Historic Ford travels the Lincoln Highway again

Two sons of Dr. Alan D. Hathaway stand next to the Ten-Millionth Ford as they talk with Tom Davidson, with red cap. That historic 1924 Ford was a barn rescue by Dr. Hathaway in the 1960s and he initiated re-enacting the original 1924 Sea to Sea Lincoln Highway trip during significant milestone years. Tom Davidson is with the Pennsylvania Chapter of the Lincoln Highway Association that hosted a reception in Lancaster, PA, at the end of Day 1 of the Platinum 100th Anniversary trip. (S.H. Smith photo, June 2, 2024, Lancaster, PA)

Posted by Stephen H. SmithJune 3, 2024June 3, 2024 All Posts, Automobiles, Businesses, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, Roads, Transportation, Various Locations, York County

Historic Ford travels the Lincoln Highway again

The Ten-Millionth Ford will be traveling the route of the original Lincoln Highway as much as possible, i.e. in eastern York County that is Route 462. With one-way streets in York, the car will be traveling Philadelphia Street through the city.

Day 2 of the trip covers 203 miles from Lancaster, PA, to Greensburg, PA, which is about 30 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. The car should pass through York sometime between 9:30 and 10:00 on the morning of Monday June 3, 2024. If you take a photo of the car, please share.

A neat way to mark the four cross-county trips of the historic Ford is seen in a plaque placed on the dashboard. In the plaque are 1924, 1974, 1999, and 2024 Lincoln pennies to represent years the 1924 Ford has traveled the Lincoln Highway from New York to San Francisco. Golden 50th Anniversary is 1974. Diamond 75th Anniversary is 1999. Platinum 100th Anniversary is 2024.

1924, 1974, 1999, and 2024 Lincoln pennies in dashboard plaque of the Ten-Millionth Ford represent years the 1924 Ford has traveled the Lincoln Highway from New York to San Francisco. Golden 50th Anniversary is 1974. Diamond 75th Anniversary is 1999. Platinum 100th Anniversary is 2024. (S.H. Smith photo, June 2, 2024, Lancaster, PA)

The 1924 trip of the Ten-Millionth Ford

The 1924 trip began from Times Square on Monday morning June 16, which was 12 days after the Ford came off the assembly line. The first day’s journey was through New Jersey on the Lincoln Highway, with the Monday overnight stop at Princeton. On Tuesday June 17 the car went into Philadelphia and the city was also the Tuesday overnight stop. On Wednesday June 18 the car traveled westward through Southern Pennsylvania communities on the Lincoln Highway before arriving in the late afternoon in York, which also served as the Wednesday overnight stop. More about the 1924 trip is told in this post.

The Golden 50th Anniversary trip in 1974

The following June 4, 1974 photo in Pittsburgh is from the Golden 50th Anniversary cross-country trip of the Ten Millionth Ford.

Retracing the path of the Lincoln Highway across the country takes some elbow grease in a 1924 Model T Ford. Dr. Alan Hathaway, a dentist from Davenport, Iowa, the owner of the car, stopped in Pittsburgh yesterday on his way to San Francisco from New York City. It’s the first cross-country trip for Hathaway but not for the Model T. Fifty years ago, it made the same trip as Ford’s ten millionth. (Source: *The Pittsburgh Press*, Wednesday June 5, 1974, pg. 6.)

The Diamond 75th Anniversary trip in 1999

The cover on spare tire of Ten-Millionth Ford in Lancaster, PA, during the evening of June 2, 2024, is in remembrance of the third trip in 1999, being the Diamond 75th Anniversary of the 1924 trip.

Cover on spare tire of Ten-Millionth Ford in Lancaster, PA, during the evening of June 2, 2024; after traveling 180-miles from New York City. This is Day 1 of fourth time the 1924 Ford has traveled Lincoln Highway from New York to San Francisco, and is the 100th Anniversary of the original event. The tire cover is from the third trip in 1999, being the Diamond 75th Anniversary of the 1924 trip. (S.H. Smith Photo)

The Platinum 100th Anniversary trip in 2024

The following is an overall view of Ten-Millionth Ford in Lancaster, PA, during the evening of June 2, 2024; after traveling 180-miles from New York City. For this trip new hickory wheels were fabricated.