# The "Christopher Columbus Highway" **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 23, 2016, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742 "2016-08-23T16:55:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/1 "2016-08-23T16:55:57Z")
I just noticed, while playing with Google Maps, that Interstate 80 is designated the “Christopher Columbus Highway”. Since when? I’ll admit I’m not the most attentive person, but this is news to me. Is this asshole really the best choice to name one of our most important roads after? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/2 "2016-08-23T17:13:57Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > I just noticed, while playing with Google Maps, that Interstate 80 is designated the “Christopher Columbus Highway”. Well, [Christopher Columbus TRANSCONTINENTAL Highway](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Christophercolumbustranscontinentalhighway.jpg) was already taken by the 10. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/3 "2016-08-23T17:21:01Z")
Only in a New Jersey is I-80 known as the Christopher Columbus highway, presumably by order of the state DOT or legislature. > **[Interstate 80 in New Jersey](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_80_in_New_Jersey)** > > Interstate 80 On the other hand I-10 is known as the Christopher Columbus Transcontinental Highway, at least in California. I can’t tell if there are signs with that elsewhere. ETA: It looks like Google Maps also calls I-80 that in Nebraska, Iowa and Illinois. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/4 "2016-08-23T17:23:48Z")
Well, you gotta admit, it just cuts right through those injun lands… ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/5 "2016-08-23T17:36:24Z")
New Jersey - I-80 Express, Christopher Columbus Highway Pennsylvania - Christopher Columbus Highway Ohio - Ohio Turnpike Indiana - Indiana Toll Road Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska - Christopher Columbus Highway Wyoming - Lincoln Highway Utah (eastern) - Lincoln Highway Utah (western) Christopher Columbus Highway Nevada - Christopher Columbus Highway California - Alan S. Hart Freeway, Dwight D Eisenhower Highway, Lincoln Highway So, it looks like it has a lot of names but there’s certainly some affinity for Christopher Columbus. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/6 "2016-08-23T18:00:17Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > ETA: It looks like Google Maps also calls I-80 that in Nebraska, Iowa and Illinois. I’m loth to criticize our googly overlords, but that’s wrong WRT Nebraska. Speaking both as a resident (and a commuter that drives on about 10 miles of it each way, each workday), and as someone who can read Wikipedia: [Quote=Wikipedia] **Designated sections** The entirety of the Interstate Highway System was named the “Dwight D. Eisenhower System of Interstate and Defense Highways” in 1990, and the first signage in Nebraska was posted in 1993. Several sections of I-80 in Nebraska have special designations. The I-80 intersection with US-34 has been designated a “Purple Heart Memorial Highway”, and South 108th Street bridge over I-80 in Omaha has been designated the “Purple Heart Bridge”, both in honor of all recipients of the Purple Heart. A section of I-80 in Nebraska is also designated as a Blue Star Memorial Highway. [/quote] From [Interstate 80 in Nebraska - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_80_in_Nebraska#Designated_sections) It seems to me that Google is improperly carrying forward a designation from another state. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/7 "2016-08-23T18:04:57Z")
Google maps identifies I-80, even when it is 80/90, as Chistopher Columbus Highway all the way through Ohio and Indiana: it may not show up on the basic map view as the road label, but when a marker is placed on the road, the Columbus name shows up in the info almost every time. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/8 "2016-08-23T18:07:23Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > Google maps identifies I-80, even when it is 80/90, as Chistopher Columbus Highway all the way through Ohio and Indiana: it may not show up on the basic map view as the road label, but when a marker is placed on the road, the Columbus name shows up in the info almost every time. Yeah, I’m beginning to think it’s mostly a Google Maps artifact with no basis in reality. Except for New Jersey, which also has no basis in reality. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/9 "2016-08-23T18:19:20Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > Well, you gotta admit, it just cuts right through those injun lands… Columbus may have been one of the first Europeans to come to the New World and steal land from the locals. But he didn’t conquer two continents by himself. He never even set foot in what’s now the continental United States. If we’re going to declare Columbus is ineligible to have a road named after him then so is pretty much every other figure in American history. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/10 "2016-08-23T18:40:16Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > New Jersey - I-80 Express, Christopher Columbus Highway > Pennsylvania - Christopher Columbus Highway > Ohio - Ohio Turnpike > Indiana - Indiana Toll Road > Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska - Christopher Columbus Highway > Wyoming - Lincoln Highway > Utah (eastern) - Lincoln Highway > Utah (western) Christopher Columbus Highway > Nevada - Christopher Columbus Highway > California - Alan S. Hart Freeway, Dwight D Eisenhower Highway, **Lincoln Highway** > > So, it looks like it has a lot of names but there’s certainly some affinity for Christopher Columbus. The Lincoln Highway is US 40 from Chicago. It’s just coterminous with I-80 in places. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/11 "2016-08-23T18:45:28Z")
