March 6, 1913 A large number of highway officials and supporters from all of the states showed up at the Raleigh Hotel in Washington, D.C., for the Second National Good Roads Federal-Aid Convention. This heavily attended conference was held under the auspices of the American Automobile Association (AAA). Laurens Enos, the president of AAA, opened the... Continue Reading →
May 10, 1876 The Centennial International Exhibition -- held in Philadelphia to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in that city -- was opened. Officially called the International Exhibition of Arts, Manufactures and Products of the Soil and Mine, it was the first actual World’s Fair held in the United... Continue Reading →
April 28, 1903 The second day of the National Good Roads Convention in St. Louis, Missouri, took place. This convention was held at the Odeon Theater on North Grand Avenue. The significance of the convention in promoting the need for good roads nationwide was a theme highlighted both by those who addressed the delegates that day... Continue Reading →
October 20, 1892 In Chicago, more than 1,000 good roads advocates from across the United States gathered at Central Music Hall to form an organization to further promote their cause. This meeting was held in conjunction with the dedication ceremonies for the Chicago World’s Fair (also called the World’s Columbian Exposition), which would take place the... Continue Reading →
August 10, 1909 Pioneering bicycle manufacturer and good roads advocate Albert Augustus Pope, who also became involved in producing early automobiles, died at his summer home (known as Lindermere-by-the-Sea) in the town of Cohasset, Massachusetts, at the age of 66. Pope was born in Boston in 1843, and served in the Union Army during the Civil... Continue Reading →
June 11, 1910 In Oregon, a statewide campaign promoting the need for improved roads officially ended in the city of Medford in the southwestern corner of the Beaver State. This campaign, which was sponsored by the state’s good roads advocates, had been launched on May 16 in the city of Ontario in eastern Oregon. One... Continue Reading →