Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1919-10-24
ROAD Development
IN BADGER STATE
Progress of Highways HAS
Been Remarkable Dur
ing the Past Decade
in Wisconsin.

An auto trip from Milwaukee to
Eagle River last week took us over
the state trunk highways through
Fond du Lac, Oshkosh, Neenah, Me-
nasha, Appleton, Shawano, Amigo,
and Rhinelander. Much has been
said and written in the past few
years regarding the progress Of road
building in the southern counties Of
the state. One has TO travel over
them though, to fully realize the
wonderful change that has come
about in less than ten years, and es-
pecially in permanent roads built Of
concrete. By the end Of next year
judging from the amount completed
and that under construction, the
route from ShawaDo to Milwaukee
will be over an unbroken. stretch of
loft concrete highway.
To anyone at all familiar with the
utter indifference to the value of
good roads shown Ivy the inhabitants
of practically all of the most pros
peroas portionsof the state up to a
decade back, it is certainly crafty
ing to note the change of sentiment
that has swept the state since the
coming of the automobile.
Up to that time, and under the old
township pathmaster system, the
main idea in most localities was to do
as little work as possible when called
out to work road taxes, and the work
generally meant tearing up the best
piece of road in the district with
plows and road graders and carefully
placing every available chunk of sod
in the middle of the road so that
the riding qualities of new buggies
could easily be tested. Such thing
as grayeling a sandy stretch or hill
was generally condemned for the
reason that the farmers in the adj
joining district would use the road
Just as much as the ones who lived
there. Any attempt to have the
road tax paid in money was religious
ly voted down at the annual town
meeting.
Since the state began to take a
hand in the road program and the
adoption of the auto by nearly every
farmer and town resident, all this
has changed and bond issues for road
building are now easily forthcoming
where few years ago to propose one.
would have been highly injurious to
a mans reputation for lunacy. In
creased traffic has shown that dirt
and gravel roads cannot stand the
strain asked of them in many locali-
ties, neither has an asphalt rein
forcement proved sufficient for the
constantly growing automob lie and
motor truck users. This accounts
for the use of concrete more each
year as being the cheapest road ma
terial in the long run and the first
cost the main one. Comparing the pro-
gress in road improvement during
several years of life spent in driving.
roads in this state, with the recent
changes, it is far from a visionary
dream to say that Shawano will soon
be connected with Milwaukee by
extension of the concrete highway,
then Amigo will demand it and get
it, and from there either Crandon or
Rhinelander will be quick to grasp
the opportunity of inducing tourists
their way. When that day comes as
it is bound to come not many years
from DOW, even the children in Eagle
River will cry for it much louder than
they ever did for Castoria, and
continuous concrete highway from
Eagle River to Chicago will be the
outcome.