Transportation in Iowa: A Historical Summary traces the development of transportation in Iowa from the territorial days to the mid-1980s, with special attention given to the economic and social influence transportation had on the state. Written by Dr. Wi llia m H. T ho m pso n, Profe sor Emerit us of Iowa ta te Unive r it . th i book i the product of fi e year of r earch. It inc lude map , picture, table and other graphic explanation of tran portation' growth a nd innuence to upport the text.

Beginning \ ith a hi torical ketch of the settlement of Iowa, the book di cus es early road which came with the se ttlement of Iowa. The role of teamboat i also examined.

Moving to more "modern" form of transportation, the book focuse on railroads in Chapter 3. including federal and state legi lative actions taken to curb abu e carried out by the early railroad companie .

The demand for improved roads, and the resulting development of the state' massive road system are traced, again with an emphasi on federal and state legislation aimed at boo ting this growing mode of transportation.

Chronicling the early 20th century, the book uses a decade-by-decade approach to highlight important developments in transportation and their effect on the state, tracing problems and programs through both prosperity and depression. Focusing on changes in the post-World War II period , the book stresses the emergence of the four-lane highway system, technological improvements in aviation , revival of river transportation- all of which played a significant role in the political and economic arenas .

The final chapters di sc uss the trans it ion of transpo rtatio n from a regul a ted commercial industry to the so-ca ll ed "free marKet" era, a nd the d ras ti c changes thi s transit io n brought.

Transportation in Iowa

A Historical Summary

William H. Thompson

~ ... Iowa Department ~, of Transportation

Co pyri ght © 1989 by the Iowa D epa rtm e nt o[ Tra nsporta ti o n

A ll ri g h ts rese rved . No pa rt o f thi s book may be re produced in a ny form without the written permiss ion of the Iowa D epartme nt of Transpo rta ti o n.

Prin ted a nd bound in the United States of A meri ca

Library o f Congress Ca taloging-in-Publica ti o n Data

Th o mpso n, Willi am H. , 1909-Transpo rt a ti o n in Iowa : a h istorica l summ a ry Will iam H.

Thompson. p. c m.

Includes ind ex. I . Tra nspo rtatio n- Iowa- Histo ry.

HE21 3.18T48 1989 388' .09777- dc20 ISBN 0-9623167-0-9

I. Titl e.

89- 15269 C IP

Dedicati on

This book is dedicated to the memory of Evelyn C. Thompson ,

devoted wife and research associate of the author

and to

the administrative officials of the Iowa Department of Transportation

and members of the Iowa Transportation Commission

who rescued the author from a dull and boring retirement.

v

Acknowledgement vii

We wish to express our ap preciat ion for the man y hours of effo rt numerou s individuals ha ve co ntributed to make this history of Iowa trans portation possible. Without th ese people , the origina l manu cript could not ha ve become the book you now have in yo ur hands. Those people include:

Elaine Allen Deke Barrett

Butch Bowers Nola Mortenson Brown

William Carl Burns

Mary Clark Ralph Cook

Jerry Dickinson Joyce Emery Gregory Fay

Patricia Hutchinso n Sam Koehler

Diane Lange Diane McCauley

Richard Michae li s Skip Nelso n

Michae l S lyby Julie Taylor Ruth Vander Schaaf Richa rd Vincent

Robert Whitman

We would a lso like to thank others w ho, while not named, have also played a rol e in the co mpletion of this project.

Acknowledgements ix

The contributions of the fo ll owing to the publica ti o n of th e book a re gratefully acknowledged.

Association of American R ai lroad ... . ..... . . . . ... ..... . . ..................... Was hington, D.C.

