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by Kenneth E. Bingham (Author)
California Before the Freeways A Pictorial History of California's Highways 1912-1919 A 214 page picture-rich book showing people and automobiles along highways, byways, and wood plank roads in California between 1912 -1919. Pictures shows bygone tourist routes, vistas, antique cars, dirt and desert wood plank roadways, old cities and towns, and the people instrumental in getting California's highways built over "Hill-and-DALE". "The State Highway Commission, overcoming its great native modesty, called attention to the fact that it was at present financially embarrassed and that unless some extraordinary legislation was developed it would be 'tee-totally busted' before funds could be derived from the proposed bond issue, which, under existing laws, could not be voted upon before the fall of 1920 at the general election, a lapse of time which might just as well be a century so far as present pecuniary needs were concerned. And then arose a Moses with his rod and smote the rock and funds poured forth. Attorney General Webb was the man who finally evolved the plan of amending the constitution of California to provide a further sum of $40,000,000 for State Highway construction by the sale of bonds, the one election serving the double purpose of amending the constitution of the state of California and providing $40,000,000 for more roads. Immediately upon the setting of July 1 as the date for the election, the California Good Roads Campaign Committee was formed, with L. A. Nares of Fresno as chairman, the vice-chairmen being Francis Carr of Redding and Henry W. Keller of Los Angeles, while joint secretaries were named as follows: D. E. Watkins, manager California State Automobile Association, San Francisco; John F. Shea, secretary Northern California Hotel Men's Association; E. W. Casson, secretary Southern California Hotel Men's Association; and Standish L. Mitchell, secretary Automobile Club of Southern California. This book is based on the wonderful and classic out-of-print book "California Highways" by Ben Blow 1920.
