History of the Yellowstone Trail begins with the Yellowstone Trail Association.
Yellowstone Trail was the direct result of tremendous effort by the Yellowstone Trail Association.
The Yellowstone Trail transcontinental route was conceived by J.W. Parmley of Ipswich, SD, in 1912.
Today, the vast majority of the Yellowstone Trail has become Interstate 90.
The original Yellowstone Trail is still evident in some areas, mainly in the western United States.
Yellowstone Trail Association
On April 23, 1912, Joe Parmley of Ipswich, South Dakota, held a meeting that he had in mind for years.
He gathered influential men from five nearby counties to implement the first step in his long-
This group grew into a formal organization, the Yellowstone Trail Association, on October 9, 1912 at Lemmon, South Dakota.
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The YTA did not build roads.
Instead,…
- The YTA lobbied for “good roads” in every level of government.
- YTA provided instructions to local people for the construction and maintenance of roads and promoted cross-
country tourist traffic. - YTA marked the route of the Yellowstone Trail and provided the first maps of the Trail.
- YTA generally raised the interest in using the automobile for other than local travel.
- YTA was an organization composed of businessmen and Chamber of Commerce people in little towns who wished to boost their town’s economy by being on a well-
used road.
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The YTA would help to improve local roads, but not build them. 
Creation of the YT was a grassroots effort.
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YT was NOT a governmental effort combined with a few wealthy business leaders, such as was the Lincoln Highway Association, formed a year after the YTA.
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Headquarters for the Yellowstone Trail Association was established in Minneapolis, although meetings were held across the country with local representatives.
Membership was offered to delegates from towns located along the route in all 13 states.
These people raised money locally, through a system of “assessments” and often headed local volunteer groups to mark the route with either yellow stones or the official yellow circle and arrow of the Association.
State or regional meetings were held in communities along the route each year to provide coordination for the Association and inspiration to attract tourists through their towns.
Henry Ford’s “Moving Assembly Line” changed history .
Cars moving down an assembly line proved to be a far superior method of car building.
Car production soared in 1910 to over 100,000 per year!
Suddenly, and without warning, by 1912 America was being flooded with over 100,000 automobiles per year from various manufacturers, with Ford leading the way.
It was quickly realized the auto could not traverse upon the same trail as a horse (see photo below).
The new invention (auto) needed a smooth, flat, dry surface upon which to drive.
In 1912, there were very few improved roads to drive the autos which were being delivered throughout America, mainly via trains on the vast network of established railroads.
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What is the Yellowstone Trail
The Yellowstone Trail was the first transcontinental automobile highway in the United States through the northern tier of states from Washington State through Massachusetts.
Yet, too few people are aware of its existence or its social, political, and economic effects on either the local communities or the nation.
Scroll down for more YT History.
Click on the map below to visit our Interactive Map Pages, showing the original YT route.
Yellowstone Trail HISTORY
The Yellowstone Trail transcontinental route was conceived by J.W. Parmley of Ipswich, SD, in 1912.
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Read below why he did it with so much urgency!
Suddenly, America was being flooded with automobiles and very few roads to drive upon!
American transportation went from horses to gas-powered autos almost overnight!
By 1912, there were over a ½ million new cars produced over the last 4-years.
American Auto Production Totals 1909 - 1912
Production for 1909 – Total 75,739
Production for 1910 – Total 129,823
Production for 1911 – Total 167,530
Production for 1912 – Total 187,384
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1909 to 1912 New Autos Produced – Total 560,476
Check out the “new-car” lineup for 1912!
When the “horseless-carriage” replaced the horse, a big problem was soon discovered,…
The horseless-carriage (gas-powered auto) could NOT follow the path of the horse, but rather needed a special surface to drive on, especially when the weather got bad.
Autos had special needs and people soon discovered what was needed to avert disaster!
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Insert the genius of J. W. Parmley.
Parmley realized something needed to be done and quickly!
The Yellowstone Trail transcontinental route was conceived by J. W. Parmley of Ipswich, SD, in 1912.
The automobile was just becoming popular.
Intercity roads were plagued with sand, potholes and mud.
