Today, this is still a terrific drive, one of my favorite stretches I've covered in Texas so far.   Though the road is now known as U.S. 180, in many places, time has almost stood still.  Most of the towns still have that certain 'feel' to them that conjures up memories of going to grandmother's and you almost expect to find a 5&10 cent store still open and selling fountain drinks.   Not to be outdone, out in the county past the city lines, ample evidence of the early roads still tempt one to stop, linger, and savor what once was.  Let me show you what I mean...

      You don't have to go far before old 80 makes its presence known!  Just west of Metcalf Gap, Little Ioni Creek wanders this a way and that, and old 80 wove its way through here like a snake.  Just shy of a mile, be sure to check out the remains of a long, very pretty old concrete bridge done in that concrete rail wooden timber mimicking style so prevalent in Texas in the 30's (known professionally to TX DOT engineers as rail style 'Standard Type D' - Thanks to John Murphy at the OST website for that tidbit!).  Though now on a private road, a view from the gate still rewards one with a terrific view down a green tunnel.  Just beyond this stretch, look to the right for other small bypassed bridges and the old roadway playing tag with the new.  Again, as you climb the hill curving right, look to the right just before the rock cut for an old 80 peek-a-boo...another bypassed bridge.  It's apparent that old 80 went around the crest of the hill here instead of blasting through.  You can see where it rejoins at the top, angling in from the right.

     Brad today is just a sleepy little spot in the road, so continue past the closed service station on the south side of the road.  Just where the road starts to curve back to the SW, watch for a stretch of vintage old 80 coming at you from the United Methodist Church property.   Remember this road, you will see it again.  Old 80 banked around to the north side of these hills, then headed SW to cross modern 180 and then paralled the existing road for quite a spell west of Brad.  Photo ops abound.  For example, this 1st shot is where old 80 came around the hill after heading westward past the United Methodist Church area we saw earlier.  The second shot is just another 1/2 mile or so on the south side of the road.  Though on private property, one can see enough from gates/fences to really appreciate the old road.  Of course, zoom lenses help immensely!  These pics were taken in May...note the flowers such as Indian Paint Pots and various daisies and sunflowers!

     Continuing west on U.S. 180, venture onward into Stephens County.  I discovered no F.A.P. (Federal Aid Project) markers at the county line.  As you approach Caddo, be sure to take the old road, State Loop 252 past 'downtown' Caddo.  You can't miss the turnoff, just be on the lookout for the Caddo Mercantile building!  Since '49, the friendly folks here have been serving the traveling masses whatever they need.  They also have some great vintage photos inside of Caddo's hey-day. Can you believe it?  In the early years of the century, the Ranger oil boom swelled the city to well over 1000 residents.  The town once even boasted a hotel, but by the time this old bridge was built in 1934, Caddo was already in decline.  I saw no evidence of the old hotel remaining.  On an interesting structural side note, check out the glass marbles placed in the bridge concrete.  I'm assuming these must have acted as early reflectors.  I don't recall seeing anything like this before.

     Once back on U.S. 180, continue westward through the wooded valleys and grassy meadows towards Breckenridge.  Known as the 'Mural capitol of Texas', the reason for this title is apparent.  Today, Breckenridge is still hanging on, and the city appears to be  trying to rebuild based upon its historical prestige.  Too bad former city councils couldn't have saved many of the old structures.  Most of the street scenes depicted in the murals are virtually unrecognizable today as most of the larger historic buildings are gone or radically changed.  In fact, though thankfully still here, even the tall former Burch Hotel, the 'skyscraper of Breckenridge', has had some 60's era facade applied to it.  Why would they do such a thing?  Another wounded but not yet down old-timer is the National Theatre.  Depicted in this mural, the National Theatre remains today.  Though closed (no roof!), efforts are under way to try to save it.  Let's hope they succeed.  Other notables include later auto era remnants such as this old Phillips 66 on the eastern edge of downtown as shown here.  

     On to Albany!  Seemingly forgotten by history, Albany is a real treat.  From the fantastic old courthouse (pictured) to its old row buildings on the downtown square, Albany has managed to retain much of its heritage from the turn of the century.  As a bonus, many reminders of the early auto era also remain such as this early station and this small ice plant.  Also be sure to check out the 1940 N. Hubbard Creek bridge as you head south out of town.  Plan on spending at least a couple of hours wandering around and admiring the city and support the establishments.

     Between Albany and the junction of TX 351, there are a couple of intriguing cut off early road segments.  Check out Newell Ranch Rd. just west of Albany (norht side of the road), and as U.S. 180 approaches the large rock cuts just east of the TX 351 junction, watch for Private Rd. 2310 veering off to the right (also to the north).  The old road snaked its way up the hill and you can see it climbing the hill to your right as you climb the much easier and straighter (thank you new technology!) modern grade.  Take TX 361 SW for a relaxing drive in rolling green country on your way to Abilene. 

      You don't have to wait long for evidence of the old road on this stretch either.  Though the country seems wide open, apparently the old road wasn't straight enough for the next generation of road builders.  About three miles south of the junction, look for the huge transmission towers crossing the road in front of you.  Marching across the landscape like giants, they make a perfect reference point for our 1st piece of bypassed roadbed.  Look to the left (east), and observe the old road bed veering off (see pic at right), only to rejoin the road two miles later.  Further south, be sure to note another old bridge spanning Spring Creek on your right side (west).  Also in this stretch is the Guiess? Ranch on the west side of the road.  You can't miss it, look for the old Texaco sign out front.  But before leaving, be sure to check out their patriotic fences on the south side of their buildings.  Wish more people showed pride like this.  And lastly, as we approach Abilene, note that every county line through here has an old F.A.P. marker-a sure sign that this is indeed the old road.  This particular marker is hidden in the weeds on the east side of the road at the Jones-Shackleford county line.

     Our drive down Historic Alternate 80 is coming to an end...Abilene approaches.  Originally, Alternate 80 entered town on Ambler, turned south on Pine, west on 5th, then south on Cedar past the Wooten Hotel.  Under the RR overpass and rejoined the main trunk of Highway 80.  Sometime later, the alternate routing was changed to turn south on Treadaway to meet with 1st street (U.S. 80) on the south side of the tracks.  Though not much remains on the old Pine routing today, strangely enough, I did come across a row of vintage trucks just sitting in someone's side yard.  Whether they were for sale or just set up to watch a parade, I thoroughly enjoyed the juxtaposition they made with the modern cars parked in  the street just out of the camera's field of view.  Over on Treadaway, newer Alternate 80, there were a few 'hangers-oners' to remind you of the 'good ol' days'.  For example, Larry's Better Burgers looks like something right out of the movie American Graffiti while just a block away, the now vacant Torch Drive-In is a classic combination of 50's-60's era drive-in architecture.  Note the sharp arrow pointing to the joint while the curving roof line was designed to impart that space age, modern look so common back then.

     Well, from here, we rejoin the main trunk of 80 and continue our journey.  I hope you have enjoyed traveling this historic Alternate 80 alignment with me.  Be sure to check the rest of my web, and of course, if you know any history or have a short snippet to share, drop me a line and I'd love to post it here.  Until we meet again, adios amigos!!