It was a monumental task to build California’s State Highway system. Funding, by the way, was not a major issue. Voters in the 1910s and 1920s routinely passed bond measures. This was especially true by 1920, when the automobile had become the preferred method of travel. It was faster than a horse buggy and there were no time constraints compared to train travel.
What we know today as State Highway 139, took thirty years to construct from Susanville to the Oregon border, near Malin. Like many highways, it was built in segments. It was rather odd, the construction from Susanville over Antelope Grade to Willow Creek Valley did not occur until the fall of 1947. At that time, Teichert & Company of Sacramento was awarded the contract to make 16.7 miles of road improvements from Susanville to the far side of Willow Creek Valley. The $238,423 contract stipulated for it to be completed within 180 working days. The big question was whether the weather would cooperate. Fortunately, it did. In January there were twenty-three days when no rain or snow occurred. By March the construction was completed and an oil surface was applied to the road that summer.