Ike''s Road Trip: How Eisenhower''s 1919 Convoy Paved the Way for the Roads We Travel

All roads begin somewhere and todays U. S. highway system began with an exploratory, cross-country ride, led by 28-year-old Army lieutenant colonel, Dwight Eisenhower. This is the story of that coast-to-coast journey and how the dream of connecting America with roads began.

Before he led the liberation of Europe, before he became our nations 34th President, Dwight D. Eisenhowers made a road trip in 1919 from Washington D.C. to California. The expedition proved to be a crucial chapter in the history of America as it laid the groundwork to make automobile travel the fastest and easiest way to move around the country, also setting in motion the nations future love affair with cheap crude.

The 1919 Transcontinental Motor Convoy of eighty-one trucks and other military vehicles traveled more than 3,000 precarious miles along the most famous road of the day, the Lincoln Highway, which ran between New York City and San Francisco. World War I had illustrated the importance of being able to move large amounts of troops and equipment quickly over long distances, and Eisenhowers mission was to evaluate whether the countrys emerging network of paved roadways could handle such a task. It was an experience Eisenhower would never forget. Decades later, as president, he drew on that experience to push through the Interstate Highway Act of 1956.

Ikes Road Trip adds an important chapter to the story of the midwestern president who is often seen as Americas grandfather. Eisenhower will also be seen as a modern visionary during a pivotal moment: his persistent trust in cheap petroleum proved to be a blueprint for modern America as he helped facilitate the most significant energy transition of the twentieth century. Today, we are experiencing perhaps the most important energy transition since Eisenhowers dayfrom petroleum to renewablesand that change will require minds as equally visionary as his.