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A rural dirt road in Illinois, 1920.
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Eisenhower and the Transcontinental Motor Convoy
Can you imagine driving across the United States only a little faster than you can walk? That's what Lieutenant Colonel Dwight D. Eisenhower did in the summer of 1919, when he volunteered for the U.S. Army Transcontinental Motor Convoy from Washington, D.C., to San Francisco, California. A major purpose of this journey of nearly 300 men and several dozen trucks, motorcycles, and tractors was to determine whether it was possible for a motorized military expedition to cross the continent. It was no sure bet, because in rural areas beyond the Mississippi River, the roads varied from poor to nonexistent. If you wanted to get around the country in 1919, you took the railroad!
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