By William Flood, Parklander Magazine
In February 1952 temperatures in Detroit hovered at 14-degrees. A young Pontiac factory worker hit US-24, part of the Dixie Highway, desperate for warmer weather. Meanwhile, on US-1 outside of Richmond, a Federal government employee and his small family were already tooling south on US-1 destined for a Florida beach.
Before today’s interstate system, U.S. highways were the main means of auto travel across the country. Even earlier, before 1925, automobile travel was a relative novelty, and often difficult. Towns were connected by a confusing array of named roads, many barely improved. That year, the Federal Aid Highway Act addressed the growing use of automobiles by introducing a system of numbered – and paved – U.S. highways. Roads running north/south were assigned odd numbers while east/west roads had even numbers.
The decades that followed saw a huge upsurge in auto travel on these roads, and visionary entrepreneurs in places like the sunshine state, established gas, food, and lodging businesses to serve travelers. Florida beckoned and travelers heeded the call.
Throughout the state, you can still find vestiges of those businesses along stretches of U.S. highways. Some are still open and happy to serve; others didn’t survive, but provide a dose of nostalgia, and a good photo opportunity.
U.S. Route 1 stretches over 2,300 miles from Maine to the southernmost point of the U.S. in Key West. Prior to the interstate, Route 1 was a key artery south for eastern travelers from places like Boston, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC. Prior to 1925, the road was an auto trail known as the Atlantic Highway, signifying its connection to the eastern seaboard.
Route 301, originally called the “Tobacco Trail” because of its pathway through tobacco-growing states was established in 1932. It ran from Baltimore to Sarasota, cutting diagonally across Florida through Jacksonville and Ocala.
In 1950, Warner Brothers produced “Highway 301″, based on the true-life story of a gang of criminals that terrorized towns along Route 301 during the 1930s.
U.S. Route 17 is a southern road stretching 1,190 miles from Winchester, Virginia to Punta Gorda at the Tamiami Trail. Because of its proximity to the Atlantic Coast for much of its length, it was originally referred to as the “Ocean Highway.”
Route 17’s path through Orlando, Kissimmee, and Winter Haven was important for spurring Central Florida’s tourism development prior to the interstate.
A chain of roads predating the number federal highway system, known collectively as the Dixie Highway, was intended to route travelers from Chicago to Florida. Later, eastern spurs added paths for travelers from Michigan and Ohio. Sections are still referred to as the Dixie Highway or Dixie Avenue.
Along much of Florida’s west coast runs Route 41 weaving an extensive path from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to Miami through Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia. It also makes up parts of the Dixie Highway. Florida’s southernmost portion is known as the Tamiami Trail (short for Tampa/Miami) which eventually turns east-west, skirts the northern edge of the Everglades and connects Naples and Miami. In the 1920s the State of Florida nearly ran out of funds for constructing the east-west portion; today, that segment is designated as a National Scenic Byway.
The next time you get behind the wheel, skip the interstate in favor of one of Florida’s US highways. Enjoy the panorama of small towns, diners, and vintage motels. These roads are plentiful and easy to find – just look for those recognizable signs.
