1942: Utah’s first ever regular traffic jams were in Weber County, not S.L.; More WW2 tales

          The infamous "Death Curve" in Roy at 1900 West and Riverdale Road.

UTAH'S first ever regular traffic jams didn’t take place in the state’s most populous county, Salt Lake,  but in Weber County instead.

“Utah traffic peak reported on U.S. Highway 91. Safety Council notes heaviest travel in Weber County in study for tire conservation and car pooling,” a Sept. 18, 1942 headline in the Salt Lake Telegram stated.

It was the effects of World War II and all the federal defense installations in Weber County and north Davis County that fueled this road traffic.

“The northern part of U.S. Highway 91 in Utah, particularly in Weber County, is carrying the ‘heaviest traffic in the state’ and the ‘’heaviest traffic any Utah road ever has been called upon to bear,’” the story reported.

Traffic increases on Highway 91 in Riverdale were reported to be up as much as 245 percent over the previous year.

                              1900 West sign in south Roy.

                           1900 West (northbound) in Roy today.

In that era, there was no I-15. Highway 91 was essentially Main Street in Layton, State Street in Clearfield, 1900 West in Sunset and Roy and then Riverdale Road into Ogden. And, the infamous “Death Curve” was where Riverdale Road ended on the west and a sharp turn was required to turn south into Roy onto 1900 West Street.

                          Hill Air Force Base, top.

-More WW2 Utah effects: “Girls! Here’s chance to meet daring Army fliers; Serve your country and earn money, too” was a Nov. 3, 1942 headline in the Telegram.

“Hill Field,” the Ogden Air Depot (and now Hill Air Force Base), was seeking 30 young women to serve as receptionists for incoming planes. “They will meet all planes landing at the field, direct the pilots to parking areas, or park the planes themselves by means of tow tugs,” the story stated.

Other job duties would be arranging pilot accommodations and pay would be $1,200 a year (approximately $17,600 in today’s dollar values).

These job openings were part of a trend caused by World War II – many more women were needed to join the workforce.

-Davis and Weber County were well-known homes to many Utah military and civilian government personnel involved in the World War II efforts. However, surprisingly so was Morgan County. “Como Springs summer homes for war workers” was a Nov. 20, 1942 headline in the Morgan County newspaper. With home availability in Ogden expected to be up to 1,000 short, 56 summer homes at Morgan’s Como Spring resort were rebuilt to house government employees.

-World famous comedians Lou Costello and Bud Abbott of “Abbott and Costello” came to Salt Lake City in July of 1942 to promote war bonds.

“A pair of funny men came to Salt Lake City Wednesday on serious business,” the Salt Lake Telegram of July 22, 1942 reported. Several hundred fans welcomed the celebrity pair at the train station and then they were taken to Hotel Utah in a covered wagon.

Later, they entertained a crowd of thousands, performing on a platform at 200 South Main Street.

Then, they went to Provo, Bingham Canyon, Magna, Fort Douglas, Hill Field and the Ogden Arsenal – all between 11:30 a.m. and early evening, before heading to Idaho.

                   Highway 89 in Layton at Oak Hills Drive.

-Even before America’s involvement in World War II, the U.S. Army had requested that some key roads entering the Wasatch Front be improved and widened. Among these were Highway 30, from Echo through Weber Canyon to Uintah; the “Mountain Road,” from Weber Canyon to Farmington; the roads accessing Hill Field; and even sections of narrow highway in Parley’s Canyon. The Park Record newspaper of Oct. 24, 1940 reported these projects, scheduled to start in the spring of 1941.

                     Highway 193 connects Hill AFB with U.S. Highway 89.