One of the interesting aspects of our stay in Evanston was reading an account of the town being founded as a result of the transcontinental railroad being built. As I have written before, I-80 is just the latest in a series of roads which opened the west to exploration and settlement. Indian trails were the forerunners of the wagon trains, followed by the railroad, the Lincoln Highway, and now I-80.
Back in 1919 the President of the US sent a military convoy to determine the best route for a highway. One of the officers on that convoy was LtCol Dwight D Eisenhower who made notes of the difficulties of the travel along the way. When he became President, he was the instigator of the Interstate Highway system which we all now enjoy.
Another intriguing story was that the nearby small town of Kemmerer (no, I didn't add an additional er in the name), a entrepeneur named James Cash Penney started a small store to provide quality products at affordable prices. From this humble beginning, JC Penney became a nationwide chain with the same principles. Although JC Penney has lately undergone some major retrenchment, the original store still stands in Kemmerer.
We'll get an early start this morning and see where our travels end up this evening. Hopefully, we'll find a place to play the golf we missed yesterday. Although we'll start on I-80, shortly we'll head northeast toward Casper, WY - from there who knows where we'll end up :-).
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