Making a Stone Road in Shelby Michigan c. 1900
A steam road roller throws off smoke as a crew builds a crushed-stone road in Shelby, Michigan, in a photo often dated to about 1900. Horse-drawn wagons follow behind, likely hauling stone or supplies, while a man and a boy pose near the roller for the camera.
Before asphalt, “stone roads” (often called macadam) were a big upgrade from sand and mud, especially for farm towns moving goods to market. Shelby grew in the 1860s and expanded after the Chicago & West Michigan Railroad came through in 1870 — and better roads helped tie the village to the region’s fruit and shipping economy.
More Shelby history (and where this image appears): History of Shelby, Michigan.
Do you know what road this was, or who ran the steamroller?
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