Tourist cabin at Ring’s Rest, U.S. 1, Muirkirk, Maryland, about 1930 and Ford Deluxe Roadster, 1934—“America on The Move” is located in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. A major exhibition examining how transportation—from 1876 to 1999—has shaped our American identity from a mostly rural nation into a major economic power, forged a sense of national unity, delivered consumer abundance, and encouraged a degree of social and economic mobility unlike that of any other nation of the world. Arranged chronologically and through 19 sections, historical settings include the coming of the railroad to a California town in 1876, the role of the streetcar and the automobile in creating suburbs outside of cities, and the transformation of a U.S. port with the introduction of containerized shipping in the 1960s.—The Smithsonian Institution
Buick dealership and cars, truck and motorcycles on Portland, Oregon’s Sandy Boulevard, circa 1949—“America on The Move” is located in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. A major exhibition examining how transportation—from 1876 to 1999—has shaped our American identity from a mostly rural nation into a major economic power, forged a sense of national unity, delivered consumer abundance, and encouraged a degree of social and economic mobility unlike that of any other nation of the world. Arranged chronologically and through 19 sections, historical settings include the coming of the railroad to a California town in 1876, the role of the streetcar and the automobile in creating suburbs outside of cities, and the transformation of a U.S. port with the introduction of containerized shipping in the 1960s.—The Smithsonian Institution
This image, said to be the most popular poster design of World War II, appeared as a billboard in 1941. Carl Paulson created the design under the direction of the Outdoor Advertising Association of America, Inc., for a U.S. Treasury Department campaign promoting the widespread public ownership of defense bonds and stamps. To demonstrate the power of advertising while selling bonds, the billboard industry displayed this image of the American flag at more than 30,000 locations in some 18,000 cities and towns across the country in March and April 1942. The Treasury brought back the billboard for campaigns in July 1942 and 1943. To meet public demand for copies of the billboard, the Government Printing Office printed 4 million small color reproductions.—The Smithsonian Institution
