Wednesday, January 19, 2005
Historic Southern Indiana’s scenic byway receives state designation
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Indiana’s Historic Pathways, a scenic byway project of Historic Southern Indiana (HSI), tells the story of early settlement, westward migration, and transportation. The route received official designation as a state scenic byway from former Lt. Governor Kathy Davies in December 2004, and a designation ceremony was held at Falls of the Ohio State Park in Clarksville, Indiana, on December 10. State designation makes Indiana’s Historic Pathways eligible for federal dollars. The Y-shaped route stretches 250 miles across the southern half of Indiana, along U.S.50/ U.S. 150 from Vincennes to the town of Shoals. At that point, it forks and continues along U.S. 50 to Lawrenceburg and along U.S. 150 to the Falls of the Ohio. (To view the route, go to www.usi.edu/hsi/resources/IHP.asp ). “U.S. 150 follows the old Buffalo Trace trails. Buffalo would cross from the Louisville area at Falls of the Ohio, and they would migrate across the southern part of the state. Later it was used by Indians and early settlers, became a stage coach route, and eventually an automobile highway,” said Leslie Townsend, Historic Southern Indiana program coordinator. “U.S. 50 was part of the original railroad from Cincinnati to St. Louis. That’s why it’s historically important.” The byway runs through Knox, Daviess, Martin, Lawrence, Jackson, Jennings, Ripley, Dearborn, Clark, Floyd, Harrison, Washington, and Orange counties. Additionally, Crawford, Dubois, and Pike counties include some portion of the Buffalo Trace and are included as a side trip or alternate route. A committee including Townsend, Dr. Darrell Bigham, USI professor of history and director of HSI, Dale Phillips, superintendent at George Rogers Clark Historical Park in Vincennes, Judy Gray, director for Orange County economic development, and representatives from all sixteen counties in the Indiana’s Historic Pathways corridor began meeting in 1998. The application for state designation was submitted in 2002. Next HSI plans to put together a brochure to inform tourists about the byway. It should be complete by this summer. Long-term plans include developing signage and interpretive sites for the routes, and applying for national scenic byway status. “To be designated, you have to have at least one of six intrinsic qualities (scenic, recreational, natural, cultural, historic, and archaeological), and this byway has all six of them,” Townsend said. National designation would make Indiana’s Historic Pathways the third such corridor in the state, along with the Historic National Road and the Ohio River Scenic Byway (an early project of Historic Southern Indiana). |
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