Professional Documents
Culture Documents
English 202C Proposal
English 202C Proposal
June 2, 2010
Today I write to you with excitement about an article which I would love to write for the PA
Center for the Book regarding the Lincoln Highway. The Lincoln Highway was the first road to
span the entire United States from New York to California upon its completion in 1913. This
highway holds historical significance for the state of Pennsylvania because it included a very
scenic route through the state; which many old-time travelers argued was the most beautiful
segment of their cross-country road trip. I cordially request your approval to write an article on
the Lincoln Highway by briefly telling you about my qualifications and the research I have done
on the subject, as well as a brief description of the highway itself.
In the 1920’s book, The Complete Official Road Guide of the Lincoln Highway 3rd Edition,
supporting author H.C. Ostermann advised many excited Americans about what it would take to
make a cross country journey on the Lincoln Highway. Ostermann mentioned that travelers
would have to spend no more than $5.00 per day. This price wasn’t just gas; it included oil, and
everything you would eat for the day too! The Lincoln Highway snaked its way 292.2 miles
though Pennsylvania from Pittsburg to Philadelphia with a speed limit of 25 miles per hour. It
passed close by several tourist attractions that travelers may be interested in taking a break from
driving to visit. Such attractions include Valley Forge or Gettysburg. Today the highway is more
commonly known as Route 30. (Following pictures source: http://roadsidephotos.sabr.org/LH/centpenn03.htm)
Source: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/index.html
1. Young. Lincoln Highway Study Act of 1999 [microform] : report (to accompany H.R.
2570) (including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office) United States.
Congress. House. Committee on Resources. U.S. G.P.O. 2000. Web. 20 May 2010.
<http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS7384>.
1. The Complete Official Road Guide of the Lincoln Highway 3rd Edition. Michigan:
Lincoln Highway Association, 1920. Print.
1. The Complete Official Road Guide of the Lincoln Highway 4thEdition. Michigan: Lincoln
Highway Association, 1921. Print.
1. The Complete Official Road Guide of the Lincoln Highway 5th Edition. Michigan: Lincoln
Highway Association, 1924. Print.
1. Dodd, Mead & company. The Lincoln highway: the story of a crusade that made
transportation history. Lincoln Highway Association. Vail-Ballou Press, Inc. New York,
1935. Print.
1. Wallis, Michael. The Lincoln Highway : coast to coast from Times Square to the Golden
Gate. W.W. Norton & Company. Print.
• Quality is average for this source. (((Waiting on Pattee Library for pickup)))
• This book talks about roadside attractions along the Lincoln Highway and has rare and
interesting photographs of the highway’s history.
• Relevant because readers may be interested in the roadside attractions and historical
content of the Lincoln Highway.
1. Butko, Brian. Greetings from the Lincoln Highway : America's first coast-to-coast road.
Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books, 2005. Print.
• Quality is average for this source. (((Waiting on Pattee Library for pickup)))
• This book talks about Carl Fisher and his vision of creating America’s first highway
across the United States.
• Relevant because Carl Fisher will undoubtedly be a topic I will want to discuss in my
article.
1. Hokanson, Drake. The Lincoln Highway: main street across America. Iowa: University of
Iowa Press, 1999. e-book. <http://www.netlibrary.com/Reader/>. (*copy and paste
title in website to view eBook)
• Quality is good for this source.
• This book talks about the quality of the early Lincoln Highway and the solutions to
paving a highway around the American geography.
• Relevant because the geography plays a large role in highway construction and I think
this is a subject I would like to include when developing my article because it shows the
hardships involved in building such a road.
1. Kutz, Kevin, Brian Butko, and Mary Thomas. Kevin Kutz's Lincoln highway.
Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books, 2006. Print.
1. The Lincoln Highway Association. Celebrating the First Road across America. 2010. Web.
20 May 2010. <http://www.lincolnhighwayassoc.org/>.
1.Mandak, Joe. “Pa. unveils roadside museum for nation's first transcontinental highway.” The
Associated Press. 6 August 2004. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 20 May 2010.
• Quality is good for this online source.
• This source talks about all sorts of historical markers and exhibits dedicated to the
Lincoln Highway. Subjects discussed include the first woman to make a cross-country
car trip and Carl Fisher’s bicycle selling career before becoming the visionary of the
Lincoln Highway.
• Relevant because it can provide readers information about where they can find Lincoln
Highway displays.
1. McCarthy, Joe. “The Lincoln Highway.” American Heritage Magazine. Volume 25, Issue 4.
June. 1974. Web. 20 May 2010.
<http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/magazine/ah/1974/4/1974_4_
32.shtml>.
1. The Lincoln Highway Tuscarora Summit to Rays Hill. Lincoln Highway Home Page. Web.
20 May 2010. <http://roadsidephotos.sabr.org/LH/centpenn03.htm>.
1. The Library of Congress American Memory. Lincoln Highway. Web. 20 May 2010.
<http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query>.
1. Chan, Sewell. “A Lincoln Highway Marker in Times Square.” The New York Times, 12
February 2009. Web. 20 May 2010.
<http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/12/a-lincoln-highway-
marker-in-times-square/>.