The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1911-06-29
The Waubonsie Trail;
Iowa's Boosted Highway


urely across the county, and the east
ern twelve miles OF this road make
the pretties automobile running in
Iowa. Just rolling enough to allow
the engine to loaf down the easy
grades and with no hills that cause
q change In gear. The same thing
holds true with Page county save for
about three miles near the center of
the county which has not been graded
for several years. Reaching Taylor
county one finds the good roads spirit
rampant, and while the boosters are
not SO old in experience or the faith
as some of their eastern brethren, yet
they dutifully get out and sweep Wau-
bonsies Trail every morning before
breakfast. At least 1t looks that way
In Ringgold county one finds hills
galore and set Of Waubonsie Indians
that thrive on overcoming obstacles.
Ringgold boasts of more hills than all
the other counties traversed by the
Trail and she don't wait to catch her
breath before offering to bet her sum-
mer's wages that she has the best
system of roads, taken as whole,
in Iowa. Concrete culverts from "a
to &c feet wide, scalped hills and
padded hollows and road surface
generally that nice decent, we'll
behaved automobile just huns with
delight In going over. Ringgold coun-
'y's enthusiasm bubbles highest at the
east end Of the county near Kellerton,
and one loves that bunch of Indian
road builders, because there are roads
that are dreams of delight to the
ideal road builder Graded fifty feet
wide and crowned and dragged to a
nicely, with concrete culverts buried
under feet of earth and the roads
themselves built for all time with
proper maintenance Decatur county
profits by her neighborly location to
Ringgold county and has good roads
on the western side, but the poorest
stretch in the western half of the state
on the Waubonsie is to be found be-
tween Davis City and Leon. The road
runs over hills that gives one SPLEEN
did view, and it Is naturally good
road, but it has not been dragged for
some time and dragging is not at all
well performed. One Of the prettiest
stretches of road on the Waubonsie.
and picturesque too, would be this
ridge road, if it were we'll cared for, as
Waubonsie's roads must be.
EAST of Leon In Decatur county
comes the big work on road building
on the Waubonsie. Many hills have
been cut down, and many hollows fill
ed up. Beavers hill is typical. 1t is
eleven hundred feet long and the cur
at the deepest point Is twelve feet
| and the fill at the highest is twenty
! two. That is big construction work
on any kind of road, auto or trail
There has not been a day since the
| Waubonsie was organized that several
gangs of road builders have not been
| at work in Ringgold or Decatur coun-
made by the official photographer ON
| his first trip with the present condi-
1 ton of the highway is surprising.
| Reaching Wayne county one finds
the level country in Iowa. 1t reminds
one of the prairies of Illinois, rich and
| splendid looking, with the crops in
] fine condition, save for the oats and
some hay which is short. BY the way
/ Ringgold and Taylor counties possess
/ the best corn along the trail, with the
/ prairies in north Lee county coming
second The roads all through Wayne
county and through Appanoose coun
/ ty are across the level slightly rolling
prairies that enchant one, and the
good road boosters are perched on
1 every corner and their handiwork is
apparent on every hand. Their only
drawback is the naturally good roads
those counties enjoy. The greater
| part of it is graded however, and much
! OF it has been recently dragged
Farmers vie with each other over theil
splendid stretches of dragged roads
i and the towns people are not whit
/ behind them in the work they are do
! ing. This unity of feeling or purpose
! is working wonders in Appanoose