‘Grand Army of Republic’ Regains Spot in History

It’s hardly the route of Sherman’s March to the Sea, but the Golden State Freeway carries a grand name--the “Grand Army of the Republic Highway.” That’s according to a handful of new commemorative signs that have popped up along the shoulder.

No, this was not an example of Caltrans taking its sweet time to honor Civil War veterans. It’s actually an example of how history, politics and an unidentified history buff can keep alive a largely forgotten roadside memorial.

The Golden State Freeway is part of what used to be U.S. Highway 6, which stretched from San Pedro to Provincetown, Mass. In 1942, the last remaining members of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization formed in 1866 to assist wounded and sick Civil War veterans, petitioned states across the nation to name the highway after the group. The states agreed.

In California, state lawmakers passed a bill in 1943, renaming the portion of U.S. Highway 6 from San Pedro to the Nevada border as the Grand Army of the Republic Highway. Apparently, the lawmakers didn’t seem to mind that soldiers of the blue and gray armies never exchanged any shots in California.

But over the years, most of the old highway has been taken over by the state and renamed the Harbor Freeway, the Golden State Freeway and the Antelope Valley Freeway. Around China Lake in the Mojave Desert, the road becomes U.S. Highway 395 and then, further north, transforms back into U.S. Highway 6.

Over the years, the signs commemorating the group deteriorated, were vandalized or disappeared entirely. After receiving a letter from a history buff asking that the signs be replaced, Caltrans officials installed seven new signs in April at spots along the route in Los Angeles County, including the junction of the Golden State and Foothill freeways and a little further north in Santa Clarita.

Patricia L. Reid, a Caltrans spokeswoman in Los Angeles, said she could not find the letter but said it “sparked someone, maybe up in headquarters” to take action.

But this does not mean that the Thomas Brothers’ guide is obsolete. The Grand Army of the Republic Highway designation does not appear on any maps.

Carol Gilbert, a Caltrans historical records officer in Sacramento, said the designation is simply a historical reference marked by a handful of silent landmarks on the shoulders of a noisy stretch of freeway.

And it is not the first freeway with multiple names. Interstate 10, also known as the Santa Monica Freeway, is designated the Christopher Columbus Transcontinental Highway. The soon-to-be-opened Interstate 105, known as the Century Freeway, is also called the Glen M. Anderson Freeway, after the former lieutenant governor.

And then there is Interstate 90 on the Westside, which was designated the Richard M. Nixon Freeway--or at least until Watergate. The state Legislature later renamed it the Marina Freeway.