![]() Marker for PSH 1 | |
Highway names | |
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Primary: | Primary State Highway X (PSH X) |
Secondary: | Secondary State Highway X (SSH X) |
System links | |
Primary State Highways were major state highways in the U.S. state of Washington used in the early 20th century. They were created as the first organized road numbering system in the state in stages between 1905 and 1937 and used until the 1964 state highway renumbering. These highways had named branch routes as well as secondary state highways with lettered suffixes. The system of primary and secondary state highways were replaced by sign routes (now state routes) to consolidate and create a more organized and systematic method of numbering the highways within the state.
The first state road, running across the Cascade Range roughly where State Route 20 now crosses it, was designated by the legislature in 1893 (However, this road wasn't actually opened until 1972). Two other roads—a Cascade crossing at present State Route 410 and a branch of the first road to Wenatchee—were added in 1897. The Washington Highway Department was established in 1905, and a set of twelve State Roads, numbered from 1 to 12, were assigned. A thirteenth was added in 1907, and State Roads 14 to 18 in 1909. [1]
However, it was not until 1913 that a connected system was laid out—earlier state roads had been disconnected segments of road needing improvements. The seven primary roads were only assigned names, while the older state roads kept their numbers as secondary roads. In 1923, most state roads were assigned new numbers, though the primary and secondary split remained, and several roads remained named only. The United States Numbered Highways were assigned in late 1926, overlapping some of the State Roads.
The first major reworking of the system was passed in 1937, including a complete renumbering. A number of Primary State Highways were designated, while Secondary State Highways were suffixed spurs off those. For instance, Primary State Highway 1 was the Pacific Highway (present Interstate 5), and Secondary State Highway 1B was a spur from Bellingham to the Canadian border (now State Route 539). U.S. Routes kept dual designations with State Highways. By 1952, the present highway shield, in the shape of George Washington's head, had been adopted.
The primary/secondary state highway systems were replaced by the current numbering system in the 1960s, at the behest of the state legislature following the 1962 World's Fair in Seattle. [2] The signs for the new highway numbers, which would be organized based on their general direction and—for secondary routes—a leading digit, first were posted in late 1963 and took effect in January 1964. [2] [3] The new numbers also coincided with existing U.S. Routes and new Interstate Highways to reduce confusion and eliminate duplicate numbers. [4] The PSH/SSH signs were removed by 1970.
Secondary State Highways (SSH) were branches of Primary State Highways with lettered suffixes used from 1937 to 1964. [5] [6]
Location | Vancouver to Canada–United States border |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
PSH 1 followed the route of U.S. Route 99 (replaced by Interstate 5) from Vancouver to Blaine. It also served U.S. Route 99 Alternate (now SR 11) in Skagit and Whatcom counties.
Location | Seattle to Idaho State Line |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route followed the route of U.S. Route 10 (replaced by Interstate 90) from Seattle to near Ellensburg, then U.S. Route 97 to Peshastin, then U.S. Route 2 to Spokane, then US 10/I-90 from Spokane to the Idaho state line. A southern branch of PSH 2 followed the route of Washington State Route 18 from Snoqualmie to Tacoma.
Location | Cle Elum to Canada–United States border |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route followed Interstate 82 from Ellensburg to the Oregon State line (concurrent with U.S. Route 97 from Ellensburg to Union Gap and U.S. Route 410/12 from Union Gap to the Tri-Cities), U.S. Route 410 (now U.S. Route 12) from the Tri-Cities to Clarkston, U.S. Route 195 from Clarkston to Pullman, SR 27 from Pullman to Oaksedale, US 195 from Oakesdale to Spokane, U.S. Route 2 from Spokane to Mead and U.S. Route 395 from Mead to the U.S.-Canada border. Spurs extended along I-82/, SR 125 and SR 129 from Tri-Cities, Walla Walla and Clarkston to the Oregon State Line
This route was also known as the "Inland Empire Highway" and crossed the first, and for a time, the only highway bridge over the middle Columbia River. That bridge was located between the towns of Kennewick, WA and Pasco, WA.
Location | Tonasket to Wilbur |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route followed State Route 30 (now part of State Route 20) from Tonasket to Republic and State Route 21 from Republic to Wilbur.
Location | Seattle to Yakima |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
PSH 5 began at PSH 2 in Seattle and traveled south along the Green River Valley and across the Cascade Range to a junction with PSH 3 in Yakima. The section from Enumclaw to Yakima was co-signed with US 410. [7] PSH 5 had several branch routes that connected to Renton, Tacoma, Mount Rainier National Park, and Cayuse Pass. [8] [9] Two branches, the White Pass Highway and Naches Pass Highway, were fully not built at the time.
