Roughly, the present route of U.S. 50

Back in the good old days, roads were a local concern. If a road was needed from Point A to point B then some concerned citizens got together and made it happen. Many times, in the early years of transportation, someone would be given a license to build a toll road. This was a private road built with private funds and paid for by charging a toll to use it. Geiger Grade in Storey County and Kingsbury Grade in Douglas County both began as toll roads, as did many of the early roads in Nevada .About the turn of the century (1900's) railroads were the dominate form for interstate transportation, but a new invention- the automobile- was threatening to change all that. Richard Weingroff, in his article, The Lincoln Highway:

The country had approximately 2,199,600 miles of rural roads and only 190,476 miles (8.66 percent of the total) had improved surfaces of gravel, stone, sand-clay, brick, shells, oiled earth, bituminous or, as a U.S. Bureau of Public Roads (BPR) bulletin put it, "etc." Many people thought of interstate roads as "peacock alleys" intended for the enjoyment of wealthy travelers who had time to spend weeks riding around the country in their automobiles.

Then in 1912, Carl Fisher, an automobile enthusiast (and, coincidentally, manufacturer of automobile headlights) began campaigning for a transcontinental highway. By 1913, the route was dedicated, although the "highway" itself was still a ways off. Slowly, both the route and the surfaces were improved. In 1921, the federal government passed the Federal Highway Act of 1921, which made some improvement funds available. Politics interfered as state and local governments campaigned to route their highways in ways that would economically benefit them. For example, instead of improving the Lincoln Highway west of Salt Lake City, Utah chose instead to improve a southerly route to Los Angeles, figuring it would keep motorists- and their money- in Utah for another 200 miles. The more northern Victory Highway competed for and won the coveted "Federal" designation, and by 1925 named highways succumbed to the present numbered system. Interestingly, interest in the Lincoln Highway- thanks to the hundreds of concrete markers and metal signs placed during its lifetime- didn't wane until the 1940's, and is even now enjoying a resurgence

At first, the "Lincoln Highway" was proposed to go from Washington D.C. to the town of Gettysburg, a distance of about 5 miles, with appropriate memorials at either end. But it started to become something much bigger.

OCEAN TO OCEAN LATEST PLAN FOR LINCOLN HIGHWAY
Road To Gettysburg Only Part of Great Scheme
WILL APPEAL TO STATES
A splendid highway across the United States from the Atlantic to the Pacific is to be the eventual outcome of one of the projects to commemorate the fame of the great Lincoln. Congress last week gave sanction to a $2,000,000 expenditure, and appointed a commission to determine upon a fitting memorial to the martyred President. Yesterday the association which has been urging a Lincoln Highway to connect the National Capital with Gettysburg amended its plans in a way which will make them appeal to the memorial commission when it meets at the call of President Taft. Retaining the Washington-Gettysburg highway as a nucleus of the scheme, the association proposes the erection in Washington of a great memorial in the form of a building, an arch, or a column, to mark the highway where it leaves the city. Another memorial structure, it is proposed, shall be erected at the Gettysburg end of the Lincoln way and serve as the greatest of the monuments of the famous battlefield. Complete the nation's tribute to Lincoln by erecting this highway and memorials, it is suggested, and then let the States do the rest. What State is there, it is argued, that will not furnish its share of the greatest memorial the world has ever seen-- a monster highway spanning the United States?
-The Washington Herald, February 12, 1911

Slowly but surely, States started to get on board with the idea.

