoln Highway.

In the above photo, we are standing in the same spot 100 years later. In 1932 Highway 40, the predecessor of the Lincoln Highway was completed through Big Bend. As we can see, the road cut straight ahead, bypassing the sharp right turn the Lincoln Highway made. The Ranger Sation in the older photo has been replaced by a larger Fire and Ranger Station set back a bit from the road at left. We can barely see the old Lincoln Highway turn just past the no-parking sign at the right.

Once you make that right hand turn these days, you will come upon this scene, where we see Monica riding her bike on the old road. There is a large red building along this stretch, but we don’t know what it was used for back in the day. It does appear to have been a barn at one point in its existence. Check out the narrow pass between those large rocks. Between those two rocks traveled the thousands of gold-seekers, emigrants, railroad workers, and transcontinental travelers that used this section of road between the 1860s and 1932.

In the above photo, we are looking west just past the two large rocks.

We see Monica on the old road in the photo below, having just passed by the red building while walking east. The old road eventually curves back out and reconnects with Hampshire Rocks Road, where it would follow the same path until reaching the Hampshire Rock Campground, about a quarter-mile away.

The Big Bend area is a historians dream location. So many old trails pass through here, with stories of survival from the early days. This was the place where the Steven’s-Townsend-Murphy Party spent the winter after having been the first wagon train to cross the Sierra in 1844, even before the ill fated Donner Party’s attempt. An entire day can be spent enjoying and exploring this amazing place.

Below is a map of the area showing the key features.

Map showing key features. Click map for larger view.

Robert Fowler and his airplane

Pioneering aviator Robert Fowler’s crumpled airplane in 1911, after it crashed in Alta, California, in the Sierra Nevada mountains. He was trying to fly across the country in an attempt to win $50,000 that had been offered by William Randolf Hearst for the first person to fly across the country. In addition to strong mountain winds, a spark plug wire came loose, and he lost power, forcing him into a crash landing. What a marvelous photo with the dapper Fowler and what appears to be an ad hoc welcome committee of residents in front of the crumpled machine.

Fowler had taken off from San Francisco’s Golden Gate Polo Fields on September 11th and managed to land in Auburn, where the next day, he resumed his attempt. He managed to get close to Donner Pass, but the headwinds from the mountains and mechanical problems forced him to crash land into pine trees, where he was temporarily caught in his plane. The machine was taken to Colfax, where the local rod and gun club members helped repair the plane. There is a plaque in Colfax, right by the train station, mentioning this aviation history.

On September 23rd, after 10 days of repair to the airplane, he took off from Colfax to continue his journey east. He reached an altitude of 5000 feet until he reached Blue Canyon where he increased his altitude to 6000 feet. He attempted to cross the summit for two hours but could not get the speed or altitude and had to return to Colfax.

Fowler and his airplane taking off in Colfax.

On September 24th, Fowler again took off headed for Donner Pass but found the winds that day even more treacherous than during his previous attempt. On this attempt, he reached an altitude of 7500 feet but was forced to turn around and land at Carpenter’s Flat at Emigrant Gap. Below we can see the plane with a group of people enjoying what looks like a picnic around the flying machine. Imagine how exciting it must have been for these mountain folks to witness this historic event taking place in their little corner of the mountains.

Fowler’s plane at Carpenter’s Flat, Emigrant Gap

Fowler made a third attempt on September 25th, where he reached an altitude of 8000 feet when he was again confronted by fierce winds between Cisco and Tamarack and was forced to turn around and head back to Carpenters Flat, where he broke a landing skid.

Below we see some cowboys and others checking out the newfangled flying machine.

Fowler eventually made the cross country trip, but it was done using a southern route from San Diego where there were no mountains as high as the Sierra to contend with. His cross-country flight was completed on February 8, 1912, in Jacksonville, Florida after the deadline, and the prize expired without a winner.

