End of US highway 223

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: Andy Field; Dan Garnell; Don Hargraves; Alex Nitzman

US 223 was commissioned in 1930 along what had until then been the southernmost segment of US 127. Its north end has always been in Somerset MI. The photo below is from eastbound US 12:

Hargraves, 2002

About a half-mile to the right on US 127, the mainline becomes US 223, and US 127 traffic has to exit to the right:

Hargraves, 2002

If you veer left there, you'll see the first southbound US 223 sign:

Hargraves, 2002

Heading the opposite direction, the photo below shows the "End" signage:

Hargraves, 2002

Approaching Somerset from the south on US 127, there's the interesting sign shown below:

Hargraves, 2002

Don says that was in "construction zone" orange; I wonder why they didn't just use a standard "Jct US 223" assembly. Maybe there are a lot of accidents at the intersection, which is shown below:

Hargraves, 2002

Originally the south end of US 223 was in Toledo OH; you can view photos from there on this page.

In 1987 US 223's south end was realigned to go due east from Riga, where it connects with the US 23 freeway at interchange 5. US 223 is co-signed with the US 23 freeway down to the Ohio line...

Hargraves, 2002

...but it's not signed in Ohio:

Hargraves, 2002

Based on that, one might be inclined to believe that the US 223 designation ends at the Ohio line. However, Ohio officially considers the route's end to be at the hwy. 51/184 interchange (the first southbound exit, for which you can see the green sign in the distance). If you exit there, you'll see an "End US 223" sign on the offramp:

Field/Nitzman, Sep. 2005

That's Monroe Street running across the photo. It actually carried the original US 223, so it's kind of ironic that modern US 223 ends at its own historic route. The following perspectives are from OH 51; the one below is heading eastbound:

Garnell, Jan. 2003

It's not mentioned on that sign, but OH 51 (Monroe) angles to the right (that's how you get to the onramp for northbound US 23/223). US 223 used to follow that road all the way downtown (as did US 127 before that). The view below is from westbound Monroe/OH 51:

Field/Nitzman, Sep. 2005

While today US 223 begins to the right with US 23, this used to be US 223, which continued northbound by going straight ahead for about a half-mile before angling north via Sylvania's Main Street and Lansing Road. Below, we're looking north on US 23 at the interchange (the last exit in Ohio):

Hargraves, 2002

Suddenly a US 223 sign appears along with US 23 - it's rare that a US route terminus occurs at a junction with a state route (instead of another US route or an interstate). Also note that Ohio signs this "West" on 223 - which is very odd, because the half-mile segment that exists in Ohio is about as north/south as you can get, and the remainder of the highway in Michigan is signed north/south! US 223 is not mentioned ahead on the reassurance post:

Hargraves, 2002

That's the last trailblazer in Ohio - the blue sign in the median marks the Michigan line. Shortly after you cross it, you find that you are indeed on US 223:

Hargraves, 2002