Watauga Democrat. [volume] (Boone, Watauga County, N.C.) 1888-current, 1928-08-09
MOVEMENT MADE
TO IMPROVE NO. 60
North Wilkesboro and Boone Join
in Effort to Get Important Route
Hardsurfaced; Part of 1t Would
Be Relocated

North Wilkesboro, Aug. 3.-At a
meeting of the North Wilkesboro
Kiwanis club held at noon today, an
effort that will be most vigorous
one was started, looking to the i'm
provenent of the states third great
est highway-the Boone Trail,
known by the state road authorities
as Number 60. This proposed i'm
provement is to embrace relocation
and surveying from Millers Greek,
six miles west of this city. to Boone,
one of northwest North Cardinals
thriving resort and tourist cities.
Interest in the meeting was aug
mented by the presence of DR.. B. 3.
Dougherty, president of the Appa-
lachian State Normal school at
Boone; Prof. |. G. Grere, a member
of the institutions faculty; George
P. Hagaman and J. Frank Moore of
Boone, and c. E. Walker, a visiting
kiWanian of Morganton, who is
spending his vacation in Boone.
DR.. Dougherty was the first to ad-
dress the kiWanians on the subject
of improving the Boone trail to the
west. He stated that the states
three outstanding highways were
Numbers 10, 20 and 60, and that all
but the Boone Trail had been prac-
ticallv hardsurfaced across the state.
In his efforts to get the trail re-lo-
Gated and hardsurfaced from North
Wilkesboro to Boone, DR.. Dougherty
said he had "been told that there
was no money, and that the highway
traversed a sparsely settled section
of the state" The speaker said that
''in justice to the people of this
has no money with which to convert
this highway, should provide some by
issuing bonds sufficient to complete
the road" and that if it did not do
so it would be great traversity of
Justice"
DR.. Dougherty pointed out that
the highway was both an economic
and tourist route and would take the
place of railroad across the noun
tains. The proposed highway would
be a great factor in the development
of this section, and would pass
through mountain scenery that even
eXcels ''the land of the sky" around
Asheville.
Prof. Greer was the next speaker
advocating the relocation and sur
facing of the highway. He handed
an appeal to the citizenship Of the
Wilkesboros and Wilkes county to
join hands with those Of Boone and
Watauga county in one great, mo-
mentous movement to get the high
way constructed. He said that trucks
could be operated over a surfaced
highway $500 a ton cheaper than
over sand-clay gravel road. "Suit-
able detours have much to do with
the cost of converting highways"
Prof. Greer said, land right now is
the best time to build the road"
there being excellent highways be-
tween North Wilkesboro, Jefferson
and Boone and between this city and
Lemon to Boone. By using these,
the speaker said, workmen would
not be bothered with traffic.
Mr.. Hagaman and Mr.. Moore fol-
lowed Prof. Greer with short talks.
j. R. Finley, member of the
North Wilkesboro club, and for years
strong booster of the Boone Trail
highway, and familiarly known as
Boone Trail Bob," was the next
speaker. He advocated in strong
terms the immediate conversion of
the trail to the west and made a mo-
ton to adopt the same resolution as
red by Prof. Greer and adopted by
the Boone Civitan club yesterday.
The road committee of the local
club will work Jointly with a COM
mittee of the Civitan Club of Boone
to promote the movement, and
Julius C. Hubbard of North Wilkes
boro, made motion, which was
adopted, that this committee take the
matter up with the district commits
sioner. If no response is given in
that quarter, the appeal is to be
taken to the state highway commits
sion, and even into the next session
of the general assembly.