From 1848 to 1862 the Barlow toll road was operated by various companies. In 1882 the Mount Hood and Barlow Company was organized by Richard Gerdes, S. D. Coleman, Harvey E. Cross and J. T. Apperson, with a capital stock of $24,000.00.
One of the first measures under the initiative law was to abolish tolls on the old Barlow road, but the measure was lost by a small majority.
Utility, however, was not the main incentive for this road to come into its own; its grandeur and beauty became the motives for its final improvement. A true naturelover of the picturesque and grand rescued it from indifferent toll managers by buying it outright from this company for $5,400.00 in 1912. To Mr. Henry E. Wemme the state owes a debt of gratitude, appreciation and a bronze tablet. After spending a small fortune in improvements, building bridges, lessening gradients and improving its condition generally, very unfortunately Mr. Wemme died. The road was bequeathed to his attorney, Mr. George W. Joseph, who held it in trust till some commission with a vision for its beauty would take an interest in it and bring it to a nearer perfection.
In accordance with this trust, Mr. Joseph turned it over to the State Highway Commission and the federal government, as a gift from its greatest champion, Mr. Henry E. Wemme. The language of the deed is as picturesque as the land it describes. To quote: "To have and to hold unto the said State of Oregon, with all of its mountains and hills, its forests and vines, its flowers and shrubs, its valleys and dells, its rivers and streams, its animals and birds, its tempests and storms, its lights and shadows, its trails and paths, and the beauty and grandeur of Mount Hood, for the use, benefit and pleasure of all forever."
The road is now incorporated in the Mount Hood loop and it will be one of the most beautiful roads in the
