The Goodyear Conflict

On March 21, 1918, the Lincoln Highway Association and the state of Utah agreed to build an improved road between Salt Lake City and Ely. It was called the Goodyear Cutoff because the President of Goodyear, Frank Seiberling, donated $100,000 for its completion. 

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The Goodyear section, courtesy of The Lincoln Highway Digital Image Collection, Transportation History Collection, University of Michigan Library (Special Collections Research Center)

Utah agreed to finish the road by July 1, 1918. However, they did not fulfill their end of the bargain. State officials wanted a route that kept tourists in their state longer, so they spent the money building their preferred road along the Arrowhead Trail, which went south to Los Angeles.

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Even when Utah agreed to build a road west instead of south, they wanted to cut directly through the desert. They named this the Wendover Route since it went through the town of Wendover. You can see these paths on the map at left, with the Wendover Route in blue, the Goodyear Cutoff in red, and the Arrowhead Trail in white. This disagreement lead to almost a decade of conflict between Utah and Nevada and the Lincoln Highway Association.

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Courtesy of The Lincoln Highway Digital Image Collection, Transportation History Collection, University of Michigan Library (Special Collections Research Center)

Utah got a leg up when the first Transcontinental Military Convoy came through in the summer if 1919 (see next page). The convoy struggled to make it through the poorly-constructed, underfunded road, which reflected poorly on the path. The heavy trucks also destroyed what improvements were present.

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Courtesy of The Lincoln Highway Digital Image Collection, Transportation History Collection, University of Michigan Library (Special Collections Research Center)

The Goodyear cutoff continued to be neglected. In 1920, Utah spent less than $10 on that stretch of road. Instead, Utah developed the Wendover route, which cut directly through the Great Salt Desert. The Goodyear Section was abandoned in 1921.

With little choice, the Lincoln Highway Association adopted the Wendover Route in 1927. This meant that the path had to change on the Nevada side as well. It took another 3 years to complete the Nevada section of road, leaving a gap in the highway until 1930.

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Though the tactics used by the Utah government were underhanded, they were ultimately successful. Modern I-80 follows the Wendover Route through the desert.  

Goodyear Conflict