In 1978, the nation celebrated completion of Interstate 90 after contractors paved the last four miles of freeway near Blue Earth. Echoing the Golden Spike that marked completion of the nation’s first transcontinental railroad in 1869, officials tinted a small section of I-90’s pavement gold, and, like the two locomotives that met to symbolize east meeting west, two Minnesota National Guard trucks met at the highway’s union. Officials praised the new road for promising safer and faster travel linking the nation. National and state officials, contractors, Miss America, and area residents gathered where the Blue Earth Rest Areas now stand, and many received pens inscribed “I-90 Golden Spike Dedication, Sept. 23, 1978.” The celebration also featured a flyover by Minnesota Air National Guard jets and the debut of a 56-foot-tall replica of the Jolly Green Giant, which has overlooked Blue Earth ever since. After a ribbon-cutting attended by 2,500 people, a line of vintage cars and trucks crossed the gold pavement. Planning for the $256 million project had begun in 1958. Stretching from Boston to Seattle, I-90 became the nation’s longest interstate and the northernmost east-to-west, coast-to-coast interstate. At 70 mph, a motorist could travel its length in 44 hours. Like other interstate highways, it brought faster and safer travel, but also reshaped communities, bringing economic growth to some while others suffered as business moved away from older highways; its impact in southern Minnesota continues to shape the region.