When created, most of Lincoln Highway consisted of dirt and gravel. The need for hard-surfaced roads was never more apparent than in Illinois. During rainstorms, the sticky prairie soil bogged down early automobiles. While paving Lincoln Highway in Cortland, a farm now named “Folly Hollow” and the site now known as DeKalb County Landfill were contracted to supply gravel to the project. Even though trucks and autos were developed, horses were called upon to help power the era of concrete roads.