LINCOLN HIGHWAY URGED
Good Roads Organization Plans Chicago-Springfield-St. Louis Link
A great central boulevard, connecting Chicago, Springfield,Ill., and St. Louis Mo. to be known as "The Lincoln Highway" is advocated by the Illinois and Interstate Good Roads Convention, to be held at the Auditorium Hotel on Lincoln's birthday, February 12.
-Chicago Examiner, January 1, 1912
The great idea of an ocean-to-ocean automobile highway, launched by Carl Fisher, of Indianapolis, he said, was one of the big things to be carried out by the people interested in the automobile trade. Good roads, he said, would cause the people to travel farther and would tremendously increase the demand for good automobiles.
-The Indianapolis News, October 9, 1912

PROVIDES HIGHWAY FROM BOSTON TO SAN FRANCISCO
A Lincoln memorial highway from Boston to San Francisco is provided in a bill introduced today by Representative Taylor of Colorado.
-Tonopah Daily Bonanza, April 10, 1913

Lots of promotion took place by auto manufacturers and makers of parts, who would naturally benefit from the creation of decent roads.

PLAN RECEPTION FOR AUTOISTS
Commercial Club Committee Is Considering Banquet For Indiana Tourists
Plans for the entertainment of members of the Indianapolis Automobile Manufacturers association tour, who will reach Reno WEdnesday, July 13, next, were discussed last night by a committee of the Reno Commercial Club which later reported to the directors of the club and received full power to act. The tourists will number 100 men and they will be in Reno for dinner, over night and for breakfast. They will arrive, according to schedule, at 5 o'clock in the evening, in 25 automobiles, possibly more. If they travel as usual, spaced a mile apart to avoid dust, it will be after 6 o'clock before they are in their rooms. It will then be about 8 o'clock before they will appear in public. It was set forth that the object of the tour was to arouse interest in transcontinental automobile travel and particularly in the construction of a highway to be known as the Lincoln Highway.
-Nevada State Journal, June 20, 1913

The route of the Lincoln Highway changed as better paths were found. Of course, having the Highway pass through your town was a boon to your commercial interests, and like most early highways, a certain amount of artful persuasion, exaggeration, and chicanery was used to inspire the route.

TONOPAH ROUTE FAVORED BY THE LEADING AUTOISTS
This Is The Best All The Year Route That Can Be Devised
The automobile club of NOrthern California has come out strongly for the Tonopah transcontinental route to the coast. At the meeting held at the St. Francis Hotel the following resolutions were adopted: Whereas the route of the Lincoln Highway in Nevada and California selected by the Lincoln Highway association is closed to interstate motor car travel over one half of each year, because of natural climactic conditions on the Sierras; and, Whereas the Inyo Good Road Club of California has made protest against such route because it is so closed to interstate motor car travel, which protest will be presented to said Lincoln Highway association; and, Whereas said Inyo Good Road Club has recommended instead of such route so selected, that the "EXposition Way" now in regular use and open all the year for interstate car travel be adopted as the official route of the Lincoln Highway.
-Tonopah Daily Bonanza, February 4, 1914

While the Lincoln Highway never did go through Tonopah, the Midland Trail did become a more popular way to cross the Sierras in the late Fall, Winter, and Spring.

The Victory Highway became the Lincoln Highway's main competitor.

NORTHERN ROUTE GIVEN PREFERENCE
Is Infinitely Superior to the Lincoln Highway in the State of Nevada
It is stated that the northern route is said to be infinitely superior to the Lincoln Highway from every consideration of comfort, speed and safety and has been improved by the states of Utah and Nevada, whereas the Lincoln Highway between Salt Lake and Reno has had practically no road working. It also states that the northern route has towns every eight to ten miles, and that the route is never more than six miles from the line of the Southern Pacific railroad and that every town, with one exception, as hotels that can be recommended.
-Daily Independent, Elko, January 7, 1915

Sometimes things weren't friendly at all.

The mask is off at last. Salt Lake City has now announced her plans. Heretofore she has pretended friendship for Ely; now she says openly that Ely is to be cut off from both San Francisco and the Los Angeles travel. Further, she is going to do this alone, and fight the Lincoln Highway at the same time. She now say, brazenly, that she is building the Wendover route so she may send the San Francisco tourist by way of Elko. She advocates building a road through St. George and the Meadow Valley wash to Los Angeles, to take that travel away from us also. Let there be retaliation. The Salt Lake wholesale and mail order houses have many patrons in Nevada, particularly along the Midland route. Let this patronage be directed to San Francisco, Los Angeles, or some other city that is not endeavoring to do us harm.
-Tonopah Daily Bonanza, February 2, 1916

It took a while, but it's getting done.