During the 1964 renumbering, the trunk route of PSH 5 was divided between SR 167 from Seattle to Enumclaw and US 410 (now SR 410) from Enumclaw to Yakima. SR 167 was later rerouted away at Auburn, leaving the former highway to Enumclaw signed as SR 164. Its branches became various highways, including SR 7 from Tacoma to Morton, the former SR 14 (now US 12) from Morton to Yakima, SR 165, SR 169, and SR 706. [9]
Location | Spokane to Canada–United States border |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
The route followed present-day U.S. Route 2 from Spokane to Newport, and State Route 31 (a portion of which is now State Route 20) from Newport to the Canada-United States border
Location | Ellensburg to Davenport |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route followed U.S. Route 10/Interstate 90 from Ellensburg to George, State Route 281 from George to Quincy, and State Route 28 from Quincy to Davenport
Location | Vancouver to Buena |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
Known as the Evergreen Highway, the route followed State Route 14 (designated as Washington State Route 12 from 1964-67) from Vancouver, Washington to Maryhill, U.S. Route 97 from Maryhill to Toppenish and State Route 22 from Toppenish to Buena.
Location | Olympia to Mud Bay |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route followed U.S. Route 101 from Olympia to Aberdeen.
Location | Olds Station to Canada–United States border |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route ran on U.S. Route 97 from the U.S.-Canada border to Wenatchee, and State Route 28 from Wenatchee to Quincy. A spur extended along State Route 17 from Brewster to Coulee City
Location | Pasco to Spokane |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route followed U.S. Route 395 from Pasco to Ritzville and U.S. Route 10/Interstate 90 from Ritzville to Spokane
Location | Chehalis to Kelso |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route followed State Route 6 from Chehalis to Raymond, and U.S. Route 101 from Raymond to Johnsons Landing, and State Route 4 from Johnsons Landing to Kelso.
Location | Aberdeen to Raymond |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route followed U.S. Route 101 in Washington from Aberdeen to Raymond.
Location | Hoodsport, Washington to Tacoma |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route followed State Route 16 from Hoodsport to Tacoma
Location | Everett to Peshastin |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route followed U.S. Route 2 from Everett to Peshastin
Location | Fredonia to Twisp |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
This route followed State Route 20 from Fredonia to Pateros, and State Route 153 from Pateros to Twisp
Location | Twisp to Marblemount |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
Location | George to Ritzville |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
The route followed the route of U.S. Route 10 (now Interstate 90) from George to Ritzville
Location | Auburn to Bothell |
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Existed | 1964 |
The provisional designation of a proposed outer bypass of the Seattle metropolitan area between Auburn and Bothell, also known unofficially as Interstate 605. [10]
Location | Kingston to Skokomish, Washington |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
The route followed present-day State Route 104 from the Kingston Ferry to the Hood Canal Bridge, then State Route 3 from the Hood Canal Bridge to Belfair, then State Route 106 from Belfair to Skokomish
Location | Davenport to Canada–United States border |
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Existed | 1937–1964 |
The route followed present-day Washington State Route 25.
Interstate 82 (I-82) is an Interstate Highway in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States that travels through parts of Washington and Oregon. It runs 144 miles (232 km) from its northwestern terminus at I-90 in Ellensburg, Washington, to its southeastern terminus at I-84 in Hermiston, Oregon. The highway passes through Yakima and the Tri-Cities, and is also part of the link between Seattle and Salt Lake City, Utah. I-82 travels concurrently with U.S. Route 97 (US 97) between Ellensburg and Union Gap; US 12 from Yakima to the Tri-Cities; and US 395 from Kennewick to Umatilla, Oregon.
U.S. Route 195 (US 195) is a north–south United States Highway, of which all but 0.65 miles of its 94.02 miles are within the state of Washington. The highway starts in rural Idaho north of the city of Lewiston as a state highway in an interchange with US 95. As the road crosses into Washington it becomes a state highway that connects communities in the Palouse region of Eastern Washington. US 195 travels north, serving the cities of Pullman, Colfax and Rosalia in Whitman County before continuing into Spokane County to its terminus in the city of Spokane at an interchange with Interstate 90 (I-90).
