THE TRIP TO TOWN: RURAL TRANSPORTATION PATTERNS AND DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1900

This article presents a history of the replacement of horse power by horsepower, the construction of rural roads, and the effect of Interstates in rural areas. Horse power rapidly yielded to the horsepower of the automobile and the farm truck in rural America in the early 20th century, producing a progression from dirt road to barn-raising road to country road to booster road to state highway, and finally to the Interstate. The rural Interstate accelerated the transformation of the family farm--farmers and family members could travel on the Interstate to jobs that supported the farm. Today, nationwide, 84% of all farm household income comes from off-farm sources.