LINCOLN HIGHWAY ALMOST FINISHED
Dozens of long newly paved roads will greet tourists along the Lincoln Highway from coast to coast this summer. By the Spring of 1926, officials expect to see nearly 2800 miles finished. That's ninety percent of the distance. On its completion the Lincoln Highway will have consumed a total investment of $75,000,000.
-Reno Evening Gazette, APril 25, 1925
In late 1925, it was decided to use a numbered highway system by the Joint Board on Interstate Highways. Odd numbers would be used for north–south routes and even numbers for east–west routes. Much of the Lincoln Highway was covered under the new "U.S. 50." Signs would be standardized throughout the entire country.

All of these routes will be marked with standard direction and warning signs which are of two general classes. 0ne group, the danger and caution signs, will consist of signs of four different shapes representing as many degrees of danger. These will be a yellow background with black Ietters and symbols. The other group will include the standard route markers in the form of a United States shield and directional and information signs. All signs in this group will be a white background with black letters. The route of U. S. Highway No. 50 is as follows: From Annapolis, Md., to Washington, D.C., Winchester, Va.; Clarksburg, W. Va.; Parkersburg, Chillicothe, Cincinnati, Ohio; Vincennes, Ind.- Lawrenceville, Ill.; Salem, St. Louis,. Mo.; Jefferson City, Sedalia, Kansas City, Baldwin, Kan.; Council Grove, Herington, McPherson, Garden, City, LaJunta, Colorado, Pueblo, Salida, Montrose, Grand Junction, Green River, Utah, Price, Ely, Nevada, Eureka, Wadsworth.
-Jackson County Banner, Brownstown, Indiana, January 6, 1926


Keeping the roads open during the winter was a chore, although-- to be fair-- the weather seems kind of nasty. Despite the name change, the familiar "Lincoln Highway" was still used.

New Snow, Gale Continue to Check Mountain Travel
New snow and huge drifts continued to block Sierra Nevada high-ways yesterday despite the efforts of road maintenance crews to keep them clear. The Reno-Auburn highway, via, Donner summit, was still impassable at midnight today, and a wind reported to be blowing at 40 miles on hour, continued to hamper road crews. A heavy snow was reported to be falling in the mountainous regions early today and the Southern Pacific dispatcher's office in Sparks reported 178 inches of snow as Norden. The United Press revealed there were 138 inches of snow at Soda Springs at 7 a. m. yesterday, as compared to 54 inches at this date last year. In 1916 on the same date 172 inches was recorted. Highway crews in rotary snowplows battled the drifts on practically every route to the west and some roads to the east were reported blocked. The Reno-Susanville highway, blocked by drifts towering 10 to 12 feet, is expected to be opened to traffic sometime today, state highway department officials said last night. Rotary plows were being sent to open the road between Milford and Doyle. The road was closed by snow drifting across the highway in face of high winds early yesterday. Snowdrifts estimated between 30 to 60 feeteep blocked the Tahoe City-Truckee highway yesterday and a driving blizzard turned back a rotary snowplow from Truckee which attempted to open the road. The United Press revealed that a party of four skiiers who set out to obtain mail for Tahoe City reported on its return the storm had completely obliterated outlines of the highway right-of-way. The Verdi highway was closed to Truckee and the Nevada division of the California state Automobile association announced efforts to open the road would be made today. The Victory and Lincoln high-ways east of Reno were reported in fair condition by the Nevada division of the association. Chains are recommended below Schurz in going to Tonopah. The road to Los Angeles via Bridgeport is closed. A pilot car will take traffic over the Donner summit today if the weather permits it.
-Nevada State Journal, January 18, 1935

Apparently people were havng some difficulty deciding which side of the road they should be on, so....