Cedar Rapids & Iowa City Rai lway Co .. . . . . ........................... . .. . .. . . Cedar Rapids, Iowa Central E lectric Railfan s Association . ........ ..... .. .. .. ... . .... .. ... .. . . . ... . C hicago, Illin ois

Des Moines International Airport ................. .. . . ... . ..... . .. . ....... . ... Des M oi nes, Iowa Dome Pipeli ne Corpora ti o n ...... . ...... .. ..... . .... . . ...... . ...... . ..... . . .. Iowa C it y, Iowa Dubuque Chamber of Co mmerce ... . ...... .. . . ........ . .. . . .......... . ....... Dubu q ue, Iowa

Hydrocarbon Tra nsp ortat io n Co ..... . . ... . ........ . . ... .. . . ... .. . ...... . ..... Omaha, Ne braska

Edward D. Meyers Coll ecti o n ... . ............ .. . . .... .. .... .... . . .. .. . . ... . . . Boo ne, Iowa

Inland Waterways Journal ......... .... .. .. . . .. . .. ... . .. . . . . ... . . .. . .. .. ..... St. Louis, Misso uri lone Alleman Sieben Co ll ecti o n ....... . . . . . .... . . . ..... . . ......... .. ........ . Ames , Iowa Iowa - Illinois Gas & Elect ric Co .. ............... . ............................ D ave nport, Iowa Iowa State Aero na uti cs Commissio n . ............ . ... . . . ....... . .. . .. .... ..... Des M o ines, Iowa Iowa State Commerce Comm iss io n ................... . .......... . ............ D es M oines, Iowa Iowa State Department of Eco no mic D evelopment ....... . ...... .. . . ..... . . ..... Des M oi nes, Iowa Iowa Department of Tra nsportation ..... . . ........... . .. . . ...... . ......... . ... Ames , Iowa Iowa State Highway Patrol ...... . .. .... . ...... . ....... . . ..... .... . . .... . .. . . Des M oi nes, Iowa Iowa State Historical Society ... ....... . . . . . .. . . . ... . ........................ . Des M oi nes, Iowa Iowa State Historical Society . .... .. ... . . . . . . .. . .. ... .. ..... . ............. . ... Iowa C it y, Iowa Iowa State Railroad Com miss io n . . ......... . .. . . ...................... . ... . .. D es Moines, Iowa Iowa State Univers ity Press ...... . . .. ........... ............ . . . ........... . .. Ames, Iowa Iowa State University Special Collections ...................... . . .. .... .. .. .... Ames, Iowa

R.E.G. Davies Co ll ectio n , National Air & Space Museum .... ... ...... .... . ...... Washingto n , D.C. Ruth Jackso n Collection .. . . ... . . .......... ..... .. . ....... . ... . ... .. . . ... . ... Ames , Iowa

Santa Fe Pipelines System ................................. . ................. Tulsa , Ok lahoma S ioux City Pub li c Museum .............. . ................................... S io ux City, Iowa

U.S. Army Corps of E nginee rs ... .. . . ... . . . .. . ............ . .. .. .. .. . ........ . Rock Island, Illinois U.S. Army Corps of Engineers ............................................... Omaha , Neb raska University of Cali fornia Press ............. . ............................ . . .... Berkely, Ca li fornia University of C hicago Press .. .. . . .. ... .... .... . . ........ . . ....... . . .. . .. .. ... C hicago, Illinois University of Nebraska Library . ........... ... . ... . ........................... Lincoln , Nebraska University of Pennsylvan ia Press .. ...... . .. . . . .. . .. . . .. ..... . .. .. .... ...... ... Philadelphia , Pennsyl va nia

Wi ll iams Pipe line Compa ny .............................. .. .. . ............... Tu lsa, Oklahoma Wood River Pipeline Co mpa ny . ......... . ....... . ..... . . ... . ........... . . .... Wichita, Kansas

Contents

Prologue

Chapters

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10 11

12

Epilogue

Index

Tab le of Contents

Early Transportation in Iowa Before R ai lroads . ... ...... . .... . ........ . .. . ................. .

