1930 : Manhattan to Managua, North America's first transnational automobile trip / by Arthur Lyon ; edited and introduced by Larry Lyon ; with annotations by Denis Wood ; and a conclusion by Sally Denton.
Publisher:
George F. Thompson Publishing,
Copyright Date:
2020
Description:
223 pages : illustrations (some color), maps ; 27 cm
The Last Lap. ch. XIII Getting Started -- ch. II Breaking the Trallie Problem -- ch. III Skyscrapers and Cactus -- ch. IV The Reach for Lucky Instead of a Gun -- ch. V "Es Esta Camina Para Mexico?" -- ch. VI In Mexico City without a Road -- ch. VII Special Train Number Thirteen -- Conclusion: Celebrating America's Spirit of Adventures by Sally Denton -- ch. VIII Some Low Gear Work in Guatemala -- ch. IX Problems of Traffic, Coffee, and Finance -- ch. X We Attend a Band Concert -- in Pajamas -- ch. XI A Detour in the Interest of Commerce -- ch. XII In the Territory of the United States Marines -- ch. XIII The Last Lap.
Summary:
Imagine setting out on a road trip in a 1929 Ford Model A Roadster, with the stated goal of traveling from Manhattan to Mexico and Central America, after only a week's worth of preparation. This is exactly what brothers Arthur Lyon and Joe Lyon Jr. did on March 23, 1930. The Lyons acquired some camping gear, studied a few maps, and mounted in the car's rear seat a fifty-five-gallon oil drum equipped with a gas feed for extra fuel. They divided up the princely sum of 24 in cash to fund their expedition. The story related here is replete with the brothers' accounts of the challenges the young men faced on their epic journey, including encounters with a fascinating cast of characters--and unforgettable brushes with fate such as a Mexican freight train that nearly ran them and their car off the rails. The amazing 1930 journey of the young Lyon brothers can be seen as the centerpiece of a larger story, of a pair of lives lived out not just as brothers but as partners in an emerging automobile age.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.