Lincoln Highway, a lifeline for Illinois

Northwest Indiana Times recently published a number of articles on the Lincoln Highway, including “Lincoln Highway, a lifeline for Illinois communities.” It includes mention of the sculpture seen at right, “Lincoln on the Road to Greatness,” which depicts Abraham Lincoln receiving flowers from two girls. The statue, dedicated in 2003, was funded by private donations including 200,000 pennies collected by local students. It is at the intersection of the Lincoln and Dixie highways, which on the opposite corner includes the Arche Memorial Fountain, dedicated decades ago to be a place of rest for weary motorists.

Article details Fraser's Lincoln statue in NJ

An article at Inside SU, a news site for Syracuse University, relates the long and interesting story of a statue along the Lincoln Highway. That rendering of Abraham Lincoln along JFK Boulevard in Jersey City was created in 1930 by well-known sculptor James Earl Fraser; his “End of the Trail” portraying an exhausted Indian on a horse was at the time adjacent to the western terminus of the Lincoln Highway in San Francisco.

Lincoln statue photo by Kyle Weaver, from Lincoln Highway Companion.

The article also tells the tale of an identical bronze Lincoln in the courtyard outside Maxwell Hall at Syracuse and how the duplicate came to be.

Celebration set for Lincoln statue in Jersey CIty

Al Pfingstl, NJ LHA director, writes about an annual celebration at the Abraham Lincoln statue located along the Lincoln Highway in Jersey City, as seen in his photo below. This year is special in that it’s the 200th anniversary of Lincoln’s birth.

The Lincoln Association of Jersey City is the oldest organization in the country dedicated to the memory, preservation, and understanding of Abraham Lincoln and what he stood for. Begun in 1865, it was formally founded in 1867, 2 years after the death of the President and provides a forum to present scholarship concerning the life, career, and legacy of the 16th President of the United States. The Lincoln Association of Jersey City strives to promote fellowship as well as scholarship in the spirit of Lincoln.

On Thursday, February 12, 2009, at Noon at the statue of Lincoln at the entrance of Lincoln Park, Kennedy Boulevard, and Belmont Avenue in Jersey City, First Vice President Guy Catrillo will host the annual monument ceremony. Dr. Jules Ladenheim, a Past President of the Lincoln Association, will deliver one of President Lincoln’s memorable speeches. The ceremony will conclude with a placing of a wreath at the statue.

At 5:30 PM, the Association will host the 144th Annual Dinner at the Casino in the Park, with a featured speaker to be announced. Cost of the dinner is $60 if you reserve a space or $70 at the door.

To reserve a dinner spot or for more information contact info@thelincolnassociationofjerseycity.com/ or send a check with your name and the names of those attending, and your postal and e-mail addresses to the Secretary of the Lincoln Association, 9120 Columbia Ave., North Bergen NJ 07047.

Filming the Lincoln Highway special around town

Friday found me with PBS producer Rick Sebak as he filmed around Pittsburgh for his upcoming special, A Ride Along the Lincoln Highway. First up was Peppi’s Diner (known to locals as Scotty’s or Charlie’s) where we talked about the highway and places to see around town.

Then it was on the road to find those places, from the Mullins-made Lincoln statue just down the road in WIlkinsburg …

… to the yellow-brick section of old road in Glenfield.

Camera and sound were handled by Bob Lubomski and Glenn Syska. They do tons of work trying to get the best angle and sound and lots of other things that, when done right, nobody notices. (Same for the crew that will edit the video and sound in a couple months.) Bob and Glenn even climbed up on that overpass to get aerial shots of the road.

Read more of their adventures on Sebak’s blog and tune in two days before Halloween to see the show on your local PBS station.