JEFFERSON DAVIS HIGHWAY MARKERS By Kathy Hillman At the 1913 UDC Convention in New Orleans, President General Mrs. Alexander B.

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2 JEFFERSON DAVIS HIGHWAY MARKERS By Kathy Hillman At the 1913 UDC Convention in New Orleans, President General Mrs. Alexander B. White recommended that the UDC secure for an ocean-to-ocean highway from Washington to San Diego through the Southern States, the name of Jefferson Davis National Highway, the same to be beautified and historic places on it suitably and permanently marked. The recommendation was unanimously

3 endorsed, but the project had a major obstacle to overcome.lack of money. The ladies never really planned to build this highway, but to select State highways which would constitute a route from ocean-to-ocean open all year and to hopefully go through as many Southern State capitals and historic places as possible. They would then get the individual State highway commissions and legislators to connect up parts of highways and have these, as a totality, named the Jefferson Davis Highway. Once the highway was commissioned the Daughters would mark and beautify the highway. The real work began in 1917 taken on my Miss Decca Lamar West of Texas. State directors were named for all states having a UDC chapter. Daughters donated money for maps of the route and in 1920 maps were available showing the entire proposed route. An official marker was adopted and William P. Rogers 44 in Victoria won the honor of being the first chapter to use the new official marker. The route was legally designated in Kentucky, Texas, Virginia, South Carolina and North Carolina; and partly marked in eight states. In 1921 the route was definitely proposed so every state could have their highway officially designated by its legislature. Several highways in Texas were designated The Texas Division of the Jefferson Davis National Highway. In other states the Daughters were asked to select their State s special trees and plant them as soon as possible along the highway and to also mark the highways with bronze tablets. The Jefferson Davis Highway begins close to Washington, D.C. on the Virginia side of the Potomac River and runs for 3,417 down through the South, across the West to San Diego, CA and up to the Canadian border where in 1940, a marker was unveiled at Vancouver on the Washington-Oregon border. As Daughters were naming the new highways, some of the roads were mere trails or were proposed as roads to be connected. In 1930, the Texas had the third annual traffic census. 2,000 men were hired to stand 8 hour shifts stationed at 972 points along the approximate 160 roads which compromised the Texas state system of highways. They counted cars for four days without a break from 6am to 6pm. The daily volume of highway traffic was 645,425 motor vehicles and 4786 horse drawn vehicles. Hays County, Texas was in Engineer District # 14 and its average traffic volume was 13,357. The road from Austin through San Marcos was the second most used road so it was Highway 2. A 44-page booklet was written in 1928 and marked the Jefferson Davis Highway. The Texas portion began at the Texas-Louisiana line on Highway No. 3 to Orange, Beaumont and Liberty. Follow Highway No 6 and No 20 through Houston to Austin. Follow State Highway No 2 to San Antonio. The road goes to Hondo, Uvalde, Del Rio, Comstock, Sanderson,

4 Alpine. At Fort Davis follow State Highway No 3 and 54 to Valentine. At Van Horn follow State Highway No 1 to El Paso to the New Mexico line. There is an extra loop to Brownsville. As highways moved, expanded or numbers changed, UDC printed new booklets to let Daughters know where the highway existed. On Friday, 8 May 1931, a Jefferson Davis Highway granite marker was unveiled and dedicated in San Marcos in Hayes County by the Lone Star Chapter of the UDC. The marker was placed on Highway No 2 near the Federal fish hatchery. Besides UDC dignitaries, participants in the unveiling were the San Marcos Baptist Academy Band, Dr. M.L. Arnold (one of Southwest Texas State Normal School s earliest faculty members), members of the DRT and DAR among many others. In the mid-1960 s, President Lyndon Johnson shut down the Federal fish hatchery and gave the land to Southwest Texas State University which is now Texas State University. Lyndon Johnson s action effectively put the University across the street from our marker. This past spring I was contact by the Hayes County Historical Commission saying that the University wanted our marker moved. It was not on their property, but as they exited the school, the marker was right there. The marker is on TxDot s right-of-way. I worked with a representative of the school and the Historical Commission for several months to find a suitable location. TxDot was wonderful and was happy to have the marker remain at its current location as it had been at that site for 85 years and more importantly to retain the legal road designation as the Jefferson Davis Memorial Highway. I finally decided to just let things calm down and leave the marker where it was. Then the marker was spray painted. The school would not clean the marker unless I agreed to move the marker. They did agree to help us find a suitable new home for the marker and pay for the move. I let it just stay that way for a few weeks, then the second event happened. The young man in the picture kept the bag over our marker just long enough to have his picture taken and put in the school newspaper. One journalism teacher and her students were giving all of the problems. Since the marker belonged to us and was on state property, the police department would not let me file charges and the marker was not TxDot s property so they could not file charges. I contacted a marker company. They told me that Lowe s sells a very inexpensive graffiti cleaner. Two of our members in Dripping Springs were more than happy to clean the marker and they did a beautiful job. Since the marker has been cleaned, a citizen of San Marcos has stepped forward and wants to donate some land on Highway No 2 to Texas Division. It will be on a corner with one side safe for parking. The land has trees,

thus shade. The University is going to pay for moving the marker through donations.

As you can see in the picture it is a sizeable marker.

It was twice as large below ground as it was above ground.

5 thus shade. The University is going to pay for moving the marker through donations. A reputable marker company in Austin has been contacted and is working on a bid for moving the marker. As you can see in the picture it is a sizeable marker. A similar one was moved several years ago in Austin due to road expansion. It was twice as large below ground as it was above ground. No one knows the dimensions of this marker below ground. I hope to have the deed in my hands and the marker moved by August 15. We will have a large rededication of the marker. It was just cleaned, but when it dried it looked great!!

Moving West with the Forts: Using an Interactive Map Mary S. Black

Moving West with the Forts: Using an Interactive Map Mary S. Black Subject: Texas history Grade level: 7 Rationale or Purpose: Students will read a map of Texas forts and analyze westward movement from