Plank road
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A plank road or puncheon is a dirt path or road covered with a series of planks, similar to the wooden sidewalks one would see in a Western movie. Plank roads were wildly popular in the U.S. Northeast and U.S. Midwest in the first half of the 19th century. They were often built by turnpike companies.
Plank road boom
In the late 1840's plank roads inspired its own investment boom (and bust) [link][link]. Unlike the often compared tulip bubble, the plank road boom had more in common with the Dot-com bubble: a new technology that promised to transform the way people lived and worked, permissive changes in legislation seeking to spur development, lots of investment by regular people, etc. Ultimately the technology failed to live up to its reputation and millions of dollars in investments evaporated almost overnight.
See also
- Corduroy road
- Boardwalk
- Old Plank Road
- Paterson Plank Road
External links
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