Custodians of the Highways

THE NEW HIGHWAY COMMISSION Custodians of the Highways

THE administration of Governor Sidney P. Osborn took over the custodianship of the highway system of the state of Arizona during February with the appointment of H. O. Pace of Casa Grande to succeed J. M. Procter of Tucson, whose term had expired.

The membership of the Arizona Highway Commission is now as follows: Chairman James M. Smith of Central, representing Cochise, Graham and Greenlee counties, or the third highway district; Vice-Chairman Loren W. Cress of Flagstaff, representing the fifth highway district composed of Coconino, Mohave and Yavapai counties; H. O. Pace of Casa Grande, representing the second highway district or the counties of Pima, Pinal and Santa Cruz; E. H. McEachren, of Miami, representing Apache, Gila and Navajo counties which form the fourth district; and Kemper Marley of Phoenix, representing the first district, which consists of Maricopa and Yuma counties. Chairman Smith and Commissioners Cress and Pace are appointees of Governor Osborn, and represent the majority membership of the commission. Commissioners McEachren and Marley are serving terms to which they were appointed by former Governor Bob Jones.

The newly-formed commission takes over the supervision of the state highway in one of the most crucial times in the history of the state. Pleasure travel by out-of-state automobiles producing more miles of travel and more revenue than local travel, has been practically stopped by the restrictions and demands of the war. Federal participation in state highway construction has practically come to a halt. Even supplies for construction of new highways are all but non-existent.

Yet, despite this, the highways of the state of Arizona are more than ever vital links in the national defense and the war effort and to these ends Governor Osborn's highway custodians are turning the full effort of the highway department.

Commissioner Jim Smith, in a statement made shortly after the new commission was formed said: "It shall be our purpose to keep the highways of the state maintained and in as good condition as they can possibly be. The construction of new highways at this time cannot be considered, not only because of the curtailment in travel, but because of scarcity of supplies, and because governmental funds, heretofore available to the state in highway building programs are now vitally needed in the war effort.

"We shall cooperate fully and in every possible way with the war department and other agencies of the government devoted to the war effort. The expanding of governmental activities in this state directly related to the cause of winning the war will necessitate our co-operation in the construction and maintenance of access roads and in this we pledge our personal services and the services of the high-way department at all times.

"When the war has been won and the Nation resumes its normal life, the Arizona highway system will be called upon to serve even a greater traffic demand than before. Excess funds will be built up with that in mind: when the time comes when new roads will be needed, we will be ready to build them."

The new chairman of the Arizona highway commission is a man well qualified for the important position he holds and the important trust placed in his hands. He is a native of Arizona, being born in Tuba City, some fifty years ago. He is identified with the cattle and farming industry of the state, having stock ranches in several parts of Arizona and farming property in the Gila Valley of Graham County. Of his eight sons, one is in the services of the Nation, three are associated with their father in farming and ranching, one is a leaving soon for the Armed Forces and the youngest are still in school.

As Jim Smith views the modern Arizona highway system of today, he can well marvel at the great changes that have come about in transportation in this state since the days four and a half decades ago when he made his first long journey in this state. Leaving Tuba City, where he was born, the Smith family went by horse-drawn wagon over the Painted Desert to a place called Sunset, on the Little Colorado. Crossing the river there the journey was heavy and slow through Holbrook and St. Johns, over the White Mountains and down the Gila Valley to the village of Central where he has lived since. The trip over the mountains was made in December. The snow was so heavy the horses would have to be unhitched from the wagon and forced ahead to beat a trail in the snow so the wagons could be drawn over afterwards. "Much different from our modern travel," he says in reminiscence. Chairman Smith's father was Lot Smith, one of the very earliest settlers in Arizona and one of the heroic figures of the Mormon exploration of the west. Lot Smith first saw Arizona territory as a member of the Mormon Battalion, whose historic trek from Council Bluffs, Iowa, to San Diego just before the middle of last century was the longest infantry march in military history. After returning to Salt Lake, where he was active in helping to establish the great Mormon empire of Utah, and a half decades ago when he made his first long journey in this state. Leaving Tuba City, where he was born, the Smith family went by horse-drawn wagon over the Painted Desert to a place called Sunset, on the Little Colorado. Crossing the river there the journey was heavy and slow through Holbrook and St. Johns, over the White Mountains and down the Gila Valley to the village of Central where he has lived since. The trip over the mountains was made in December. The snow was so heavy the horses would have to be unhitched from the wagon and forced ahead to beat a trail in the snow so the wagons could be drawn over afterwards. "Much different from our modern travel," he says in reminiscence. Chairman Smith's father was Lot Smith, one of the very earliest settlers in Arizona and one of the heroic figures of the Mormon exploration of the west. Lot Smith first saw Arizona territory as a member of the Mormon Battalion, whose historic trek from Council Bluffs, Iowa, to San Diego just before the middle of last century was the longest infantry march in military history. After returning to Salt Lake, where he was active in helping to establish the great Mormon empire of Utah, Lot Smith was sent to Arizona by President Young of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints to establish colonies here. In one of those colonies his son, Jim Smith, was born. If ever a person chosen to public life in this state has the pioneer tradition and has a grasp of the state's needs as seen from the very beginning and as the state has grown and progressed, Governor Osborn's new chairman of the highway commission is that man. H. O. Pace, the newest member of the highway commission, has been a resident of Arizona since 1921, coming here from Garland, Texas, where he was born 41 years ago. He has been a member of the town council of Casa Grande for eight years and at the time of his appointment as a member of the highway commission was serving his third term as mayor of the progressive and growing city in the heart of the Casa Grande valley. He has been engaged in this state both in ranching and trucking business and at the present time is district agent for the General Petroleum Corporation. Mr. Pace thinks of highways in terms of the state as a whole rather than a representative of a certain highway district.

"The highways of every town and city, every county and district are so interrelated," he says "that what is good for one highway is good for all. I intend to watch closely the highway development in the district I represent, at the same time trying to serve as well as I can the needs of the state as a whole." Vice-Chairman Cress, who was appointed to the highway commission by Governor Osborn early in 1941, is from Coconino county, the largest county in Arizona and the second largest in the United States. Comparable to its size, Coconino is a veritable treasure chest in scenic wonders, and as ARIZONA HIGHWAYS said at the time of appointment: "So from this travel-minded county, Governor Osborn selected a travel-minded commissioner." Realizing definitely that the war has transformed the travel picture to a great extent, Commissioner Cress does not lose sight of the fact that travel is Arizona's greatest industry and that after the war that industry will be more important than ever. Foresight in planning for that day which may come sooner than many of us realize will profit the state and all of its citizens, and Commissioner Cress is such a person who can handle with dispatch problems of today while looking ahead and planning for other problems to come.

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THE HIGHWAYS WILL BE MAINTAINED

As spokesman for the new commission, Chairman Jim Smith said: "We plan to maintain the present system as well as possible at the same time cooperating in every way possible with the war department and governmental agencies in Arizona directly related to the war effort... Surplus funds will be gathered to spend on new highways after the war. . ." (Study of the highway leading to Flagstaff from Oak Creek Canyon by Jack Northrop).

FEBRUARY. 1943