The Ozark Trail was a network of locally maintained roads and highways organized by the Ozark Trails Association that predated the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

federal highway system. The roads ran from

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

, to

El Paso El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the s ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, and Santa Fe,

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

, over a series of routes. These roads were maintained by both private citizens and local communities. In one case, however, the U.S. government was directly involved; it built the Newcastle Bridge in 1923 over the

South Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .Newcastle, Oklahoma Newcastle is a city in McClain County, Oklahoma, United States, and part of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 10,984. History Newcastle became a dot on the map with the opening of a new post offi ...

, and

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

, as the first federal highway project built in

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

. These roads comprised the major highway system in the region until

U.S. Highway 66 U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) was one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The h ...

was built in the 1920s. In

, portions of the section-line roads between Anadarko and

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

are still referred to as "The Old Ozark Trail." Obelisk commemorating Ozark Trail in Farwell, Texas

Route

The Ozark Trails Association were a group of private citizens that tried to encourage local municipalities to build and maintain road systems in the

Ozarks The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma and the extreme southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover a significant port ...

in the early 20th century. It was established in 1913. They erected large

obelisk An obelisk (; from grc, ὀβελίσκος ; diminutive of ''obelos'', " spit, nail, pointed pillar") is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape or pyramidion at the top. Originally constructed by Anc ...

s marking the various roads and indicated distances to various towns and communities. Twenty-one were constructed and of those only 7 still remain in existence, at

Stroud Stroud is a market town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It is the main town in Stroud District. The town's population was 13,500 in 2021. Below the western escarpment of the Cotswold Hills, at the meeting point of the Five ...

, Oklahoma, Farwell, Dimmitt,

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

, and Tulia, Texas. The Ozark Trail ran through southwest

and across

, the

Texas panhandle The Texas Panhandle is a region of the U.S. state of Texas consisting of the northernmost 26 counties in the state. The panhandle is a square-shaped area bordered by New Mexico to the west and Oklahoma to the north and east. It is adjacent to ...

, and on into

. Much of this route became the famed

U.S. Route 66 U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) was one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The h ...

. The

Federal Aid Highway Act The following bills and Acts of Congress in the United States have been known as the Federal-Aid Highway Act or similar names: *Federal Aid Road Act of 1916: July 11, 1916, ch. 241, (first) *Federal Aid Highway Act of 1921 (Phipps Act): November ...

of 1925, which finally incorporated the

Deep South The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...

into the Federal roads program, made the group's basic functions obsolete and it disbanded. William Hope "Coin" Harvey was closely associated with the organization.

References

External links

* http://www.nps.gov/history/rt66/HistSig/New%20Mexico.htm * http://www.drivetheost.com/ozarktrails.html * http://www.drivetheost.com/williamhopeharve.html * http://www.drivetheost.com/ozarkmap.html * http://www.drivetheost.com/otmarkergallery.html * http://www.okladot.state.ok.us/hqdiv/p-r-div/spansoftime/roadsystem.htm {{DEFAULTSORT:Ozark Trail (Auto Trail)

Trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. Th ...

Auto trails in the United States U.S. Route 66 1913 establishments in the United States 1925 disestablishments in the United States U.S. Route 66 in New Mexico U.S. Route 66 in Texas U.S. Route 66 in Oklahoma U.S. Route 66 in Kansas U.S. Route 66 in Missouri