Sign

Object Name:

Sign

Object ID:

2025.058

Place of Origin:

Keene, NH

Date:

circa 1915

Description:

Sign. Wooden road sign from the Cheshire County Automobile Association, marking the route between Concord and Keene, c. 1915. The white lettering, which was applied to the sign in 1915 reads: "Cheshire County / Automobile Association / CONCORD-KEENE ROAD / FOLLOW PURPLE ARROWS / TO HOPKINTON, STODDARD / HENNIKER, MUNSONVILLE / HILLSBORO, EAST SULLIVAN / KEENE 51 Ms." The black lettering dates to August 1916 and reads: "Cheshire County Auto Association / KEENE ROAD / FOLLOW BLUE-GRAY MARKERS / TO South Stoddard / Musonville/ Sullivan and / Keene, 28 Ms. / Connects with West Side, So. Side / and Monadnock Roads / at Keene."

Material:

Wood
Paint

Dimensions:

H-29.25 W-36.125 D-2.375 inches

Provenance:

The Cheshire County Automobile Association formed in 1908 and it gained fifty members in its first year, which then accounted for the majority of automobile owners in the county. The association advocated for motorists' issues, including the improvement of roads, waymarking, and driver safety legislation. In some instances, it gave money directly to towns to support road construction and maintenance. By 1912 it was part of the New Hampshire Automobile Association, which also included the Dover Automobile Club, Manchester Automobile Club, and the Automobile Club of Portsmouth. Starting in 1914 the CCAA began offering free joint membership with the American Automobile Association. The CCAA lasted into the early 1920s, coinciding with automobiles - particularly the Model T - becoming affordable to working- and middle-class consumers. It was most likely absorbed into the state branch of the American Automobile Association.
This sign illustrates the difficulty that early motorists encountered when driving between communities in the era before standardized road signs and the ubiquity of road maps. Before the adoption of state and federal numbering systems for major roadways, private automobile associations created their own ad-hoc marking systems, which could include painting blazes or nailing up painted arrows on roadside telephone poles, trees, buildings, and fence posts.

Credit Line:

New Hampshire Historical Society Purchase, Katharine Prentis Murphy Fund

Subjects:

Roads, Automobile travel, Automobiles, Automobile driving