Arthur Blessitt made the cross in 1968 to hang on the wall of "His Place" on Sunset Strip, Hollywood, and made short cross walks in that area. On December 25, 1969, he began his journey with the cross, walking from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. Speaking of his inspiration for the walks, he said he "heard the voice of Jesus calling him to walk to every nation." For a short while, from 1970 to 1971, he set up an evangelical outreach at New York's Times Square, which was similar to his Hollywood coffeehouse. In May 1971, Blessitt made his first overseas cross-walk, beginning in Northern Ireland.