Lincoln Highway Canton Ohio to Omaha, Nebraska – Journey 4 – Part 1: Canton Ohio to Naperville IL

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May is a great time to travel the Lincoln Highway! Thankfully, Kate was back with us riding shotgun and keeping an eagle eye on upcoming sights. Bill drove and I did painstakingly detailed navigation from the backseat with the iPad and the interactive Lincoln Highway map. Since we were short of our goal on our 3^rdjourney, we decided to retrace our steps from Canton, Ohio to Naperville, IL – then head toward Omaha.

We flew in to Cleveland. After an overnight at the Embassy Suites, we started at a leisurely pace for Day 1 aiming to Mansfield, Ohio for our next night. This allowed us to stop and visit Ohio’s one national park the Cuyahoga. This lovely park meanders along the Cuyahoga River. Once so polluted that it caught on fire in 1969, it’s now a protected environment. We were able to view the huge blue heron nests and saw the remains of the old Erie Canal. Once back on the road we made a quick stop at the Masillon Art Museum. We were amazed at the breadth and depth of the exhibits which provided a great glimpse into the history of the area along with quirky exhibits like the Immel Miniature Circus. Like everything on this road, there are an amazing array of surprises and hidden gems.

Speaking of surprises, we learned that Mansfield, our next overnight, is just a few minutes south of the penitentiary featured in Shawshank Rebellion. Having just seen that movie, we paid an eerie sunset visit to the abandoned jail. And we met a lovely couple from Cleveland who also came to look at the site. Turns out the gentleman’s father had been incarcerated in the new prison just north of the old one. The next day we saw a few other film locations from the movie, including the courthouse we found in Upper Sandusky. By the way we also met a presidential candidate in front of the courthouse. He’s running for the 7^th time on his own independent platform.

The rest of our journey en route to Naperville is covered in my previous blog Pittsburgh to Naperville https://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/blog-1073359.html. But there were a couple fun exceptions: we somehow missed what I consider to be the most breathtaking mural along the Highway (so far) - the Eric Grohe Bucyrus mural. It’s a beautiful work of art which reflects the ongoing history of this small Ohio community. We met a very helpful gentleman there who pointed out the guy in the lower right hand side of the mural holding a bag from Wendy’s. The city scene is primarily set in the 19^th century with a few touches -like the Wendy’s bag – from the 20^th and 21^st century. Apparently Wendy’s CEO offered to support the mural with a generous donation. And in Fort Wayne, we paid a return visit to the beautiful pedestrian Old Wells Street Bridge and stumbled upon a marriage proposal with the couple, under umbrellas, cementing the deal! We respected their privacy and just took a few photos to share with the lucky couple. Next up: Naperville Illinois to Omaha Nebraska (almost!)

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Photos

Eric Grohe mural Bucyrus Ohio
See if you can spot the Wendy's bag in the mural!

Cuyahoga National Park
A peaceful precursor to the rigors of the Lincoln Highway

Kate at one of the locations for Shawshank Redemption
A surprise around every corner on the circuitous Lincoln Highway