Jefferson Highway
Encyclopedia
The Jefferson Highway was an automobile
highway stretching through the central United States
from New Orleans, Louisiana
, to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
. The Jefferson Highway was replaced with the new numbered US Highway system in the late 1920s. Portions of the highway are still named Jefferson Highway, for example, the portions that run through Jefferson Parish, Louisiana
, East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana
, Osseo, Minnesota
, and Wadena, Minnesota
.
It was built in the 1910s as part of the National Auto Trail
system.
The Jefferson Highway was inspired by the east–west Lincoln Highway
.
It was nicknamed the "Palm to Pine Highway", for the varying types of trees found at either end.
There is direct evidence that the Jefferson Highway travelled along the current highway of U.S. Highway 71. In Montgomery, Louisiana, the old segments of Hwy. 71 are called Old Jefferson Highway. In Pineville, Louisiana, there is a road that connects U.S. 71 with the business route of U.S. 165/71 named Jefferson Highway. In Alexandria, Louisiana, the main part of U.S. 71 south of the traffic circle at the intersection of Business 165, 165, and 71 is called Jefferson Highway. Also, the road south of I-49 labeled Old Baton Rouge Hwy (called that because it is the old alignment of Highway 71) is also called Old Jefferson Highway. In Lecompte, Louisiana, LA 456, which is a former alignment of US 71, is called "Jefferson Highway."
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
highway stretching through the central United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
from New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
, to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The Jefferson Highway was replaced with the new numbered US Highway system in the late 1920s. Portions of the highway are still named Jefferson Highway, for example, the portions that run through Jefferson Parish, Louisiana
Jefferson Parish, Louisiana
Jefferson Parish is a parish in Louisiana, United States that includes most of the suburbs of New Orleans. The seat of parish government is Gretna....
, East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana
East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana
East Baton Rouge Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Baton Rouge, Louisiana's state capital. As of the 2010 census, the population was 440,171. The parish has a total area of , of which is land and is water. It is the most populous parish in the state...
, Osseo, Minnesota
Osseo, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,434 people, 1,035 households, and 606 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,179.7 people per square mile . There were 1,060 housing units at an average density of 1,384.7 per square mile...
, and Wadena, Minnesota
Wadena, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 4,294 people, 1,871 households, and 1,062 families residing in the city. The population density was 818.4 people per square mile . There were 1,964 housing units at an average density of 374.3 per square mile...
.
It was built in the 1910s as part of the National Auto Trail
National auto trail
The system of auto trails was an informal network of marked routes that existed in the United States and Canada in the early part of the 20th century. Marked with colored bands on telephone poles, the trails were intended to help travellers in the early days of the automobile.Auto trails were...
system.
The Jefferson Highway was inspired by the east–west Lincoln Highway
Lincoln Highway
The Lincoln Highway was the first road across the United States of America.Conceived and promoted by entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, the Lincoln Highway spanned coast-to-coast from Times Square in New York City to Lincoln Park in San Francisco, originally through 13 states: New York, New Jersey,...
.
It was nicknamed the "Palm to Pine Highway", for the varying types of trees found at either end.
History
Cities along the route
- Alexandria, LouisianaAlexandria, LouisianaAlexandria is a city in and the parish seat of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River in almost the exact geographic center of the state. It is the principal city of the Alexandria metropolitan area which encompasses all of Rapides and Grant parishes....
- Shreveport, LouisianaShreveport, LouisianaShreveport is the third largest city in Louisiana. It is the principal city of the fourth largest metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana and is the 109th-largest city in the United States....
- Marshall, TexasMarshall, TexasMarshall is a city in Harrison County in the northeastern corner of Texas. Marshall is a major cultural and educational center in East Texas and the tri-state area. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Marshall was about 23,523...
- Muskogee, OklahomaMuskogee, OklahomaMuskogee is a city in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, United States. It is the county seat of Muskogee County, and home to Bacone College. The population was 38,310 at the 2000 census, making it the eleventh-largest city in Oklahoma....
- Baxter Springs, KansasBaxter Springs, KansasBaxter Springs is a town situated along the Spring River in the extreme southeastern part of Cherokee County, located in southeast Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 4,238...
- Paola, KansasPaola, KansasPaola is a city in and the county seat of Miami County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 5,602.-History:...
- Lee's Summit, MissouriLee's Summit, MissouriLee's Summit is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri, and is contained within the counties of Jackson and Cass. As of the 2010 census found the population at 91,364 making it the sixth-largest city in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area and the sixth-largest city in Missouri...
- Kansas City, MissouriKansas City, MissouriKansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
- Saint Joseph, MissouriSaint Joseph, MissouriSaint Joseph is the second largest city in northwest Missouri, only second to Kansas City in size, serving as the county seat for Buchanan County. As of the 2010 census, Saint Joseph had a total population of 76,780, making it the eighth largest city in the state. The St...
- Des Moines, IowaDes Moines, IowaDes Moines is the capital and the most populous city in the US state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small portion of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines which was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857...
- Ames, IowaAmes, IowaAmes is a city located in the central part of the U.S. state of Iowa in Story County, and approximately north of Des Moines. The U.S. Census Bureau designates that Ames, Iowa metropolitan statistical area as encompassing all of Story County, and which, when combined with the Boone, Iowa...
- Mason City, IowaMason City, IowaMason City is the county seat of Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, United States. The population was 28,079 in the 2010 census, a decline from 29,172 in the 2000 census. The Mason City Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Cerro Gordo and Worth counties....
- Albert Lea, MinnesotaAlbert Lea, MinnesotaAlbert Lea is a city in and the county seat of Freeborn County in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 18,016 at the 2010 census....
- Minneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
- Bemidji, MinnesotaBemidji, MinnesotaBemidji is a city in Beltrami County, Minnesota, United States. Its population was at 13,431 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Beltrami County. Bemidji is the most major city in North Central Minnesota and the largest commercial center between Grand Forks, North Dakota and Duluth,...
See also
- United States Highway system
- Jefferson LinesJefferson LinesJefferson Lines is a regional intercity bus company operating in United States. The company's name originates in the Jefferson Highway, a north-south route in the early National Auto Trail system which once ran from Winnipeg in Manitoba, Canada, south to New Orleans, Louisiana. The service to...
, an intercity bus company, operates service from Texas to Winnipeg, and takes its name from the old Jefferson Highway.
External links
- Jefferson Highway Map
- Jefferson Highway
- Jefferson Lines home page
- Palm to Pine
- Welcome to the Jefferson Highway (Section of Iowa Lincoln Highway Association newsletter Summer/Fall 2000)
- More on the Jefferson Highway (Powers Museum, Carthage, Missouri)
- Jefferson Highway legal description within Minnesota, filed with the Minnesota Department of Highways on August 9, 1917
- Jefferson Highway, newspaper article on the route, hosted by Iowa Department of Transportation