If there are any signs put up, I hope that they’re paid for by the Christopher Columbus Fan Club, because otherwise it would be a colossal, criminal (or should be) waste of tax payer money. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/12 "2016-08-23T18:50:30Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > If there are any signs put up, I hope that they’re paid for by the Christopher Columbus Fan Club, because otherwise it would be a colossal, criminal (or should be) waste of tax payer money. I know there’s a sign on I-10 in Santa Monica, I don’t know about the Jacksonville end. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/13 "2016-08-23T18:52:49Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > Yeah, I’m beginning to think it’s mostly a Google Maps artifact with no basis in reality. > > Except for New Jersey, which also has no basis in reality. I have heard rumors that “New Jersey” does indeed exist, but as far as I know, it is only hearsay. > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Columbus may have been one of the first Europeans to come to the New World and steal land from the locals. But he didn’t conquer two continents by himself. He never even set foot in what’s now the continental United States. If we’re going to declare Columbus is ineligible to have a road named after him then so is pretty much every other figure in American history. Did Vespucci ever set foot on American (Brazil or Argentina) soil? ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/14 "2016-08-23T18:54:09Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Columbus may have been one of the first Europeans to come to the New World and steal land from the locals. But he didn’t conquer two continents by himself. He never even set foot in what’s now the continental United States. If we’re going to declare Columbus is ineligible to have a road named after him then so is pretty much every other figure in American history. I believe the highway is named for the movie director, actually. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/15 "2016-08-23T20:01:17Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I believe the highway is named for the movie director, actually. I thought it was named for the holiday, since people do a lot of driving on holidays. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2016, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/16 "2016-08-23T20:20:30Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > The Lincoln Highway is US 40 from Chicago. It’s just coterminous with I-80 in places. Actually, the Lincoln Highway is US 30. But you’re right that it’s coterminous with I-80. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2016, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/17 "2016-08-24T04:56:04Z")
> [@Pleonast](#): > > Actually, the Lincoln Highway is US 30. But you’re right that it’s coterminous with I-80. It’s not that straightforward. Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > Most of U.S. Route 30 from Philadelphia to western Wyoming, portions of Interstate 80 in the western United States, most of U.S. Route 50 in Nevada and California, and most of old decommissioned U.S. Route 40 in California are alignments of the Lincoln Highway. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2016, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/18 "2016-08-24T05:04:29Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > Yeah, I’m beginning to think it’s mostly a Google Maps artifact with no basis in reality. I’ve seen this before. Once the entirety of US Route 62 was marked as “Brownfield Highway,” which is what it’s called in part of Texas. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2016, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/19 "2016-08-24T18:05:34Z")
> [@Pleonast](#): > > Actually, the Lincoln Highway is US 30. But you’re right that it’s coterminous with I-80. Not in California, it’s not. I live two blocks from it. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2016, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742/20 "2016-08-24T18:59:35Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Not in California, it’s not. I live two blocks from it. Yes and no. [According to this map](http://www.lincolnhighwayassoc.org/map/), it looks like the “Lincoln Highway” designation has Multiple Personality Disorder in several states, including California, where it appears to be both I-80 and US50. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-christopher-columbus-highway/763742.md?page=2)