Bankhead Highway turns 100

Vintage car drivers make regional stop during tour

April 27, 2016 at 2:44 a.m. | Updated April 27, 2016 at 3:16 a.m.

by Andie Martin

Alamo Supply owners Steve and Glenda Wilson of Maud, Tx. borrowed this old truck from a friend as they wanted to decorate it to commemorate the Bankhead Highway tour that came through their small town on U.S. Highway 67. The truck was a 1946 army surplus vehicle from World War II. It has been sitting in a field as of late, but is seeing new life as it rests at the intersection of Highway 67 and U.S. Highway 8. The truck has a little bit of colorful history attached to it: there are grown men in town who can remember riding in that truck on road trips to Texarkana. One of the boys, about 50 years ago, thought it would be funny and dropped the key to the truck into the gas tank. The truck has a large old crank on the front from the days when that was necessary to start the engine.
Alamo Supply owners Steve and Glenda Wilson of Maud, Tx. borrowed this old truck from a friend as they wanted to decorate it to commemorate the Bankhead Highway tour that came through their small town on U.S. Highway 67. The truck was a 1946 army surplus vehicle from World War II. It has been sitting in a field as of late, but is seeing new life as it rests at the intersection of Highway 67 and U.S. Highway 8. The truck has a little bit of colorful history attached to it: there are grown men in town who can remember riding in that truck on road trips to Texarkana. One of the boys, about 50 years ago, thought it would be funny and dropped the key to the truck into the gas tank. The truck has a large old crank on the front from the days when that was necessary to start the engine.

It was one of the first federal highways to go all the way across the continental United States, before the famous Route 66.

The old Bankhead Highway is named for John Hollis Bankhead, a U.S. senator from Alabama who spearheaded the idea in the early 1900s and, along with newspaper publisher Asa Rountree, convinced the government that the country needed to prepare itself for long-distance, safer travel with hard-surface roads.

The highway began in Washington, D.C., its route running south and west, coming to a rest in San Diego, Calif.

In Texas, it runs from Texarkana to El Paso.

And this all began in 1916.

Back then, roads were nothing more than dirt ruts in the ground, especially in the rural areas across the country, and especially across the rural areas of our Lone Star State.

Today, the old highway has changed. No longer can one easily follow the original route across the country. Interstates have been built that circumvented the trail. Now, several twists and turns on county roads and small highways will eventually get you from point A to point B along the more than 3,000 miles of paved roads.

To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the once-great highway, a vintage car tour is following the old path. And that is a good thing for those of us who live near the original trail of Bankhead Highway.

Last Thursday, the tour began its trek across Texas by leaving Texarkana at 8 a.m. and driving along our now U.S. Highway 67.

Approximately 30 to 50 cars joined the tour and traveled with the long line of vintage and antique cars, making scheduled stops along the way to allow the rest of us to ooohhh and aaahhh at these gorgeous old vehicles.

After leaving Texarkana, the cars drove to Redwater and made a drive-through at the Redwater High School.

They did a similar trek through the town of Maud, visiting the Maud Independent School District there.

Once they arrived in Simms, and the old classic rock school of James Bowie Independent School District, they were allowed to stop for about 20 minutes for onlookers to enjoy the sight of these beautiful cars.

All three locations excused their students for a short time so they could also enjoy the tour.

In Simms, the students were invited to walk around the cars and meet the owners and drivers. The place was packed. It seems the students were genuinely interested in seeing all the touring vehicles.

Granted it was a quick stop, but the air was thick with excitement. And the students seemed to really appreciate the antique vehicles they were getting the chance to see in person.

The James Bowie High School band played for the touring owners and the school offered tour participants refreshments and a pit stop for those who requested it.

It was a little chaotic and frantic trying to see all the cars before they had to leave, and meeting all the owners and drivers was not possible on this trip.

For those who were unable to make a visit to the touring cars, we at Bowie County Life have supplied some photographs of the truly unique vehicles of yesteryear.

It was an exciting few minutes and the kids really seemed to be fascinated with the older cars. Hoods were raised on several of the cars and perhaps a few drops of envy appeared on the face of a teenager or two.

The tour is sponsored by the Antique American Independent Automobile Association and was scheduled to end Sunday night with a night's stay in Odessa, Texas.

Monday, the tour was to return to Fort Worth, and from there the drivers and car owners were on their own to return to their homes.

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