2018 Mojave Road Trip Part 1; Return to US 66 in Barstow

This past Thursday was the start of an approximately 1,400 mile road trip through the Mojave Desert. The planned destinations on the trip included Death Valley and Zion National Park. The first stop was in Barstow and there had been some significant changes with how US 66 was signed on Main Street. Up and down Main Street within the city limits of Barstow were new US Route 66 shields mounted on brick spires.

The new US 66 shield spires include a classic car either from the 1950s or Muscle Car era in the 1960s. In the particular case of the shield spire I took a picture of it was a 1957 Chevrolet Bel-Air.

Given that I was in Barstow the route I took out of town was on 1st Avenue along what was the original southern terminus of US 91 until 1947 when it was extended to Long Beach. I stopped at the Barstow Harvey House and Route 66 Mother Road Museum for new pictures of Old US 91 alignment in addition to the historic rail depot/hotel.

I'm not sure of the vintage of the bridge over the Mojave River but US 91 would have used it head northeast towards Las Vegas. US 91 met US 466 about a block north on the road that is now called Old Highway 58.

Comments

2018 Mojave Road Trip Part 2; The deadly desert highway (California State Route 127 and Nevada State Route 373)

After leaving Barstow via Old Highway 58 my next destination was in Death Valley. To access Death Valley from rural San Bernardino County required a trek on north on Interstate 15 to California State Route 127 which becomes Nevada State Route 373 at the state line. Along I-15 I encountered the road sign oddity that is Zzyzx Road about eight miles south of Baker. Zzyzx Road is a four mile road that used to go to the Zzyzx Mineral Springs and Health Spa. The spa was founded in the 1940s and the owner made up the name "Zzyzx" to claim it was the last word in the English Language. The spa has been shut down since the 1970s and is now part of a Desert Studies Center for California State University. The southern terminus of CA 127 in Baker is located at I-15 exit 246. CA 127 is a 91 mile north/south highway which runs to the Nevada State Line in Inyo County. CA 127 is called Death Valley Road from I-15 northward. South of CA 127 ...

Finding the Pre-Emption Road of New York State

The Pre-Emption Road (or rather a series of roads named Pre-Emption Road) follows a survey line called the Pre-Emption Line, drawn in the early days of the United States. The story begins with Massachusetts and New York having competing land claims to modern day Western New York State that have their roots in colonial charters granted by the British. After the Revolutionary War ended, this land became the frontier of the nation and its settlement became a priority for the new American government. During this era, there were a lot of competing land claims that needed to be settled. It was no different with the land claims between New York State and Massachusetts. On November 30, 1786, Massachusetts and New York sent representatives to Hartford, Connecticut to resolve their competing land claims. In less than three weeks, the representatives had reached a compromise. Massachusetts would receive pre-emption rights, meaning the right to sell the land after the Indian title ...

What's In a Name?: When the Roads Really Do Tell a Story

Our tagline on the Gribblenation blog is "because every road tells a story". Some roads tell different stories than others. Along our travels, we may see historic markers that tell us a little story about the roads we travel or the places we pass by. Some historic markers are more general, as to telling us who lived where or what old trail traversed between two towns. During my travels across New York State and other states or provinces, I pass by many historic markers, some with interesting or amusing references to roads. I wanted to highlight a few of the markers I've seen along my travels around the Empire State and help tell their stories. Those stories may be as specific as explaining the tales of a tree that was used to help measure a distance of eight miles from Bath to Avoca in Steuben County, as referenced on the Eight Mile Tree historical marker above. They may also help point the way along historical roads first used centuries ago, or may help tell a local l...