October 22 - The Highway Beautification Act is Signed

This Day in History: 22 October 2020

 

22 October 1965

 

55 years ago, today, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Highway Beautification Act, attempting to limit billboards and other forms of outdoor advertising along America's motorways. The act also encouraged 'scenic enhancement' by restricting junkyards and other unsightly roadside messes. It funded local efforts to clean up and landscape the green space on either side of the roadways, as well. However, the act was actually the pet project of the first lady, Lady Bird Johnson. She believed that beauty had social utility, so cleaning up city parks and removing ugly advertisements would make the nation a better place to look at and live in.

 

Many urban activists, along with many other people who were starting to think seriously about the consequences of the nation's poor environmental policies, supported the Johnsons' efforts. On the other hand, however, business groups, polluters and advertisers were not so excited. Lobbyists for the Outdoor Advertising Association of America were able to water down the bill significantly, as companies who had their billboards taken down were compensated massively. Nevertheless, the bill was very important, as it declared that nature was fragile and worth preserving, even just the strips along the country's motorways. This idea still holds great power today.

 

Want to find out more about the Highway Beautification Act? Click here for more information, or here for more about Lady Bird Johnson.