[Ads-l] beltway

Mon Nov 13 08:05:00 UTC 2017

The OED does not mention "belt highway". Here is the suggested etymology.

[Begin OED excerpt]
beltway, n.
Origin: Formed within English, by compounding. Etymons: belt n.1, way n.1
Etymology: < belt n.1 + way n.1
[End OED excerpt]

On Mon, Nov 13, 2017 at 2:52 AM, ADSGarson O'Toole
<adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com> wrote:
> Excellent work, Peter. It looks like the predecessor term to "beltway"
> was "belt highway". Here is an instance in 1937. The article says that
> the group in favor of building the "belt highway" proposed it back in
> 1929 although I do not know if it was described with the term "belt
> highway" back in 1929.
>
> Date: July 18, 1937
> Newspaper: The Indianapolis Sunday Star
> Newspaper Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
> Article: Belt Highway Is Proposed to Relieve Traffic in Indianapolis
> Author: C. L. Kern (Automobile Editor of The Star)
> Quote Page 25, Column 1
> Database: Newspapers.com
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> Construction of a belt highway around Indianapolis would be one means
> of removing heavy trucks from Indianapolis streets, says Todd Stoops,
> secretary-manager of the Hoosier Motor Club. . . .
>
> The average tourist when entering Indianapolis very seldom makes a
> purchase in the center of the city but rather at the outskirts, so
> with this belt highway the tourist would avoid the downtown section
> altogether. It will speed him on his way and at the same time downtown
> merchants will benefit by the reduction of traffic in city streets. .
> . .
>
> "The Hoosier Motor Club launched its campaign to build a belt highway
> around the city in 1929 and it had the support of the Merchants'
> Association, the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce and the Auto Trade
> Association of Indianapolis.
> [End excerpt]
>
> Garson
>
>
> On Mon, Nov 13, 2017 at 2:02 AM, Peter Reitan <pjreitan at hotmail.com> wrote:
>> Bill pointed out the DC beltway from 1951.
>>
>> Garson found the Baltimore beltway from 1949.
>>
>> The "Managua Beltway" was proposed in 1945.  It was a project to be funded by a loan from the International Development Fund. It was criticized as perhaps too beneficial to Samoza.
>>
>> http://www.newspapers.com/clip/15087702/the_morning_herald
>>
>> Hagerstown Morning Herald (Hagerstown, Maryland), September 7, 1945, page 28.
>>
>>
>> http://www.newspapers.com/clip/15087702/the_morning_herald
>>
>> Hagerstown Morning Herald (Hagerstown, Maryland), September 7, 1945, page 28.
>> ________________________________
>> From: ADSGarson O'Toole<mailto:adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
>> Sent: ‎11/‎12/‎2017 22:15
>> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU<mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> Subject: Re: beltway
>>
>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> Poster:       ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
>> Subject:      Re: beltway
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> Bill Mullins wrote:
>>> The new releases for the OED in September included "beltway", as in the
>>> highway loop that surrounds Washington DC.
>>>
>>> OED has 6 Aug 1951 for the term.
>>>
>>> This can be antedated by one day (at least).
>>>
>>> Washington DC _Evening Star_ 5 Aug 1951 p A2 col 1
>>>
>>> "The proposed beltway would connect Route 1 on the Southwest with Route
>>> 40 on the West, Route 140 on the Northwest, Route 111 on the North and
>>> Route 1 and Route 40 on the Northeast."
>>
>> Nice work, Bill. Here is an instance in 1949. Beltway appears in the
>> headline and body.
>>
>> Date: November 18, 1949
>> Newspaper: The Baltimore Sun
>> Newspaper Location: Baltimore, Maryland
>> Article: County Maps New Beltway
>> Artcicle Subtitle: Reports on Preliminary Plan to Relieve Traffic
>> Quote Page 25, Column 5
>> Database: Newspapers.com
>>
>> https://www.newspapers.com/image/216863959/?terms=%22new%2Bbeltway%22
>>
>> [Begin excerpt]
>> Mapping a proposed beltway around the city, the Baltimore county
>> Planning Commission made public yesterday a preliminary plan to
>> relieve "hardening of the traffic arteries" in the metropolitan area.
>> . . .
>>
>> The circumferential beltway would connect with the Governor Ritchie
>> highway in Anne Arundel county and with an interchange at the
>> Baltimore-Washington expressway now under construction.
>> [End excerpt]
>>
>> Garson
>>
>>
>>
>>>
>>>
>>> "inside the beltway" OED has 1982
>>>
>>> Washington DC _Evening Star_ 30 Nov 1980 p C2 col 3
>>>
>>> "Inside the beltway, cutting out the perks wasn't popular, but in the
>>> rest of the country, it played very well.  It was part of the Carter
>>> image we wanted to portray."
>>>
>>>
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