Blog: Byway Buzz
Significant Black History Along the Lincoln Highway
During Black History Month we pay tribute to a sometimes overlooked, yet highly significant, piece of African American history that took place along the Lincoln Highway in Ames, Iowa.
From the start, Iowa State College founded in 1858 (now Iowa State University) allowed students of color to attend, but without on-campus housing unless they roomed together up until the 1940’s. This “unofficial” policy made student housing nearly impossible due the low number of students of color enrolled during this time. Meanwhile two caring individuals, Archie and Nancy Martin, opened their home in Ames as a place for male students of color to reside and grow while pursuing their education.
Lincoln Highway National Heritage Byway Sign Inventory Completed
Lincoln Highway National Heritage Byway Coordinator Jonathan Sherwood recently had the privilege of seeing every corner of the Byway from the Missouri River to the Mississippi River — crossing every river in between. The Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT) asked byway coordinators to inventory every byway sign on their respective byways across Iowa. For me, that meant 1100 miles, including both sides of the road, and the loops through downtowns.
The National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places, or NRHP, is a federal program administered by the US National Parks Service (NPS). It was created in 1966 as part of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) to recognize cultural resources that, whether intentionally or accidentally, had withstood the tests of time and human action. No legal obligations – for owners – are imposed by being listed on the NRHP. For them it is an honorific program.
Lincoln Highway National Heritage Byway Complete Sign Inventory Begins
Prairie Rivers of Iowa staff and a volunteer set out to inventory and assess the condition of Lincoln Highway National Heritage Byway’s signage.
Ames Pollinator-Friendly Practices Pilot Project Completed
How can homeowners in Ames be encouraged to increase their pollinator friendly practices in their yards? That was the question addressed by former Prairie Rivers of Iowa (PRI) Lincoln Highway National Heritage Byway Coordinator Shellie Orngard in a recently completed pilot project using Community Based Social Marketing strategies.
Meet Our New Lincoln Highway National Heritage Byway Coordinator
As Prairie Rivers of Iowa Lincoln Highway National Heritage Coordinator, Sherwood’s duties will encompass working across the 13 Iowa counties and 43 towns that stretch along the Lincoln Highway in Iowa, river to river, east to west from Clinton on the Mississippi to Council Bluffs on the Missouri.
Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs Awards Prairie Rivers of Iowa a Historic Resources Development Project (HRDP) Grant
The Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs has awarded Prairie Rivers of Iowa a Historic Resources Development Project (HRDP) grant to assess the condition of the approximately 319 properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places along the Lincoln Highway Heritage Byway (LHHB) in Iowa.
Promise Road: How the Lincoln Highway Changed America
Currently, display is being prepared to move to a new location. Please check back for new details.Promise Road tells the story of how the Lincoln Highway knit together the nation in the early days...
Marsh Rainbow Arch Bridges
During our April meeting while discussing the bridge in Tama, we had a conversation about James Marsh and his Rainbow Arch Bridge designs along the Lincoln Highway. So I reached out to our resident experts, Bob and Joyce Ausberger for a history lesson on these bridges and their significance to the Lincoln Highway.