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Assembly of Virginia, the Honorable John J. Miller of Little Washington, on a trip to Luray around the start of June 1921, noted between 200 and 300 men working on the road from Sperryville to Thornton’s Gap. In this major community road improvement effort, he saw “swarms of volunteer trucks, teams, and men busy making the rough places smooth and that there was a vim and enthusiasm in evidence that made the passerby feel like snatching a pick or shovel and joining in the fray.”
Luray responded with a road repair effort that became legendary in Page County history. The task was organized by the Luray Board of Trade and reflected a military precision in keeping with World War I victories, a war which had ended less than three years earlier.
A front-page call to arms was run in the Page News and Courier for “Lee Highway Day,” scheduled for June 1, 1921. Afterwards, the newspaper headlined the results: “Lee Highway Day Glorious Success: 350 Volunteer Workers Convert 9 Miles of Worn Out Turnpike Into Useable, Permanent Road in one Auspicious, Never-to-be Forgotten Day.” The far-flung battle line ran from Luray westward to the top of Massanutten. Men, trucks, and horse teams turned out with shovels, picks, and other road building tools at 7 a.m., “to be divided into squads, battalions, regiments and brigades for the onslaught.”
Another Lee Highway Day was held in August to take care of the route from Thornton Gap down to Luray.
When Dr. Johnson made trips through the area in the summer and fall, he was pleased.
Next time: The vision of Lee Highway.
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