To prevent the name from being submerged beneath a dozen others will be the mission of the Hoosier State Automobile association¹⁷, backed by A. S. Hess, president of the Dunes Highway association, the Gary Commercial club, the Michigan City chamber of Commerce and other organizations resulted in the construction of the famous road. [sic]

Already a dozen or more highway associations and automobile clubs throughout the midwest are trying to obtrude themselves into the spotlight by sticking up signs on Dunes Highway and trying to make traveling folk believe it is "Yellowstone Trail," "Dixie Highway," "Michigan Pike," "Pottawatomie Trail," and other names calculated to deceive the public.¹⁸

The promoters and builders of Dunes Highway say they have no objection to the other highways connecting with the only Dunes Highway, but when they try to use the road under their own names it is too much, say the officials of the Dunes Highway association and the Hoosier State Automobile association, who are trying to preserve the identity and individuality of the wonderful highway that skirts the famous Indiana sand dunes.

The Hoosier State Automobile association has been given the exclusive right by the Indiana State Highway commission to mark the new highway with signs bearing the words, "State Road 43, Dunes Highway," and all other signs will be kept off the road.¹⁹ It will be all right for the other roads to have signs saying they connect at such and such place with Dunes Highway, but they must not say that Dunes Highway is "Such and Such Trail," when it isn't.

It is the intention of the Dunes Highway association to keep the name free from entanglement with all other highways and trails. It will be the great artery which will connect other trails and highways with each other, but it will always remain, "Dunes Highway," says the Hoosier State Automobile association and the Dunes Highway association.

The same rights will be conferred upon the Hoosier State Automobile association in regard to marking 5th avenue in the city of Gary, 5th avenue being the city link in Dunes Highway and will be known as such.

By agreement of the state local organizations, Dunes Highway will begin at the Illinois-Indiana state line and extend through Indiana Harbor, Gary and Michigan City to the Michigan state line, where it will connect with the Michigan Pike. But in Indiana the new road will be known as "Dunes Highway," and nothing else.

Since then two different Tribune readers have called attention to the letter and agreed that the Dunes highway is beautiful.

We can vouch for this and go further and say that there is no more scenic rural highway in this part of the country. We returned Sunday from a trip down the state of Indiana to the Ohio river, up the river to Cincinnati and northeast to Columbus. This is beautiful country, but there were no roads where the foliage was more beautiful than right here in our own frontyard.

¹⁷The Hoosier Automobile Association is now the local AAA chapter for central Indiana. The Chicago Motor Club is now the local chapter of the AAA for northwest Indiana.

¹⁸It would be interesting to know the details of this. I assume the Yellowstone Trail reference is just to the western portion of the Dunes Highway. The Yellowstone's route did alter over the years however. Did it follow the Dunes Highway east of Gary at one time? A branch of the Dixie Highway followed the Dunes Highway for awhile? Oh?
The Dunes Highway was a continuation, through Indiana, of the Western Michigan Pike, which preceded it. I assume the Michigan group just extended their signs to downtown Michigan City. Or did the Michigan Pike extend all the way to Chicago at one time? The Michiganders were instrumental in getting the Dunes Highway built. How ungracious of the Hoosiers to begrudge them a few overlapping signs. Of course at this point (1922) it could not be foreseen how much Indiana would drag its feet in connecting Michigan to Chicago and how many details would be reneged on.
What exactly was the Pottawatomie Trail referred to? Was it simply the old name for the stretch of (what became the) Dunes Highway from Michigan City to Baileytown or was it another named highway, and if so from where to where? Was the D.H.A. just bugged that people continued to use the old name after the new "Dunes Highway" was come up with? Or were they trying to make a better case against multiple signage by throwing in every name used along the route, even though the "Pottawatomie Trail" was not an actual highway name (if it was not)?
Ok, I am way off into speculation now but I wish those who came before had made this stuff clear. Apparently nobody else cares about details such as these, except for highway buffs. I do think myself that some roadnames today are "calculated to deceive the public." It would be nice to know exactly what they were referring to back then.

¹⁹Always? U.S. 12 was proclaimed the Iron Brigade Highway by the state general assembly a couple years ago but that is basically just an honorary appellation. It is not used in street addresses (some of which use Dunes Highway and some U.S. 12, with no rhyme or reason as to which). Nor is the road locally referred to as the Iron Brigade Highway that I have ever seen or heard. When I pointed out to the guy who spearheaded the project that U.S. 12 already had a name, he expressed surprise. I guess the great Dunes Highway is not as well-known as it should be.
The S.U.V. did an excellent job of placing I B H signs along U.S. 12. The I B H is to move to what is now U.S. 20 when U.S. 12's route changes, if that part of the scenic road plan is implemented. The portion of the Dunes Highway between Dune Acres and Michigan City is to be named the Dunes Highway, as if it was not already. The stretches west of that, both the wide steel mill strip and the part through the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore (around the Lake County line), are not to be Dunes Highway. Say what?

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Posted 3 January, 1999. Corrected and reposted 13th April, 2004, after being knocked off-line four years ago.