HIGHWAY STRIPING PROGRAM STARTED
Ely, Nev. Striping of the main traveled highways in the Ely district started this week under the direction of Dick Merrill of the state highway deprtment, the dividing line being placed on U.S. highways 6, 50, and 93. Solid lines will be painted on the high ways between Ely and McGil, Ely and Keystone, and Ely and Caliente, the highways carrying the heaviest traffic. Highways 6 and 93, and the Lincoln Highway west of Ely will be striped only in places where the sight distance is limited.
-Reno Evening Gazette, May 27, 1940

Not that it helped much.

AUTOS SIDESWIPE BUT NO ONE HURT
Eureka. Automobiles driven by Rev. P. R. Markston of Ely and Val L. Barnett of Las Vegas sideswiped on the Lincoln Highway, 14 miles east of Eureka. In the car with Barnett were his wife and Boyd L. Harris, a petty officer of the merchant marine. No one was injured, but both cars were damaged.
-Nevada State Journal, March 14, 1945

Routing disagreements continued well into the 1950's.

A Crossroads Quarrel
NEVADA HIGHWAY officials, representatives of the United States bureau of public roads, and finally the governor of the state, hare been drawn into a dispute over a road intersection. It all involves the junction at Fernley, where U. S. Highway 40 takes off to the north, and Highway 95 heads over toward Fallon and U. S. Highway 50. The communities along the latter route insist that the turn-off is designed deliberately to steer traffic to the rival highway. Not so, reply the highway officials. The intersection was planned to permit traffic to go either direction with the greatest degree of safety. If the northern road gets the most travel, that is because it intended to go that way anyhow. The wrath of Highway 50 communities isn't cooled by that answer. They are demanding investigations, rebuilding and redesigning of the offending junction, and now Gov. Vail Pittman has instructed the state highway officials to confer with the federal road bureau to find a solution. The governor's home is in Ely, on Highway 50, and he gave his orders from that town while on a campaign tour, so now it appears that the argument between rival highways is going to turn into a minor political issue. This is isn’t a new feud, by any means. It goes back to early motoring days, when the Lincoln highway (now U.S. 50) and the Victory highway (the present U.S. 40) were engaged in constant rivalry to attract the greatest number of travelers. The battle was fought with highway billboards, with literature distributed to travel agencies, and in the political field too, as first one route and then the other apparently would get all the favors from an administration in power at Carson. Recently it was announced that the two contestants had buried the hatchet, and henceforth would work in harmony to promote travel for the benefit of the entire state, but now it appears that the old-time jealousies are too strong to stay buried for long.
-Reno Evening Gazette, July 31, 1950

For more information on the Lincoln Highway, you can view James Lin's excellent Lincoln Highway web site, the Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor web site, and The Lincoln Highway Association web site. Through Fallon, the Lincoln Highway (carrying the designations U.S. 50 and Nevada State Route 2) took a much different route than it does today, as you can see by checking out the maps on the next page. Around the site of Hill (Grimes Point) it turned directly west on what is now State Route 119 (Berney Road), turning north on present-day SR 115 (Harrigan Road) turning west again on East Stillwater Avenue (Courtesy Corner, as we old-timers used to call it). From there, it jogged north on East Street and then west on Center Street. Once at Maine Street, one headed North, turning left on Williams Avenue and continuing on until a right turn onto the present-day Auction Avenue.

Once out of Fallon, you could take the "northern" route through Reno and over Donner Summit- sharing a route with the Victory Highway- or the "southern" route through Carson City and over Spooner Summit.

U.S. Highway 50 is basically what remains of the Lincoln Highway In the eastern part of Churchill County, State Highway 722 through Eastgate and Carroll Summit was part of the original road as well. This web site is not going to attempt to cover the Lincoln Highway and it's route through Nevada-- that would take a lot more of my time. But keep in mind during your travels in Northern Nevada and the US 50 corridor that it's all around you. Check out this cool map.