Railroad Co nstructio n a nd l nnue nce in Iowa .. . .. . .... ..... .......... . ..... .. . . ... .. ...... .

Railroads a nd Pub li c Opinion ............. . ...... . .. .. . .. ..... . .. . ... . ... . .... ... .. .. ... .

The Movement for Good Roads . . ........... . . . .... .... ... . ......... . . . ....... . ...... .. . .

The Transportat ion Structure o f Iowa: 1900- 1920 . . .. .. . ........... .. , . . .. . ...... . ...... .. .. .

Street Ra il ways and E lec tri c Interurba ns to 1920

Transportation Poli cy a nd Opera ti ona l C ha nges in th e 1920s .. .. . .. ... ....... .. .......... . . .. .

The 1930s- Depression a nd It s Aftermath .... . . . . .. . . . . .... . .... . . . ....... .. ...... ........ .

World War 1\ and Post-War Yea rs, 1940- 1960 . . . .............. .... .. . .............. .. .. . . . .

The Transportation Indust ry in Transition - Th e 1960s .. . . ..... . .. . ....... . .......... . ... .. . .

C han ge, Co nfu sion and Crisi - Th e 1970s a nd 1980s .. ... . .... . .... . . . .. . ............. .. .... .

Deregulation a nd Tra nsportation P o li cy .I ss ues ...................... . ... .. .. . . .. . . .. ... . . .. .

Page

1

18

52

69

83 113 133 167

203 231 259

293

310

312

xi

Prologue XIII

Prologue

Regardless of the accuracy of Santayana's statement that "those who cannot remember the past are bound to repeat it ," there probably is acceptance that the past offers insight into problems of the present and partial guidelines to the future. Sidney Harris, columnist, has said: "The ancient ages remained immature because they looked backward toward a mythical golden age and refused to face the future. The modern age remains immature because it looks forward and refuses to benefit from learn ing on ly what the sad lessons of history can teach us ." Perhaps history cannot precisely forecast the future , but it is doubtful that the present can be und erstood or the future anticipated witho ut some knowledge of the past.

In some respects, the hi story o f transportation in Iowa refl ects the hi story of th e·state. In hi s Principles of Economics, published in 1920, A lfred Marshall noted : " Probab ly more than three-quarte rs of the whole benefit (England) derived from th e progress of manufacturing during the 19th century has bee n brought about through the indirect influence of lowering th e cost of transportation of men and goods, of water, light and e lectricity and news; for the dominant fact of our age is the development not of manufacturing but of the transportation industries. It is they that have done th e most toward increas ing England's wealth."

By annihilating distance, transportation mad e possib le a more effic ient di st ribution of goods in a highly mobile and productive society, c reated new markets, expand ed o ld ones, transfo rm ed the orga ni zation a nd location of industry , encouraged sett le ment , created great cities , united th e nati o n po liti ca ll y a nd strengthe ned national defense. Without its development , th ere would ha ve been littl e progress in agriculture, manufacturing, or the li festy les of the people. Its ca usa l and residual forces in the march of civilization make the industry a comp lex , fascinating, yet somet imes fru strating subject for stud y as it mirrors the eve r-changing tides a nd currents of economic, socia l and political trends in our history.

This book traces the development of transportation in Iowa from territorial days to the 1980s. It shows the evolution of the transportation systems; how they origi na ted , progressed and functioned ; their structura l organizations ; effectiveness in overcoming obstacles , under the guidance of state and federal legislation; and their impact upon the development of the state. With some exce ptions where th e co ntinuit y of t he discussion would be interrupted, the work has been o rga ni zed o n a decade-to-decade a pproach- to my knowledge, the first such experiment undertaken by any state in the nation.

