Allen County, Indiana Genealogy

See Streets of Fort Wayne.

1. Native American trails were the first roads in northeastern Indiana. Many trails crossed northern Indiana before the land was surveyed and sold to settlers in the first half of the 19th century. The Fort Wayne to Goshen Road was one of the first roads in northeast Indiana, which became the Lincoln Highway in 1913 and then US 33 in 1926. The original Lincoln Highway route through eastern Indiana passed through the small communities of Zulu, Townely, Besancon (the 19th century French settlement), the canal town of New Haven, and Fort Wayne. The route then headed northwest to the city of Churubusco. Lincolndale Café was located on the western edge of Fort Wayne along Goshen Road. From this point the original route of the highway continued on north to Churubusco. The 1926 route turned west on Washington Center Road. The Lincoldale area was completely altered when Interstate 69 was built. Road construction has caused sections of the original Lincoln Highway route to become dead ends. Fort Wayne celebrated the Lincoln Highway with bonfires, long parades, arches built to welcome travelers, and the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) erected a flagpole at the city limits to show their patriotic efforts. Lincoln Highway Association’s promotional efforts included the building of concrete bridges. The Lincoln Highway Bridges in Fort Wayne opened in April 1916 over the St. Mary’s River at a cost of $200,000 as a part of Harrison Sreet. The granite plaques show that it is 742 miles to New York and 2,660 miles to San Francisco. Today the bridge is part of a greenway pedestrian and bike system. This is the first paragraph copied from the Lincoln Highway by Tom Castaldi, local historianat ARCH ( Architecture and Community Heritage).
2. The Original State Road System, as Shown in 1932 Richard M. Simpson, III, Cities/Towns, Government, Maps, Roads, State Highways 6 January 2021 on Indiana Transportation History.
3. 1920-1960: Allen County Roads by Richard M. Simpson, III, Auto Trails, 11 January 2021 on Indiana Transportation History. Has many Fort Wayne related topics especially railroads.
4. Maps of Suburban and Rural Additions, Fort Wayne, Indiana, 1960 The following contains maps of rural additions which were not within the Corporation limits of the City of Fort Wayne in 1960. At the The Genealogy Center at the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Many of these additions are now within corporate Fort Wayne city limits.
5. Road name changes are frustrating, but usually occur in modern times when named roads that originally did not connect, often due to rivers and creeks without bridges or other obstacles, are connected many years and decades later when many existing homes and businesses with long-time addresses are merged by connecting those roads.
6. Early roads were often named for the people living along or near the roads since an Indiana law of 1816-17 required males age 18-50 to donate up to 6 days labor annually to open and maintain public roads. Pioneer families created early roads by cutting down trees and laying the original road beds through the primeval forests that greeted the early pioneer families. Such stories are sometimes found in early county records.
7. Roads near the center of the township often have center in their names like Aboite Center Road, Lafayette Center Road, Maumee Center Road, Milan Center Road, Pleasant Center Road, and Springfield Center Road. Two pairs of center roads are north-south Adams Center Road changes to Marion Center Road, and east-west St. Joe Center Road changes to Washington Center Road once separated by the Saint Joseph River are now connected by a bridge as they cross township boundary lines.
8. Fort to Port U.S. 24 a 4 lane highway opened in November 15, 2012 replaces the 2 lane Old U.S. 24 that followed along the winding old Wabash and Erie Canal route across Indiana northeast into Ohio on the way to Toledo, Ohio. U.S. 24 (Fort to Port) Officially Opened November 14 at Inside INDOT.
   

   The new four-lane limited-access highway traverses northeast Indiana and northwest Ohio to connect Fort Wayne with the Port of Toledo. The corridor spans about 75 miles from Interstate 469 in New Haven to near Waterville, Ohio, south of Toledo. One of 50 state road projects finished this year because of Major Moves money from the long-term lease of the Indiana Toll Road. The route will provide direct connections to Interstates 80, 90, 75, 69 and 469 and join the under-construction Hoosier Heartland Corridor that will connect I-69 in Fort Wayne to I-65 in Lafayette. The new U.S. 24 will make it easier to travel to the Great Lakes region, officials said. - November 15, 2012 12:11 p.m. Fort to Port finally open for business Last Indiana section finished by Vivian Sade of The Journal Gazette newspaper, posted on NEI Northeast Indiana.

