American Scientist

In 1919 Dwight D. Eisenhower, then a young lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army, rode in a convoy of military vehicles that traveled from Washington, D.C., to San Francisco. It was the service's first transcontinental journey by motor vehicle, and the purpose of the exercise was to promote the army's Motor Transport Corps and demonstrate its defense mobility. Almost 300 enlisted men and officers rode by motorcycle, car and truck in a caravan that stretched for three miles. Vehicles were draped with bunting of red, white and blue, and were accompanied by a band sponsored by the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, which no doubt saw an opportunity to promote land travel and transportation in peace time as well as war.