Author Archives: Jeff

Mar 20

When Clear Creek was rural

Posted on Wednesday, March 20, 2019, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

(An unintended companion piece to yesterday’s blog post.) During the 1980s, the Clear Creek school district was in dire straits. They couldn’t get money for nothin’. In 1989, Clear Creek cancelled its football season a week before it began, leaving … Continue reading →

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Mar 19

Clay Central-Everly losing high school, junior high

Posted on Tuesday, March 19, 2019, at 10:10 AM by Jeff

October 3, 2016: The welcome sign for Royal, pop. 446, former end of IA 240 and soon-to-be-former football field for Clay Central-Everly. For the tenth time this decade, an Iowa district is closing its high school without getting any students in … Continue reading →

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Mar 18

Viking Road SPUI construction restarting

Posted on Monday, March 18, 2019, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

According from a press release from the DOT, this week is when construction will resume on IA 58 at Viking Road. The two-year project to run the highway under grade and form a single-point urban interchange is expected to end … Continue reading →

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Mar 15

The road to Backbone State Park

Posted on Friday, March 15, 2019, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

July 29, 2017: The Iowa Civilian Conservation Corps Museum in Backbone State Park shows off the contributions the New Deal program made to Iowa’s state parks and natural resources. Backbone, Iowa’s first state park, celebrates its centennial next year. At … Continue reading →

Posted in Highway Miscellaneous | Comments Off on The road to Backbone State Park
Mar 14

The west end of US 18 that officially wasn’t

Posted on Thursday, March 14, 2019, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

September 17, 2007: Westbound US 18 at US 75 in Sioux County. There are some ag-related businesses here, half a mile east of the unincorporated village of Perkins (which consists of a few houses and a salvage yard). I have … Continue reading →

Posted in Highway Miscellaneous, Maps | Comments Off on The west end of US 18 that officially wasn’t
Mar 13

Significant part of country already ‘ahead of time’

Posted on Wednesday, March 13, 2019, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

July 15, 2013: The westernmost highway entry into the Eastern Time Zone, MI 28 in the Upper Peninsula, is farther west than a lot of Illinois. Longitudinally, it’s roughly on par with Sterling, less than 30 miles from Clinton. It’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Geography, Maps | Comments Off on Significant part of country already ‘ahead of time’
Mar 12

Hancock photos sprinkled across pages

Posted on Tuesday, March 12, 2019, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

I raided Jason Hancock’s Flickr galleries (with his permission) to see if there were any gems that could augment these pages. They were taken at various points in the past decade, but they’re new here. At least one new photo, … Continue reading →

Posted in Highway Miscellaneous | Comments Off on Hancock photos sprinkled across pages
Mar 11

License Plate Letters — HUG

Posted on Monday, March 11, 2019, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

July 7, 2008: The US 52 bridge in Point Pleasant, Ohio, is the Grant Memorial Bridge, named for its most famous son. US 52 hugs the north bank of the Ohio River from Cincinnati to Huntington. Grant also lived in … Continue reading →

Posted in License Plates | Comments Off on License Plate Letters — HUG
Mar 08

Four, count ’em four, visits to Dows

Posted on Friday, March 8, 2019, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

September 11, 2014: Eight years after starting its partnership with CAL, Dows started sending students to Clarion-Goldfield, one of the few times a school switched sharing arrangements before eventual consolidation. (TLDR: I added a bunch of photos to the IA 72 … Continue reading →

Posted in Iowa Miscellaneous | Comments Off on Four, count ’em four, visits to Dows
Mar 06

Springville interchange proposal moves forward

Posted on Wednesday, March 6, 2019, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

Security State Bank probably thought it had a swell deal with a high-visibility spot on four-lane US 151 at the new main entrance to Springville. A building opened in the northwest corner of the intersection with County Road X20 in … Continue reading →

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