9. See our section on the Indiana Lincoln Highway
10. Indiana National Road Association
11. Lima Road, formerly known as Lima Plank Road. Was the first plank road in northern Indiana. It was named Lima Plank Road when it ran northwest from Fort Wayne to Lima, now Howe, LaGrange County, Indiana. In 1847, the road was built by Samuel Hanna. It was made of planks so that wagons could ride smoothly! A photo of one of the planks at The History Center in Fort Wayne was posted July 13, 2019 by Fort Wayne Road Commission - FWRC on Facebook.
12. The old Bostick Road Bridge, spanning the St. Marys River off of HWY 27, just south of I-469. The bridge was built in 1894 by the Canton Bridge Company of Canton, Ohio and closed in April 2004. Bostick Road Bridge Award The Highway Department's effort to restore and preserve the historic Bostick Road bridge was recognized by ARCH -- the Architecture and Community Heritage organization of Allen County and northeast Indiana. ARCH presented the Highway Department with its 2012 Good Stewardship Award for the ongoing preservation of an Allen County landmark. The rehabilitation of the single-span bridge included new steel members, bridge decking and bridge painting in order to provide for the preservation of this historical structure. Following the restoration, the bridge is now being utilized as a pedestrian way across the St Mary’s River. copied from page 9 of the 2012 Allen County Annual Report. More information can be found in Historic Bostick Road Bridge dismantled by Kevin Leininger in the archives of The News-Sentinel newspaper. IF BRIDGES COULD TALK William L. G. Etzler, P.E. Executive Director Allen County Highway Department in a 4-page document on Purdue.edu, Bostick Road Bridge Turner Bridge, Allen County Bridge 268 on HistoricBridges.org, and Bostick Road Bridge on Bridgehunter.com: Historic Bridges of the United States.

13. Curious what road projects are ahead this year? 🛣 http://Nextlevelroads.com shows current and upcoming projects through...

    Posted by Indiana Department of Transportation: Northeast on Monday, January 9, 2023

    January 8, 2022 post by Indiana Department of Transportation: Northeast on Facebook:
    Curious what road projects are ahead this year? NextLevel Roads.com shows current and upcoming projects through 2027. You can use the menu on the right to customize your search, zoom in to areas you more frequently travel, and click on the colored dots to learn more.
    
    NextLevel Roads states: Indiana is taking transportation and logistics to the next level. Transportation plays a major part in Indiana's success story. Now, with a sustainable, data-driven plan in place to fund roads and bridges, Hoosiers can rest assured that Indiana will remain the Crossroads of America for generations to come.

14. NLR map

    Some construction projects have gotten underway, but there are plenty more that haven't started yet. A great tool we have to see what's coming your way is our Next Level Roads map. Check it out today! nextlevelroads.com

    Posted by Indiana Department of Transportation: Northeast on Monday, March 6, 2023

    March 6, 2023 video post by the Indiana Department of Transportation: Northeast on Facebook:

    Some construction projects have gotten underway, but there are plenty more that haven't started yet. A great tool we have to see what's coming your way is our Next Level Roads map. Check it out today! nextlevelroads.com

15. April 21, 2023 post by Allen County INfo on Facebook:

    The Allen County Highway Department works diligently toward the multi-year goal of converting all gravel roads in the county to a chip-and-seal hard surface. However, there are still more than 50 miles of gravel roads in Allen County.

    Allen County residents who want the Allen County Highway Department to apply dust control material to their stone and gravel roads this spring can now mail in their application or drop it off in person to any of the three Highway Locations. Residents have until April 30 to sign up. That deadline is quickly approaching.

    Applications can be found at www.allencounty.us/highway-department. Print the completed form and submit it with a check or money order. Payments by credit card cannot be accepted at this time. Applicants can also call or come in person to any of the Highway Department Offices to submit a verbal application.

    Once again, this year, residents can choose one of two options — an application of either Dustay, which is an asphalt emulsion, or calcium chloride. The Highway Department charges $2.25 per linear foot for Dustay, while the cost for calcium chloride is $1.45 per linear foot. Either option requires a minimum 200-foot application.

    The department will schedule with the suppliers to begin placing the dust control materials after May 1, 2023, depending on weather and road conditions. The materials will be applied in two treatments and will span the full width of the road.

    For more information, call the Highway Department Main Office at 260-449-7369; the North Maintenance Facility at 260-449-4781; or the South Maintenance Facility at 260-449-4791.

16. Learn more about our mowing and vegetation management plan! While our contractors have a mowing schedule, concerns related to safety and visibility can be reported at indot4u.com. 🛣️

    Posted by Indiana Department of Transportation on Tuesday, May 28, 2024

    Tuesday, May 28, 2024 post by the Indiana Department of Transportation on Facebook:

    Learn more about our mowing and vegetation management plan! While our contractors have a mowing schedule, concerns related to safety and visibility can be reported at indot4u.com.