Building Good Roads in Johnson County: 1861-1925
“It costs comparatively nothing to open roads and build bridges in this county,” wrote the editors of the Olathe Mirror in 1861. The editors criticized the county government for “having no expensive bridges to build or roads to open.” This deplorable condition, they insisted, placed Johnson County “far behind a few of the adjoining counties.” Despite its vast natural resources, Johnson County's roads were notoriously perilous during the nineteenth century. Overland travellers often encountered mud, potholes, and outlaws.
Military roads were perhaps the earliest public highways established in most Kansas counties. In 1863, the Kansas legislature petitioned the United States Congress to establish a military road to connect Fort Leavenworth and Fort Scott. This road cut a diagonal route through Johnson County’s northeast section. Beginning near Shawnee in the north, it continued southeast through present-day Prairie Village and Leawood, and then went directly south along the state line to Fort Scott.
State legislatures issued guidelines regarding the placement of public roads and highways during the nineteenth century. Kansas passed legislation in 1864 establishing 64 public roads to be located along property section lines. Many of Johnson County’s major throughfares follow the routes established for nineteenth-century travellers.
Rural Free Delivery and Good Roads
Good roads were first promoted by a powerful farmers’ lobby that emerged during the late nineteenth century. The Patrons of Husbandry, or Grangers, mobilized a national grass-roots campaign for better roads and free mail delivery to rural areas. The Grangers focused their attention on improving the farmer’s access to markets and pressured Congress to build safe roads that were passable year-round. During heavy spring rains or winter snows, farmers were virtually cut off from civilization, sometimes for months. Even in good weather, dirt roads full of potholes frequently damaged equipment and horses.
The Grangers’ efforts paid off in 1893, when the federal government established the Rural Free Delivery (RFD) system. By 1903, 8600 carriers delivered mail to nearly five million farms. Early mail carriers carted newspapers, household goods, magazines, and mail order catalogs, such as those from Sears and Roebuck and Montgomery Ward, to rural residents throughout the country. Rural free delivery serviced portions of Johnson County by 1896; a country-wide system with 28 routes was established in 1904.
Although the federal government had agreed to support a national rural free delivery system, mail carriers and residents continued to battle muddy and uneven roads well into the twentieth century. Property owners maintained the roads connecting their homes to the public highways. County and local governments with little engineering expertise were still responsible for public road building. If improved at all, county roads were paved with gravel which was then bound together with stone dust or clay. These rather crude surfaces could not support the burden of automobile and other motor vehicle travel. Inexperienced road workers often built overly steep grades, unnecessary curves and poor drainage systems. As a result, heavy rainstorms caused havoc. In 1904 a mail carrier described flooded roads and fields following a torrential rainstorm that broke a sixty-foot steel bridge over Tomahawk Creek. “Culverts and bridge approaches [were] washed away,” he wrote, “and the roads [were] almost impassable in some localities.” Despite the slow pace of road improvements, local sentiment remained optimistic about the impact of Rural Free Delivery. In December 1904, the Olathe Mirror proclaimed, “with a free telephone system and free delivery service Johnson County takes on new airs... Rural Free Delivery is a guarantee that public roads and highways will receive better attention.”
The Grangers’ lobbying efforts raised the good roads issue to a national level. A federal Office of Road Inquiry was established in 1893, when the Rural Free Delievery system was organized. Road improvements, however, continued to lag behind the expansion of the rural free delivery system. In 1912, additional funding was secured to improve the 1.2 million miles of mainly dirt roads over which the mail carriers were travelling. County funds were matched with federal dollars to build roads according to standards developed by engineers in the Office of Road Inquiry. Soon, farmers were driving Model-T’s across roads built by Congress and their state government, while city dwellers continued to rely upon trolleys. Farmers in Edgerton and Gardner were said to “have the finest automobiles that can be found on the market” in 1909.
The Good Roads Movement
The “Good Roads” argument was debated across the front pages of local newspapers. Between 1905 and 1915, the Olathe Mirror published numerous articles in support of improved roads throughout the county. “Good roads lead not only to town, but to money” was a typical headline that captured the local spirit of improvement. Businessmen and farmers worked together to encourage government leaders to improve the roads. Farmers sought year-round access to markets; business owners lobbied for sidewalks and paved roads to attract more customers to their stores. In his annual address to the legislature in 1905, Kansas Governor Edward Hoch proclaimed good roads “not only a matter of convenience, but of practical financial necessity... especially for the farmers.”
As automobiles became more affordable and reliable, Johnson Countians formed auto clubs and supported the “Good Roads Movement.” In 1910, the Johnson County Automobile Club was formed to “promote good roads and rules to insure the protection of both the drivers and the public.” Apparently they believed the county's fifty cars caused sufficient traffic to warrant road safety measures. A Good Roads Association was also active in Gardner, where the membership collected funds to drag (clear) the local roads. The club described the impact of their efforts on the town’s prosperity in the local newspaper. “Along comes a hard rain,” they bragged “and long before the roads to Olathe and other points are good enough to travel, the farmer has been to Gardner, over the good roads, and made his purchases for the week.”
