Meridian Highway
National Register of Historic Places

Meridian Highway

Pierce, Pierce County, Nebraska
Listed
November 29, 2001
Type
Structure
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
01001273

About this property

Meridian Highway was a United States auto trail in the early twentieth century. It roughly followed the path of present-day U.S. Route 81 from Pembina, North Dakota to Fort Worth, Texas, and Interstate 35 from Fort Worth to Laredo, Texas. A group in Kansas was formed in 1911 to promote the concept of a direct north-south automobile route through the central United States. To further that goal, the objective was to organize similar groups in other states. Meridian Road groups, including in Nebraska and Canada were started in 1911. The International Meridian Road Association was founded in 1912, representing Canada, North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. Unlike most auto trails, the Meridian Highway was envisioned as an international highway, running from Winnipeg to Mexico City. Its namesake was the Sixth Principal Meridian (approximately the 97th meridian west). The original route through Nebraska was approximately 200 miles long, by 1928, only 19 miles of the Nebraska portion remained dirt road. Improved roads in Nebraska at the time were typically sand and gravel. A 4.5 mile segment of the road was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001, all of it in rural Pierce County, Nebraska. The portion of the Meridian Road in Pierce County was still a gravel surface country road in 2001. Media related to Meridian Highway (Pierce County, Nebraska) at Wikimedia Commons https://web.archive.org/web/20070924192054/http://www.drivetheost.com/meridianhighway.html http://www.northernplainshighways.org/sdakota/sd61-100.html http://meridianbridgemuseum.com/meridianbridge.htm

Location

Pierce, Pierce County, Nebraska
42.18054, -97.49315

Categories

TRANSPORTATION
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Overview
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The Land
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Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back millions of years.
LiDAR Terrain
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Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
The people born, buried or genuinely tied to this exact place, with their stories.
Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
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Literature
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Spotlight
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Points of Interest
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Timeline
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Nearby Historic Sites

Dommer-Haase Farmstead
Industrial
8.5 mi
Willow Creek Bridge
Industrial
8.9 mi
Stubbs-Ballah House
Industrial
10.5 mi
Mathewson-Gerecke House
Industrial
10.7 mi
Norfolk Masonic Temple
Industrial
10.9 mi

Questions about this property

When was Meridian Highway listed on the National Register?

Meridian Highway was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on November 29, 2001.

What type of historic resource is Meridian Highway?

Meridian Highway is classified as a structure in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Meridian Highway?

The period of significance for Meridian Highway is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Meridian Highway?

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