Despite not having won the prize, Robert Folwer’s attempts to cross the Sierra Nevada have gone down in history as one of aviation’s great feats. In 1918, Robert Fowler established the Fowler Airplane Corporation, located on Howard Street in San Francisco. He died in 1966 in San Jose, California, at the age of 81.

The map above shows Carpenter’s Flat, which is just behind the buildings along Laing Road. This area is historic as Laing Road was the Overland Emigrant Trail, The Lincoln Highway, and eventually Highway 40. Today it’s a lonely exit off Interstate 80 with a restaurant, post office, and a ton of history out back.

All photo’s used with permission of Norm Sayler, Donner Summit Historical Society.

Lincoln Highway alignment found near Fresh Pond

While heading east following the Lincoln Highway route past Fresh Pond, we turned left on Outer Limits Road, then a quick right on to Dubasary Lane headed towards the Ranger Station. As is often the case in California's mountains, the Lincoln Highway's old 1913 route diverges from today’s Highway 50 freeway winding its way around the contours of the hills. In the early part of the 20th Century, equipment like a steam shovel was unavailable, so the roads couldn’t be cut into the hills like they were in subsequent years. Often the Lincoln Highway would follow older wagon roads and emigrant routes. Here is no exception as this route follows the old Johnson Cut-Off Trail from the mid-1800s.

Map showing location. Click map for larger view.

Just down Dubasary Ln., we came upon a section of the old road complete with a white centerline, which you can see in the photo at the top of the page. We tried to follow it, but Highway 50 is just to the right, and during its construction in the 1950s, the old road was covered with rock, making access impossible.

Traveling a bit further down Dubassary Lane, we spotted a “C” monument, also known as a “right-of-way” monument. These concrete structures were used by the highway department to signify the state-owned roadway. Typically they were placed about 15 feet from the edge of the state highway, with an imprinted letter “C” facing the road. The “C” stands for California. Nevada has its own monuments with the letter “N.” This marker had no “C” visible, so we jumped out of the car and investigated.

Trey pointing to the “C” monument with no visible “C”.

While the monument had no visible “C” from Dubasary Lane, there was a “C” imprinted on the opposite side, which indicates the old road was on the other side of the chain-link fence. Now the old route started to make sense. The old Lincoln Highway was closer to the newer Highway 50 than previously thought.

The hidden “C”.

It was hard to get this photo as the chain-link fence made it impossible to walk around. The “C” is clearly visible and indicating the roadbed edge was 15 feet on the other side of the fence. In the following photograph, our car is parked, facing west at the site of the monument. We can see how far the old road is from Dubasary Ln., about 15 feet past the fence at left.

Below is the official Lincoln Highway map showing a satellite view of the area. I have shown some of the features and drawn in red the found route of the old Lincoln Highway.

Map showing the found route and some other features. Click map for larger view.

We can surmise that with the modern Highway 50 in the 1950s, the older road was destroyed. It was too close to the new highway, so it was moved away from the freeway and given the name, Dubasary Lane. This newly found route will be presented to the Lincoln Highway Association cartographers for approval and addition to the official map found here.

The Lincoln Highway was America’s first coast-to-coast highway for automobiles. When first planned it followed roads already in place. Here in California's mountains, the old road often followed the older wagon and emigrant trails from the 1800s. Here is no exception as just across Dubasary Lane from the “C” monument is a “T” monument put up by the Trails West organization. It mentions that this is part of the Johnson Cut-Off Trail from the 1850s. Down in the American River Canyon from here was the Bartlett Bridge, which predates the famous Brockliss Bridge. The wooden Bartlett Bridge was destroyed by flood on March 7th, 1855, and replaced with the stone Brockliss Bridge a few miles upriver. We couldn’t find a drawing of the Bartlett Bridge but found this one of the Brockliss Bridge, which the Pony Express used during its incarnation.

Brockliss Bridge over the American River by Edward Vischer. Toll House at right.

Often we find ourselves at some special location in history that even pre-dates the old Lincoln Highway. The old road spans the time from horse and buggy and the new-fangled automobile.

The Lincoln Highway is your road to adventure.