The Wheelmen Bicyclists Club wanted roads too!
Bicyclists of the previous decade, organized as the Wheelmen and counting thousands as members, had been pushing state and federal governments many years for roads.
In 1912, there were very few good, all weather roads.
There were no useful long distant roads and no government marked routes at all (zero).
Railroads had been the dominant, almost sole, method of travel, but were losing their allure.
Railroads used monopolistic freight rate-settings and had very inconvenient schedules.
Ironically, Railroads were delivering Automobiles throughout America, and, after arriving at their destinations, it was realized there were very few roads upon which to drive the autos on!
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The privacy and autonomy of the automobile was not to be denied.
1914 Douglas County Fair, Waterville, Washington showing lots of autos!
1914 photo in video below courtesy Douglas County Museum, Waterville, WA.
Click the Play Button below:
The Yellowstone Trail developed in parallel with the nationwide effort to improve roads.
The huge burden of financing roads used to be upon the local landowner and townships.
Then, that burden gradually moved up the levels of government until eventurally the federal government, the states, the counties and the townships all shared the cost.
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The ever growing number of autos resulted in demand for roads to drive.
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First for pleasure, then for crucial societal purposes:
Doctors to get to patients
Farm products to get to the railroads,
Military purposes.
To begin with, J. W. Parmley and his business colleagues wanted to develop a good road from Ipswich to Aberdeen, both in South Dakota, 25 miles apart.
The “can do” pioneer spirit of the time immediately emerged and in a few weeks time the intent had expanded to include a good road to Mobridge, SD, then to Hettinger ND, then to the great tourist destination, Yellowstone National Park.
Soon, it was understood that under their leadership there was to be …
“A good road from Plymouth Rock to Puget Sound.”
The spark ignited in Ipswich had inspired an entire nation!
The call-to-action was accepted, more or less, in the northern 13 states and work began.
The YTA stayed active until around 1930, when the obvious need for national, state, county, city and rural roads was taken over by government agencies.
In the 1990’s, the YTA was re-established by John and Alice Ridge.
Thanks to the Ridge’s dedication, research, hard-work, and financial contributions, the Yellowstone Trail Association continues today!
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Today, almost all of the route of the Yellowstone Trail is on slower, less traveled roads.
Some sections of the Trail, especially in the West, have remained little changed and are a delight to visit even today.
Visit our Map Page to see an excellent collection of YT Maps created by John Ridge.
YTA is currently building an updated, modern-day interactive map that will guide you while driving today’s Yellowstone Trail, expected to be released in Spring 2025.
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Today’s YT Association is active with members who enjoy exploring the YT, learning about its history, researching its location, and, exchanging information and ideas.
We cordially invite you to Join in our ongoing mission to preserve Yellowstone Trail’s history, the continual discovery of new facts, and, educate our children where today’s highway system came from and why such urgency!
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PURPOSES OF THE ORIGINAL YELLOWSTONE TRAIL ASSOCIATION:
First and foremost, they wanted to get a route built from “Plymouth Rock to Puget Sound.”
Second, they wanted to attract tourists to the Yellowstone National Park, thus benefiting member towns along the route.
Third, they wanted to see road-
The Yellowstone Trail Association accomplished many forward-
YTA did not build roads.
Instead, they badgered county boards and state highway commissions to create one long, connected road through counties instead of supporting roads that “went nowhere.”
Long, connected roads were their passion.
They sponsored Trail Days, (a day when all Trail towns would actually help the county build a road), set up travel bureaus, held races on the Trail for publicity, supplied the traveler with maps, weather conditions and lists of facilities in Trail towns.
The Association also encouraged towns to provide campgrounds for tourists.
PHASE 1 SUCCESS!
The efforts of J. W. Parmley and his associates had paid off!
The first segments of the Yellowstone Trail were complete, allowing automobiles to access the north east entrance into Yellowstone National Park.
Like the Automobile,…
Road Graders slowly evolved from horse-drawn into engine powered machines. In 1912, new techniques and equipment were learned allowing the construction of the Yellowstone Trail at an increasing rate.
