US Route 20 Designed As The National Medal of Honor Highway

 

 

 On December 17, 2024, President Joe Biden signed S.1478 into law, which names US Route 20, the longest road in the United States, as The National Medal of Honor Highway. Representatives from the states that US 20 passes through spearheaded the effort. From west to east, US 20 travels coast-to-coast through Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Massachusetts.

The full record can be found here: Congress.gov: S.1478 - A bill to designate United States Route 20 in the States of Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Massachusetts as the "National Medal of Honor Highway", and for other purposes.

Norwalk, Ohio Unveils Historic US 20 Sign

Norwalk Ohio has unveiled their  official Historic Route 20 sign designating the special roadway, part of the longest road in the United States. (The first “Historic Route 20” sign was placed in Painesville Ohio in May 2014.) The Norwalk sign is at the intersection of Main and Church streets. Here is a video of the unveiling ceremony provided by News Norwalk.









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US Route 20: The Rocky Mountain Fly Highway (Documentary Trailer)

There’s great fishing along US Route 20 in Northeast Ohio where I live, but there is some fantastic fishing with spectacular scenery out west on US 20. Here’s a trailer for a one-hour documentary covering what one can expect fishing a 500 mile stretch of US20,  shot on location in Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and Oregon.




Rocky Mountain Fly Highway from Wide Eye Productions on Vimeo.

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Historic Route 20 Sign Unveiled in Painesville, Ohio

The first “Historic Route 20” sign in the United States was placed outside Rider's Inn in Painesville, Ohio on May 28, 2014. There is a very interesting article in the local newspaper, The News Herald, with information on the effort to bring more attention to the longest road in the United States.

You can read the article here:
The News Herald: Historic Route 20 sign unveiled in Painesville


Update May 30, 2014: As I live very close to this location I took a drive to Rider’s Inn today for a few pictures of the sign, the street, and the Inn. The picture of the Inn is my version of an old style “postcard” look. Click on any image for a larger view. 

 All photos © Chris A. Zimmer & usroutetwenty.blogspot.com

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US Route 20: Lakewood Ohio

Here are photos of US Route 20 (Detroit Road) street signs in Lakewood Ohio (just west of Cleveland), near the Rocky River Reservation of the Cleveland Metroparks.

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US Route 20: Mentor Ohio Memorial Day

Here is a photo of US Route 20 (Mentor Avenue) in Mentor Ohio, which is lined in flags for Memorial Day and the summer holidays. Also included is a video of the Memorial Day parade from the same location.

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US Route 20: Cleveland Ohio at East 9th Street

Here are two photos of US Route 20 (Euclid Avenue) at the corner of East 9th Street in downtown Cleveland Ohio. The first photo is looking west (toward the Terminal Tower). The second photo is looking at the actual intersection of US20 and East 9th Street, with the Cleveland Trust Rotunda on the southeastern corner. (The Ameritrust Tower, designed by Marcel Breuer, sits behind the rotunda).

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US Route 20: Mentor Ohio

Here are two photos of US Route 20 (Mentor Avenue) in Mentor Ohio. One photo was taken at the intersection on US20 and Rt. 615 (Center Street); the other is taken on Mentor Avenue, heading eastbound.

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US Route 20: West Springfield Massachusetts Construction

Here is a video covering the issues facing the Massachusetts Department of Transportation - and the concerns of the public – arising from a project to replace the Route 20 bridge in West Springfield, MA. (Four lanes of traffic will be reduced to two during construction.)





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US Route 20 in Cleveland Ohio: Decked Out for the Holidays

To celebrate the Christmas and winter holiday season, here are a few photos that I took last weekend from the vantage point of US Route 20 at Public Square in Cleveland Ohio.

On US Route 20, facing the Terminal Tower

On US Route 20, facing Key Tower

On US Route 20, from Public Square, facing the Terminal Tower

On US Route 20, facing the Huntington Building

On Public Square, facing US Route 20

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US Route 20: Time Lapse Drive in Mentor Ohio

Here is a short time lapse video of US Route 20 (Mentor Avenue) in Mentor, Ohio.




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US Route 20 Painesville Ohio (Signs)

Here are two photos taken on US Route 20 in Painesville, Ohio. One photo was taken at the intersection of Mentor Avenue/Erie St. (US20) with Washington St., heading eastbound to downtown Painesville. The second photo was taken on US 20 just east of where US 20 crosses over the Grand River. (Click on image for larger view.)

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US Route 20 in Mentor Ohio - Intersection (Photo)

Here is a panorama photo of US Route 20 (Mentor Avenue), facing west, at the intersection of Ohio Route 615 (Center Street) in Mentor Ohio. (A storm is approaching from the north west.) Click on the image for a larger view.

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U.S. Mint to Unveil Garfield Coin at Lawnfield on US Route 20 in Mentor

Press Release 
U.S. Rep. Steven C. LaTourette (R-OH)
July 26, 2011

U.S. Mint to unveil Garfield Coin at Lawnfield in Mentor


U.S. Rep. Steven C. LaTourette (R-OH) today announced that the U.S. Mint has produced a $1 coin bearing the image of the 20th President of the United States, James A. Garfield, and will unveil it at a special ceremony on November 17 at Lawnfield, Garfield's home in Mentor.


Officials from the U.S. Mint will come to Mentor and unveil the coin at Lawnfield, Garfield's home," LaTourette said. "It's an honor for the late President, Mentor, its residents and the caretakers of Lawnfield, a national historic site."


The ceremony will be at 10 a.m. on November 17, 2011.


The U.S. Mint issues four Presidential $1 coins each year in the order the presidents served in office. This year, coins will be issued for two Ohio natives, Rutherford B. Hayes and James A. Garfield. The other coins will honor Andrew Johnson and Ulysses S. Grant. The Garfield coin features the likeness of Garfield on the face, and the Statue of Liberty on the other side.


James Garfield was born in 1831 in a cabin in Orange Township, which is now Moreland Hills. A replica of the James A. Garfield Log Cabin can be found at the Village of Moreland Hills. Garfield graduated from Williams College in Massachusetts and returned to the Western Reserve Eclectic Institute (later Hiram College) as a classics professor and later its president. He was elected to the Ohio state senate in 1859, and in 1862, he was elected to Congress and served 18 years.


Garfield purchased his Mentor home in 1876 while he was serving in Congress and added 11 rooms and a large from porch, where he conducted his 1880 presidential campaign. The home became Lawnfield because press members camped out in the lawn during Garfield's "front porch campaign."


On July 2, 1881, just four months into his term, Garfield was shot at a Washington railroad station. He died on September 19, 1881, having served just 200 days in office. He never returned to Lawnfield after he became president, but his widow, Lucretia Garfield, remained at Lawnfield. She added a library and carefully preserved documents and artifacts and is often credited with creating one of the first presidential libraries. President Garfield is buried in Cleveland's Lakeview Cemetery.


LaTourette said he's always felt a kinship to President Garfield, and has a portrait of his family displayed in his Washington office.


"We're both Republicans with beards and represent Mentor," LaTourette joked, "The beards alone make us a fairly small club."


The Garfield heirs sold the home to the Western Reserve Historical Society in the 1930s and the National Park Service (NPS) took over in 1980, designating Lawnfield a historic site. LaTourette and several other members of Congress secured funding for a multi-million restoration in the 1990s. The NPS took over full operations at Lawnfield in January 2008.


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US Route 20: Cleveland, Ohio at Public Square

As I live in the Cleveland Ohio metropolitan area, it’s easy to get downtown, where US Route 20 - known in Cleveland as Euclid Avenue – travels right through the heart of Cleveland’s Public Square. Here are photos taken on US Route 20: one facing west to Public Square and Cleveland’s famous landmark, The Terminal Tower (that large bus you see is part of Cleveland’s RTA Healthline), and two photos facing east looking straight down US 20. I also included a photo from the west shoreway with an exit sign for US 20.

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US Route 20: Mentor Ohio Memorial Day Parade

Here is a short video of the 2011 Mentor Ohio Memorial Day parade on US Route 20.



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US Route 20 Cross Country Time Lapse Video

Here’s an interesting video featuring a cross country trip taken partly on US Route 20 Enjoy!




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Happy Holidays from US Route 20 in Mentor Ohio

Here are a few photos taken at the Commemorative Rose Garden on US Route 20 (also known as Mentor Avenue) in Mentor, Ohio. It was decorated with lights for the holidays. The photos were taken at dusk, and it was snowing lightly, so the scenes look rather gray. (Click on any image for a larger view.)












