NewsLocal News

Actions

Historian talks reviving Jefferson Highway in Muskogee

Screenshot 2024-07-31 at 5.29.09 PM.png
Posted
and last updated

MUSCOGEE, Okla. — The Jefferson Highway is one of America's oldest highways, built in 1915.

It stretches from Winnipeg, Canada to New Orleans.

The auto trail helped to revolutionize the area around it, promoting faster travel and even commerce.

As technology and transportation developed, the highway became overshadowed by other advancements in the country.

However, Roger Bell is making it his mission to remind others about this significant landmark.

"It was the first north-south route to ever go across the country," he said.

Besides being the President of the JeffersonHighway Association, Bell is a historian and has been able to learn more about the highway through his work.

"You don't have to be a historian to appreciate this," he said.

He recounted a time in which he and his son traveled the highway together.

"It was an adventure every day to just discover what was in each town we went to," he said.

"It's telling our story," Bell said. "The stories are important to the route and we continue to keep digging up more of them all the time."

The association is in the process of putting up signs to highlight locations of significant landmarks across the route.

Bell said that people from everywhere, including places like England, have heard of the route and already want to drive through it.

Bell is in the process of creating a digital manual for locations on the route to further entice travelers to take a trip on the highway.

“It’s really fun to see it build, and as we go forward, that’s what’s gonna happen,” Bell said.


Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere --