To prevent cars from using it as a commuter cut-through, a three-quarter mile section of a main road through iconic Griffith Park in Los Angeles recently was closed to private vehicle traffic.

Editor’s note: On Dec. 11, 1816, Indiana became the 19th state in the Union. On Jan. 28, 1836, Porter County was created. A year later, on Jan. 18, Lake County became independent. As the state ...