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Route 20 Scenic Byway Unveils 2011 Plans

Sorry I’m a little late with this, it got lost in a mountain of emails!

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PRESS RELEASE

NEWS FROM THE RTE. 20 ASSOCIATION OF NEW YORK STATE
November 11, 2010 For Immediate Release

Route 20 Scenic Byway Unveils 2011 Plans

HAMILTON, N.Y. -- The Route 20 Association of New York State unveiled plans for 2011 during the organization's recent 10th Annual Meeting and Dinner at the Colgate Inn.

Association President Dr. Ellen McHale said, "Our plans for 2011 will build on the strong foundation put in place in 2010." She noted that efforts included a new website and a new road map and guide -- both of which created significant visibility for Route 20 this year.

"We are very pleased with the enthusiasm and travel generated by the Association's work in 2010, especially in these difficult economic times. Our strength comes from businesses and individuals on the Route 20 Scenic Byway and its neighboring corridor communities joining together to form a more singular voice," Dr. McHale said.

"All of our work in 2011,." Dr. McHale noted, "will be directed toward creating increased visibility and awareness of Route 20 and all the Scenic Byway has to offer. It bears repeating that our strength is in our membership; the larger the base the greater the strength."

The Association's 2011 initiatives include:

•Working with NYSDOT for the installation of Scenic Byway signage.
New Signage in 2011

•Assisting with the inauguration and operation of a soon-to-be-built Tourism Center on Route 20 in the Town of Cherry Valley.

•Adding to and enhancing the existing 16 scenic tours off Route 20 depicted on the map and guide.

•Adding races to the Road Challenge Series.

•Strengthening relationships with the counties, towns and villages through which the Byway passes.

•Reaching out to stakeholder groups such as family and senior travelers, cycling enthusiasts, history buffs, antiquers, cars clubs, and similar groups.

•Further enhancing the Route 20 website and printing a newly formatted 2011 Scenic Byway Guide and Road Map.

•Communicating Association initiatives and progress through the creation of a speakers bureau, regular newsletters and press releases and more frequent digital communications, including social media outlets.

In other business the membership present approved the adoption of a revised mission statement and elected two new members to serve three year terms on the Association Board of Directors.

They are:

•H. Alan Smith, a Route 20 resident from the Town of Pompey (Onondaga County). He is a retired Episcopalian clergyman and an avid cyclist.

•Ted Bartlett from the Village of Cazenovia (Madison County). Mr. Bartlett is a senior associate and award-winning senior preservation planner for the architecture firm of Crawford and Stearns in Syracuse, and chairman of the Cazenovia Historical Preservation/Architectural Advisory Review Committee.

Concluding the meeting was a presentation by Michael Bosak, RA, President of the Landmark Society of Greater Utica. Entitled, "The Importance of Historic Preservation for the Route 20 Scenic Byway Corridor," his presentation focused on historic preservation and restoration in Utica. He also emphasized the importance of preserving historic and significant structures as well as vistas and viewscapes along Route 20.

He noted that Route 20 remains the straightest, shortest and most direct route across New York State even though it has largely been passed by since the opening of the NYS Thruway in 1956. He said the greatest risk comes from historic and significant structures falling into disrepair due to the lack of financial resources and vistas and viewscapes being destroyed by modernization and new development.

He applauded the Association for its work in securing Scenic Byway status and working to draw attention to the importance Route 20 played in the westward expansion of the country.

About the Route 20 Association
The Route 20 Association of NYS is a 501(c)(3) volunteer and membership organization serving as stewards of the 108 mile Scenic Byway stretching from Duanesburg, Schenectady County on the east to LaFayette, Onondaga County, on the west. Additional information is available at http://www.nyroute20.com/

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US20 In Ohio: Eleanor B. Garfield Park

Just a few hundred feet from the home of President James A. Garfield in Mentor Ohio on Mentor Avenue (US Route 20) is Eleanor B. Garfield Park. It is named for a relative of President Garfield; Eleanor was his granddaughter-in-law (the widow of Rudolph Hills Garfield). She also served as mayor of the city of Mentor. The park is 65 acres of nature and family recreation, with a large fishing pond and all types of fields and courts for sports, including a swimming pool.

If you are in the area visiting home of President James A. Garfield, take a trip just a few hundred feet west on US 20 and enjoy a walk in the park. Here are a few photos.











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