I hope to start a US 80 Historical Society in Arizona and need a lot of help

[707]

I know. That sounds very big, time demanding, eccentric, somewhat unrealistic, etc., but I really do want to try and form this at some point in the future, when I'm done with college and have a solid track on life. I've read a lot about old US 80 since I've moved here to Tucson and I'm surprised no one has stepped forward to create an association for US 80 in Arizona yet, despite all the interesting areas it travels in this state along with the history behind the road itself. Comparing US 80 to other displaced roads, I am really astonished by how much of the original non-freeway road remains passable between Dallas and San Diego. Way in over my head or not, I would like some ideas and suggestions for when and if I ever try creating this organization. And please, no one be rude to me. I've seen some of the responses to posts like mine across this forum and how nasty and aggressive those posts can be. Yeah, I realize that I have no experience with historic route associations and such, but that's one of the reasons why I'm asking for help here. I also plan on trying to join the Route 66 ones here in Arizona and California (which I was invited to join by the owner of the Wigwam in Rialto) to get more of an idea on how such processes work. In all honesty I'd really like to help preserve and tell the story of US 80 so hopefully it can one day become as popular as Route 66 or the Lincoln Highway, partially because I believe preserving these roads and telling the stories of what is on and around them helps people understand the origins of popular places and the heritage of where they travel. Sort of a fun all ages interaction with history if you will. I appreciate any kind responses to my very large request.

Matthew Anderson
Tucson, Arizona

[US81]

I wish you success in this venture.

[andy3175]

There is an existing US 80 historical society in California (they used to have a webpage called Historic Highway 80 that I can't seem to find online anymore) that is accessed from an American Roads webpage at http://www.americanroads.us/ushighways/ushighway80.html. I may be able to locate a contact person for that organization, if you want to see how they created their corporation and got the word out. If you are looking more toward publishing and making travel guides, there was also a book that covered US 80 in California and western Arizona called "The Old US 80 Highway Travelers Guide" by Eric J. Finley from the late 1990s.

I hope this helps.

[rschen7754]

Almost a year ago, I wrote https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Route_80_in_California. It turned out alright, though I suspect that there's books out there that I didn't use in my research. That probably disqualifies it from being a featured article.

[hm insulators]

Go for it! I've driven some of the old stretches of US 80 in my time, all in Arizona and California. Some great segments!

[707]

There is an existing US 80 historical society in California (they used to have a webpage called Historic Highway 80 that I can't seem to find online anymore) that is accessed from an American Roads webpage at http://www.americanroads.us/ushighways/ushighway80.html. I may be able to locate a contact person for that organization, if you want to see how they created their corporation and got the word out. If you are looking more toward publishing and making travel guides, there was also a book that covered US 80 in California and western Arizona called "The Old US 80 Highway Travelers Guide" by Eric J. Finley from the late 1990s.

I hope this helps.

It helps very much! Thank you Andy. And yes, I have read Eric Finley's book . It's a wonderful reference and helped me feel more attached to the old road.

[Alex]

Bryan Farr founded the Historic US Route 20 Association and has done a great job with it thus far. He might be someone to contact for advice.

Historic US Route 20 FB page: https://www.facebook.com/HistoricUsRoute20
Historic US Route 20 home page: http://www.historicus20.com/

[NE2]

One suggestion: don't limit yourself to things that happened after 1926. Just because it was never actually US 80 shouldn't matter.