The Lincoln Highway was one of the first transcontinental automobile routes in the United States, and considered the most famous of its era.  Beginning in New York and ending 3389 miles westward in San Francisco, it was conceived in 1913 by its founders as "a continuous connecting improved highway from the Atlantic to the Pacific."  The Lincoln Highway was among the catalysts of the Good Roads movement throughout America which ultimately involved the national government—resulting in the creation of the federal highway system (in 1926) and the interstate highway system (in 1956).

In Ohio, the traditional route of the Lincoln Highway is closely related to the route of U.S. 30, which crosses the north central part of the state.  However, driving the route of the Lincoln Highway is no longer a simple a matter of following the shields for U.S. 30.  In fact, the typical two-lane route that was marked with concrete directional posts by the Boy Scouts in 1928 has methodically developed into a four-lane divided highway across most of the state.  As a result of this new construction, many parts of the historic route are now traced by county roads and township roads with a variety of names and numbers.

In 1995, amateur historian and professional surveyor Mike Buettner published the first of several editions of A History and Road Guide of the Lincoln Highway in Ohio.  This project was designed to help travelers rediscover every mile of the historic highway as it crosses the state.  Although his research is mainly focused on the 1928 route, he also covers every known variation of the route from 1913 up to that time.  The results of that work are the featured article at this internet site, and includes texts and photographs, plus odometer charts and strip maps that are fashioned in the style of the original era.