On July 7, 1919, a cavalcade of sixty-nine military motor vehicles set off from the White House on an epic journey. Their goal was California, and ahead of them lay 3,250 miles of mud and rock. Sixty-two days later they arrived in San Francisco, having averaged just five miles an hour.
American Road is the story of this incredible trip that was proposed by the government to crystallize the need for good roads. Pete Davies vividly chronicles this remarkable voyage, bringing to life the men on the trip, their trials with uncooperative equipment and weather, and the punishing landscape they encountered. This richly detailed book is a piece of history unknown to many, and a celebration of our love affair with the road.