To keep the length within reaso nable bound s, it was necessa ry at many po int s to limit the presentation , with fu ll realization that anyone who writes hi story will be cr itici zed for what has been includ ed as well as for what has been om itted. However, as th e title suggests, this is a hi stori ca l summary a nd nothing more , written to bring together in one vo lum e the widely scat tered works of ma ny aut ho rs. The research covered hundreds of books , journal articles, government and uni versi ty resea rch reports , a nnual reports of sta te and federal regulatory commissions and departments of transportation, masters' th eses and Ph.D. di sse rtations . Conferences and personal interviews were sched ul ed wherever appropriate to the research effort. From the seemingly inexhaustible list of materials available , only those exa mined ha ve bee n includ ed in the notes a nd references at the end of each chapter, by which the reader ma y be co mpensa ted for omissions of detail s on par ticu lar subjects.

The project was endorsed by Iowa Department of Transportation Directors Ra ymond L. Kassel and Warren B. Dunham and recommended by Ian MacGillivray, Direc tor of the Planning a nd Research Division , to the Iowa Transportation Comm ission for approval and funding . Resea rch was conducted in four libraries in Washington, D.C., at the three state univers iti es, the State D epartment of Transportation, state historical facilities in Des

Moines and Iowa City a nd a t the Ames Public Library.

Guidance in the co ll ectio n of so urce material s and sugges tions for their use came from many indiv iduals whose interest and ass istance is gratefully acknowledged . In particular , ] wish to express appreciation to Robert J. Anderson, Director of the Office of Economic Analysis, D epartment of Transportation , who acted as coordinator of the project. The following perso ns reviewed all or parts of the manuscript: From th e Transportation Department, Harvey Sims, Railroad and River Div ision ; Conrad Amend, retired , Transportation Regulatory Authority; George Norris, Information Services; Donald McClea n and Robert Given, ret ired former Directors of the Highway Division; and G.W. Anderson, D eputy Director , Highway Di visio n. Lester Paff, former General Counsel, assisted in clarifying court decisions and interpretation of Iowa laws. Alice Bea r typed the first draft.

xiv Transportation in Iowa

Io wa S la le Uni ve rsit y perso nn el invo lved in th e rev iews were: Keith H untres~, Di stin gui shed Professor Emerit us o f Engli sh; ProCe sso l's Benjamin J . Allen a nd R. D. Voo rh ees, Tra nspo rta ti o n a nd Logisti cs Depa rtment ; ProCesso rs Ro bert L. Ca rstens and Sta nley Ring, Depa rtm ent o f Tran sporta ti o n Engin ee ring.

Sin glcd o ut Cor spcc ia ll'ecog niti o n arc th e crfo rts o f J osc ph H. Za lctel Jr ., a t th e Depa rtment of Transportalion, 1'0 1' hi s ass ista nce in obtaining rescareh ma tcri a ls a nd hi s interes t in th c p rojec t. Ab o to Ann Holtgren Pellegreno, leading auth orit y o n Iowa av ia tion hi story, my sin ce re a pprec ia ti o n fo r her co ntributi o ns to the sectio ns on air t ra nspo rt a ti on.

Co mpiling the bibli ogra phy, re earching a nd writ ing th e ma nu script was a pl easa nt ex per ience the fulfillment of an id ea whi ch bega n to stir during my fin a l yea rs as a n acti ve member of the Iowa S ta te Uni versity faculty . It oCfered me a sc lfi sh ppo rtunit y to lea rn mOl'e a bo ut th e evo luti o n of tra nsporta ti on in the s tate and its impact on the sta te's deve lopment a nd to ho pefu ll y ma ke a co ntribut io n to th e sta te's hi sto ri ca l li te rature . The effort will have bee n \- o rthwhil e if tud ents of tra nspo rt a ti o n find th e boo k a n infor ma tive refere nce source for future resea rch projects a nd reade rs cnj oy the na rra ti vc desc ribin g th e growth an d develo pment of the transportation sys tems which currentl y serve the peo ple a nd indust ries of Iowa.

Ames. Iowa

September I, 1986

W. H. Thompson