State Route 410 is a 107.44-mile (172.91 km) long state highway that traverses Pierce, King, and Yakima counties in the US state of Washington. It begins at an interchange with SR 167 in Sumner and travels southeast across the Cascade Range to a junction with U.S. Route 12 (US 12) in Naches. While the western part of SR 410 is a freeway that serves built-up, urban areas, the remainder of the route is a surface road that traverses mostly rural areas as it passes through the mountains.
State Route 168 (SR 168) is a legislated, but not constructed, state highway located in Washington, United States. The highway is meant to serve as an alternate crossing through the Cascade Range at Naches Pass, supplementing the seasonal Chinook Pass on SR 410. Proposals were first drawn in the 1930s, and the highway has been codified in law under its current designation since 1970, but no construction has occurred.
State Route 10 (SR 10) is a 16.16-mile-long (26.01 km) state highway in the U.S. state of Washington. The highway is a remnant of U.S. Route 10 (US 10) in Kittitas County, traveling southeast along the Yakima River from SR 970 in Teanaway to US 97 northwest of Ellensburg. SR 10 was established in 1970 as the successor to US 10 after the completion of I-90 across the Snoqualmie Pass in 1968. The highway was previously part of State Road 3 from 1923 to 1937 and Primary State Highway 3 (PSH 3) until the 1964 highway renumbering.
U.S. Route 410 (US 410) was a U.S. Highway in Washington and Idaho that existed from 1926 to 1967. It ran 469 miles (755 km) from US 101 in Aberdeen, Washington, to US 95 in Lewiston, Idaho, passing through the cities of Olympia, Tacoma, Yakima, the Tri-Cities, and Walla Walla.
State Route 23 (SR 23) is a state highway traversing Whitman and Lincoln counties in the U.S. state of Washington. The 66-mile (106.22 km) highway extends northwest from U.S. Route 195 (US 195) in Steptoe through Sprague to an intersection with SR 28 in Harrington. It serves as a route from Interstate 90 and US 395 in Sprague towards Pullman via US 195, and has a longer child route, SR 231 that travels north from SR 23 near Sprague to Reardan and Chewelah.
State Route 706 is a state highway in Pierce County, in the U.S. state of Washington. It extends 13.64 miles (21.95 km) from SR 7 in the census-designated place (CDP) of Elbe east to the Longmire gate of Mount Rainier National Park.
State Route 516 (SR 516) is a 16.49-mile-long (26.54 km) state highway in the U.S. state of Washington, serving communities in southern King County. The highway travels east as the Kent-Des Moines Road and the Kent-Kangley Road from a concurrency with SR 509 in Des Moines through Kent and Covington to an intersection with SR 169 in Maple Valley. SR 516, designated as part of the National Highway System within Kent, intersects three major freeways in the area: Interstate 5 (I-5) in western Kent, SR 167 in downtown Kent, and SR 18 in Covington. The roadway, built in the 1890s, was codified in 1937 as Secondary State Highway 1K (SSH 1K) from Des Moines to Kent and SSH 5A from Kent to Maple Valley. The two highways were combined during the 1964 highway renumbering to form SR 516 on its current route.
State Route 123 (SR 123) is a state highway in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest and Mount Rainier National Park east of Mount Rainier in the U.S. state of Washington. Located in the counties of Lewis and Pierce, the 16.34-mile (26.30 km) long roadway extends through a heavily forested canyon from U.S. Route 12 (US 12) to SR 410. First established as a branch of State Road 5 in 1923, the designation of SR 123 has changed from a branch of Primary State Highway 5 (PSH 5) in 1937 to SR 143 during the 1964 highway renumbering and SR 123 in 1967. The northern terminus of the highway, Cayuse Pass, is closed annually and in late 2006, the Hanukkah Eve windstorm of 2006 washed out a 10.90-mile (17.54 km) long segment of the roadway.
State Route 127 (SR 127) is a 27.05-mile-long (43.53 km) state highway serving the eastern region of the U.S. state of Washington. The highway, listed on the National Highway System, begins in rural Garfield County at U.S. Route 12 (US 12) and travels north across the Snake River on the Elmer Huntley Bridge. The roadway continues into Whitman County before it ends at SR 26 in Dusty. SR 127 formed a section of the Inland Empire Highway and Primary State Highway 3 (PSH 3) prior to becoming US 295 in 1926. US 295 was decommissioned in 1968 and replaced by a longer SR 127, traveling its full length from Dodge to Colfax from its establishment in 1970 until an extension of SR 26 to Colfax in 1979.
