Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
August 1, 2012 In the western part of Scotland, a newly built railway station along the waterfront of the town of Gourock was officially opened. This station replaced the one that had been in operation in the immediate vicinity since June 1, 1889. Gourock railway station is a terminus of the Inverclyde Line, which has... Continue Reading →
May 28, 1925 William M. Jardine (1879-1955), who had started serving as U.S. secretary of agriculture on March 5 of that year and would remain in the position until 1929, was a featured speaker at the Mid-West Transportation Conference in Chicago. This conference was held at the now defunct La Salle Hotel at the northwest... Continue Reading →
December 12, 1914 The American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) was formally launched. Highway engineers from various states convened that Saturday morning at the Raleigh Hotel in Washington, D.C., to establish an association for addressing their priorities of mutual concern at the national level. (The now-defunct Raleigh Hotel was located at Pennsylvania Avenue and 12th Street,... Continue Reading →
May 2, 1906 Thomas F. Airis, who would become director of the District of Columbia’s Department of Highways and Traffic (a predecessor of the present-day District Department of Transportation) was born in the town of Eau Claire, Wisconsin. He earned his degree in, civil engineering from the University of Wisconsin. In 1929, Airis joined the... Continue Reading →
November 13, 1973 Nearly 59 years after being established, the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) achieved another major milestone when the organization officially renamed itself the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). This change, which reflected a broadened mission that would encompass different modes of transportation, specifically took place when... Continue Reading →
Susan La Flesche Picotte was the first known Native American in the United States to receive a medical degree as a doctor. A crucial component of Picotte’s pioneering medical career was her heavy reliance on transportation for visiting patients in far-flung locations. Picotte was born in 1865 on the Omaha Reservation of the Omaha tribe... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 