Must Build This Way
By 1910, Johnson County residents had several options for travel within the county and to downtown Kansas City. The Strang Line, an electric interurban railroad, ran between Kansas City and Olathe, with stations at Lenexa, Overland Park, Metcalf and State Line. Commuters on the Strang Line could reach downtown Kansas City in less time than riders on the Metropolitan, which serviced Kansas City, Missouri, residents. Four railroad lines served all corners of the county. Johnson County was seen as the “natural outlet” for the city's growth. Modern highways and good roads were needed to ensure the county's progress.
Between 1909 and 1910, local leaders pressured the county commissioners to build a “modern,” rock-bottomed highway between Olathe and Kansas City. They called for “first class highways...[that would] save millions of loss to farmers.” The proposed “Kansas City & Olathe Boulevard [would] add beauty and attractiveness...[and] add greatly to the comfort and convenience of this section.” County officials were reluctant to build the road at public expense, since many residents did not yet own automobiles and could not use the roads.
The Pan American Highway
As the Kansas City-Olathe Road debate continued, the good roads supporters turned their attention to another project. A coast-to-coast highway known as the Pan American Highway was proposed in 1911. The road was to follow the old Santa Fe Trail as closely as possible, and Johnson County was eager to secure a segment along the national route. The Santa Fe Trail Association was organized to represent Johnson County’s interests at a meeting in Osage City to determine the roads’s path through Kansas. In December 1911, the Olathe Mirror announced, “Our Boosters Won, National Highway through Johnson Couunty, Edgerton, Gardner, Olathe, Lenexa, and Overland Park on route.” The National Highway Car visited Johnson County in 1912 to bolster public enthusiasm for the project. The entourage was greeted by large crowds in Olathe and Overland Park. Local bands played and clubs hosted banquets for the participants.
Federal Aid Road Act
The federal government sponsored several road building and auto demonstration projects to gain support for public highways. Government leaders and road-building interest groups teamed up to win taxpayer support for good roads. They disagreed, however, over who should control the funding. The Federal Aid Road Act of 1916 established state highway departments to coordinate road building projects. The legislation established guidelines for all road projects built with federal tax dollars. State highway commissions reviewed and inspected county road projects for compliance with fedreal regulations. The Kansas Highway Commission began supervising Federal Aid Road projects in 1917.
Johnson County leveraged federal and state dollars to improve and extend existing roads. Compliance with federal and state regulations was a lengthy and highly technical process, and the county employed professional engineers to supervise the projects at all levels. In 1919, a delegation of taxpayers presented to the county commissioners a systematic road plan that they believed “would accommodate and comply with the wishes of the greatest number of the residents and taxpayers.” The plan called for hard-surfacing and oiling serveral existing roads. The road levy was to be increased from 1/2 to three mills to pay for the improvements. A number of county roads were improved during the 1920s. The rock roads in Shawnee and Mission Townships were repaired, while the “Short Line” (running sourth from Overland park to the Miami County line) was paved with concrete. Reporters visited the construction sites to chronicle daily progress and described the materials and process in detail.
Follow the Red Brick Road
The Kansas City and Olathe Road received extensive press coverage throughout 1925, when the rock road was converted to a hard-surfaced road of concrete and brick. A feature-length article published in the Johnson County Democrat titled, “How Hard Surfaced Roads Are Built,” described “over one hundered fifty men... working ten hours a day to rush to complete the road.” The specifications called for a fourteen-foot wide roadway of brick with a concrete base, supported by a four-foot shoulder of earth on each side.
Johnson County commissioners were under intense public scrutiny, due to earlier reports of mismanagement and corruption in the road department. The cost of building the modern roadway — reported at $38,000 per mile — heightened public interest in the project.
The contractors, Cook & Stucker of Ottawa, were charged with completing the road as quickly and as efficiently possible. The company reported setting a world record in July 1925, by laying one-fifth of a mile of concrete in a single day. This won the approval of the Olathe Mirror, whose editors praised the contractors for making the concrete base a “finished job, even though it is to be completely covered with bricks,” and for their “rapid progress.” Cook & Stucker set another record during the final brick-laying phase.
The Kansas City and Olathe Road opened to the public in phases during the summer of 1925. Completed four months ahead of schedule, despite weather delays, Cook & Stucker (and, by association, the county commissioners) won the “good faith” of the people. The grand opening, held on September 12, was promoted as “the greatest event in the history of Johnson County.” Governor Ben Paulen and Senator Charles Curtis were the featured guests. A “Pageant of Progress Parade,” a vaudeville show, and street dancing provided additional entertainment.
Government leaders and local merchants rejoiced, as the Kansas City and Olathe Road was certain to “lead to money.” The Olathe Mirror predicted a “New Era for Olathe as a Kansas City Suburb.” A Kansas City Star reporter published his opinion of the new road in the Mirror:
Having driven over the “worst stretch in Kansas” for 6-8 years, my primary reaction comes in the form of the glad shout, Hurrah... with the smooth highway and the absence, almost entirely, of any grade, the trip’s a pleasure... I plan on a 45 to 50-minute trip from Olathe to Kansas City.
The Kansas City to Olathe Road was a great source of pride for Johnson County. This modern highway stood as a monument to progressive leadership and a “wide-awake” public. Johnson County was now part of “the great chain of hard surfaced roads” that would tend to the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean.
ALBUM vol. 8, no. 2 (spring 1995)