[citation needed] The Yellowstone Trail was conceived by Joseph William Parmley of Ipswich, South Dakota.

In April 1912, the first step he and his local influential colleagues wanted was a 25-mile-long (40 km) good road from Ipswich over to Aberdeen, also in South Dakota.

By May, the intent had expanded to get a transcontinental route built, including to the popular tourist destination to the west, Yellowstone National Park.

One was in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, when one of the competitors, George Murphy, was 'speeding recklessly' at 26 mph (42 km/h) in his Mitchell 6, en route to Menomonie from Chippewa Falls.

[citation needed] The Yellowstone Trail Association was incorporated in January 1918, with the head office in Minneapolis.

[2] In the Eastern United States, the Yellowstone Trail Association exerted little influence on the road's routes.

Instead it functioned primarily as a travel information bureau to entice tourists westward along the Trail.

Former sections, some with signage, still exist in travelable condition in Wisconsin, Montana, Idaho, and Washington.