End of historic US highway 122 [I]

Note: since I don't have access to a comprehensive collection of historical road atlases, much of the info below is based on the research of Robert Droz; click here to view his site. Photo credits: Doug Kerr; Christopher Mason

The original US 122 ran from the Wilmington area to US 22 at Whitehouse NJ (to view photos from Wilmington, view this page). The photo below is looking north on Main Street in Whitehouse:

Mason

Main is now designated CR 523, but it used to be US 122 - and the designation ended at the intersection in the background, which is US 22. Christopher describes the former route of US 122 [I] in NJ as follows:

"Today US 122 would follow the route of NJ 179 (US 202 before the freeway bypass was built), along the US 202/NJ 31 multiplex, shortly along NJ 31, and then along CR 523 up to US 22."

Dan Moraseski had this to add:

"US 22 west was to the left and US 22 east was straight ahead (which immediately curves right, and used to be continuous with the road to the left). The bypass to the right was built in 1942."

Apparently in 1934 - and if so, then for less than a year - US 122 was extended north to US 9W in Haverstraw NY. Although Christopher writes:

"I have a 1934 NJ map and it does not show US 122 extended beyond US 22. The only hint that this extension was going to take place is a US 122 shield on an "Under Construction" part of what is modern US 202 from Suffern to Ladentown NY."

The photo below shows the signage at that intersection as it appeared in.

Kerr, June 2001

We're looking north on US 9W at Westside Avenue. Today westbound US 202 follows Westside to the left, but that may have once been the north beginning of westbound US 122.

Later that same year, US 122 [I] was decommissioned. The next year, in 1935, the US 122 designation was recycled for use on a completely different route - the ends of which you can read about on this page.