Interstate 90 (I-90), designated as the American Veterans Memorial Highway, is a transcontinental Interstate Highway that runs from Seattle, Washington, to Boston, Massachusetts. It crosses Washington state from west to east, traveling 298 miles (480 km) from Seattle across the Cascade Mountains and into Eastern Washington, reaching the Idaho state line east of Spokane. I-90 intersects several of the state's other major highways, including I-5 in Seattle, I-82 and U.S. Route 97 (US 97) near Ellensburg, and US 395 and US 2 in Spokane.
State Route 164 (SR 164) is a 14.82-mile-long (23.85 km) state highway serving southern King County in the U.S. state of Washington. The highway, which connects Auburn and Enumclaw along the White River, begins at an interchange with SR 18 in Auburn and travels southeast to Enumclaw, where it intersects SR 169 and ends at SR 410. SR 164 serves as an alternate route towards Buckley and Chinook Pass, via SR 410, and also passes the Muckleshoot Indian Reservation.
Primary State Highway 6 (PSH 6) was a Washington state highway in the older primary and secondary system that existed from 1937 until 1964 in Spokane and Pend Oreille counties. The road ran from an intersection with PSH 3, U.S. Route 2 and US 395 in Spokane north to British Columbia Highway 6 (BC 6) at the Canada–US border near Metaline Falls, passing its branch route and two secondary routes.
U.S. Route 12 is a major east–west U.S. Highway, running from Aberdeen, Washington, to Detroit, Michigan. It spans 430.5 miles (692.8 km) across the state of Washington, making it the second longest highway in the state. It is also the only numbered highway to span the entire state from west to east, starting near the Pacific Ocean, and crossing the Idaho state line near Clarkston. It crosses the Cascade Range over White Pass, south of Mount Rainier National Park. Portions of it are concurrent with Interstate 5 (I-5) and Interstate 82 (I-82), although the majority of the route does not parallel any interstate highway.
State Route 904 is a 16.96-mile (27.29 km) long state highway in the U.S. state of Washington, located entirely in Spokane County. The route starts at an interchange with Interstate 90 (I-90) and U.S. Route 395 (US 395) in Tyler and travels to Cheney, serving Eastern Washington University, before ending at I-90 and US 395 in Four Lakes. The roadway, named First Street in Downtown Cheney, is paralleled by three rail lines, a BNSF Railway route that carries Amtrak's Empire Builder, a Union Pacific route and the Eastern Washington Gateway Railroad.
U.S. Route 395 (US 395) is a United States Numbered Highway that runs from California to the inland regions of Oregon and Washington. It travels north–south through Washington, including long concurrencies with Interstate 82 (I-82) and I-90, and connects the Tri-Cities region to Spokane and the Canadian border at Laurier.
State Route 171 is a 3.79-mile (6.10 km) long state highway serving the city of Moses Lake in Grant County, located in the U.S. state of Washington. Broadway Avenue begins at an interchange with Interstate 90 (I-90) and travels northeast through Downtown Moses Lake concurrent to Interstate 90 Business and parallel to Parker Horn before ending at an intersection with SR 17. Broadway Avenue was previously part of Primary State Highway 18 (PSH 18) and U.S. Route 10 (US 10) until the 1964 highway renumbering. The highway also has an un-built extension from Moses Lake northeast to Odessa that was first legislated in 1955 as Secondary State Highway 7E (SSH 7E).
U.S. Route 97 in the U.S. state of Washington is a 322-mile (518 km) route which traverses from the Oregon state line at the northern end of the Sam Hill Memorial Bridge in Maryhill, north to the Canada–US border in Okanogan County near Oroville. The highway serves major cities such as Goldendale, Yakima, Ellensburg and Wenatchee before continuing towards the Alaska Highway at the Yukon border as British Columbia Highway 97. Along the length of the roadway, US 97 is concurrent with State Route 14 in Maryhill, Interstate 82 (I-82) and US 12 between Union Gap and Ellensburg, I-90 briefly in Ellensburg, US 2 between Peshastin and rural Douglas County and SR 20 near Omak. An alternate route connects the highway with Chelan.
State Route 230 (SR 230) is a legislated, but unconstructed, state highway to be located in Adams and Whitman counties in the U.S. state of Washington. The highway would begin at a junction with concurrent highways Interstate 90 (I-90) and U.S. Route 395 (US 395) near Ritzville and travel east to an intersection with SR 23 near Ewan.