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Route 20 was named a federal highway in 1926, and for the first half of the 20th century it was the most important east-west road across northern Ohio. Extending from the Pennsylvania border east of Conneaut to its western terminus with Indiana, it made Ohio the connecting link between Northeastern and Midwestern states. Fortunately, Route 20 has remained virtually intact and can be traveled much as people did in years past. Postcard History Series: Along Ohio's Historic Route 20 celebrates such a trip, illustrated by more than 200 vintage postcards depicting views along the way. Town and city scenes, rural vistas, and historic sites that drew early motorists to the highway are featured. Not to be forgotten are the tourist courts, hotels, diners, and gas stations that made automobile journeys possible.

Over more than two centuries, Cincinnati evolved from a riverside settlement in the wilderness to a major center of business, commerce, and manufacturing. Boasting titles such as "Queen City of the West" and "Porkopolis" (for its many pork-packing plants), Cincinnati never suffered from a lack of self-esteem. Indeed, the city earned its place in the honor roll of American cities as it spread outward from the Ohio River into the surrounding hills. Blessed with good transportation by river, canal, and railroad, Cincinnati grew rapidly, attracting great numbers of native-born Americans and foreign immigrants alike. Drawn by abundant jobs and economic opportunity, Cincinnati's citizens lived in densely developed neighborhoods, walked crowded streets, and worked hard in mills and factories. Early in the city's history, farseeing individuals saw the benefit of creating public parks where the population could enjoy a few hours of recreation among trees, green grass, and gorgeous vistas of the Ohio River Valley. Starting from modest beginnings, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries Cincinnati developed a system of more than 5,000 acres of parks and connecting parkways that would be the envy of cities many times its size.