On the Dixie Overland Highway, Historic US 80 - east Louisiana (LA-01)

Mississippi River bridges at Vicksburg, with I-20 on left and US 80 on right, 2005 during low-water (Rolleiflex 3.5E camera)

The historic Dixie Overland Highway crossed the Mississippi River just south of Vicksburg on the Old Vicksburg Bridge. Then, it headed almost due west towards Tallulah, Monroe, Shreveport, Dallas, and, eventually, San Diego.

1996 aerial photograph of Mississippi River bridges, view west towards Louisiana (Kodachrome film, Nikon F3 camera) 

The Vicksburg Bridge & Terminal Co. built the Old Bridge during 1928-1930. It featured a single railroad track and a dual lane highway. It was open to vehicle traffic until 1998 and has been closed since then except for special events, like the annual Bricks and Spokes bicycle ride. Kansas City Southern still runs many trains a day across the bridge. The Interstate 20 bridge, on the left in the photographs above, opened in 1973 when I-20 was under construction.

There is not too much to see in the little Louisiana town of Delta. US 80 heads west past farm fields and some forest land. The Kansas City Southern railroad tracks parallel the highway.

Former depot, Mound, Louisiana, Kodak Ektar 25 film, Rolleiflex 3.5F camera, 75mm ƒ/3.5 Planar lens

Mound was a farming community with a depot and a general store. I photographed the depot in 2005, but it has since been moved to Lake Bruin (it has been preserved). I also have photographs somewhere of the general store. Today, the Vicksburg-Tallulah regional airport is just north of US 80. There are some nice homes on Rte 602 between US 80 and I-20.

Scott Field, Tallulah, Louisiana (Fuji Velvia film, Leica M3 camera)

Just east of Tallulah, the historical Scott Field is within sight of US 80. This was one of the original stops for the young Delta Airlines in the 1930s, and the terminal reflects typical 1930s airport architecture. The field is now used for crop-dusting aircraft and this handsome building (with zinc roof tiles) has been restored.

Snyder Street, Tallulah, Louisiana (Fuji GW690II camera, 90mm ƒ/3.5 lens)

We reach Tallulah, a mid-size Louisiana farming town. Sadly, the downtown is pretty rough. The strip was formerly Snider Street, which paralleled the railroad tracks. Today, trains roar by and do not stop, and many of the stores are closed or collapsing. There must have once been a depot, but I do not know where. I have photographed Tallulah before. My wife and I occasionally bicycle on LA 602, which takes us through Tallulah on a wide swing through farm fields and forests.

This ends out short ride on the Dixie Overland Highway. In the future, I will to explore US 80 further west as it crosses central Louisiana.

Metal-Shingled Gasoline Station, Claude, Texas (Texas Panhandle no. 1)

On our way back home from Santa Fe, we drove on US 287 from Amarillo to Dallas. 287 is not part of the old Route 66, but there are a surprising number of old gas stations, closed business strips, restaurants, and deserted farm houses that provide a 1950s Route 66 ambience. That part of the Texas Panhandle warrants a return trip with a big film camera (Aha, road trip!).

Claude is a small town southeast of Amarillo. We were zipping through town and this little gasoline station caught my eye. Look at the roof tiles: they look like clay but are really steel with (probably) a zinc coating.

Under the overhang, the original zinc ceiling panels are still in place. You still see these in early-20th century commercial buildings, and recreations are available for places that want to replicate the old-timey look.

Inside, a resident! I suppose the gas station attendant is still awaiting customers.

I have seen these zinc roof tiles before. This is the old Tallulah (Louisiana) Terminal, now known as Scott Field. This handsome little terminal was on the original routing of Delta Airlines in the 1930s.

This is a close-up of some of the tiles, photographed from the second floor. Nice workmanship. I am surprised we do not see these types of metal tiles used more on current construction.

An article by Thomas Rosell in Preservation Mississippi provides some advertisements from companies that made metal shingles. Many were from the Montrose Metal Roofing Company of Camden, New Jersey.

The 2017 photographs are from a Fuji X-E1 digital camera. The 1991 is a Fuji Velvia slide taken with a Leica M3 camera and a 50mm f/2.8 Elmar lens (that was the superb 1960s and 1970s version with lanthanum glass and an almost circular diaphragm).

Scott Field, Tallulah, Louisiana

Rural USA is dotted with small airports. Many are only used for private aircraft, but some had significance in the early years of civil air transport. Scott Field in northern Louisiana is one of these. To get there, take the Interstate-20 exit to Tallulah, turn right on US80, drive a couple of miles east and turn left (north) on a dirt road. You will see a number of steel hangars containing crop-duster aircraft and this old-fashioned Spanish-style building with a "Standard Oil Company of Louisiana" sign on the side.

In 2002, a sign provided some historical context, but the sign is now gone. Several web pages describe this as the site of an agricultural experiment station and the origins of Delta Airlines, but possibly it is a bit of a stretch. Deltamuseum.org gives a more detailed review of how the Entomology Bureau of the U.S. Department of Agriculture set up a laboratory in Tallulah in the early 1920s to conduct large-scale cotton insect research. The laboratory, which was at another site in town, conducted experiments in boll weevil eradication and dispensing calcium arsenate from the air. In 1922, the Army Air Service sent three aircraft and pilots to an airstrip near Tallulah. Later named Scott Field, this was to become the first municipal airport in Louisiana. Based on the success of these tests, C.E. Woolman operated dusting operations in Louisiana, Mexico, and Peru in the mid-1920s. He returned to Monroe, Louisiana, to set up a new new company named Delta Air Service with the support of Monroe businessmen. On June 17, 1929, Delta Air Service operated its first passenger flight over a route that stretched from Dallas, Texas, to Jackson, Mississippi. For more background, see Delta Air Lines: 75 Years of Airline Excellence by Geoff Jones.

This is Delta's terminal in Monroe, very similar in style to the Tallulah building.

Scott field terminal building (now unused)

The terminal building, dating from 1930, according to one source, is a simple but elegant structure with cheerful windows all around. Sadly, most of the window panes have been broken out, but the roof seems largely intact. I have no information about the architect. The US Marine Corps used Scott Field for training during World War II. I also have no information on what years the field provided commercial air transportation.

The interior is a mess and little or nothing is left of original fittings.


The second floor is accessed via exterior stairs, suggesting an add-on construction.

The roof is especially interesting. It looks like clay tile but is really made of zinc-coated steel units. Various companies made these metal tiles in the early 20th century. The very interesting Preservation in Mississippi web page has a 2011 article discussing use of of metal shingles.

(1991 and 2002 photographs taken with Leica rangefinder cameras with 50 mm f/2.8 Elmar lens on Kodachrome 25 film. 2012 photographs taken with a Panasonic G1 digital camera.)