What’s The Deal With The ‘Golden’ Concrete On I-90?

If you travel along I-90 here in Southern Minnesota you may have driven by without even giving it a second glance. I know I have plenty of times before. Along both east and westbound I-90, to the west of Blue Earth, there are two sections of the shoulder that are just concrete. They don't match the asphalt that has been laid down. Why are these concrete oddities here? Well, they are actually very historically significant pieces of Minnesota transportation history. Those concrete pieces of shoulder mark the point where the eastbound construction crews and westbound construction crews met to connect the 3099-mile long I-90 interstate. 

In a post by the Martin County License Bureau, earlier this week explained the significance of the patches of concrete, and how they have survived since 1978 when the Interstate was finally finished after starting the project in 1961. 

I thought it was pretty Minnesotan that even the Jolly Green Giant was in attendance for the dedication ceremony Sept 23, 1978. Actually the Giant didn't have much choice as his pedestal wasn't completed yet so he was just hanging around Blue Earth until it was done.

The connection of the West Coast to the East Coast along I-90 was celebrated with...a parade of course. A MnDOT newsletter from 1980 highlighted that "a parade of antique cars, including [a] 1937 Chevrolet, crosses the "gold stripe" of 1-90 to symbolize the completion of the superhighway in Minnesota."

So the next time you are driving along I-90 in the area of Blue Earth keep your eyes peeled for that golden tinted concrete along the shoulder.