End of historic U.S. Highway 630

Note: since I don't have access to a comprehensive collection of historical road atlases, much of the info on this page is based on the research of Robert Droz; click here to view his site. Map scans and photo credits: Chris Elbert

Among highway fans, word is that US 630 was the shortest US route ever, weighing in at a whopping 3 miles. Its history also involves US 30 and US 95, but it's sketchy because old maps have conflicting info. Here's my understanding:

1926:

• When the US routes were first commissioned, US 30 followed what is now Business 30 between Fruitland ID and Ontario OR, and then OR hwy. 201 up to Weiser Jct. OR and across to Farewell Bend.
• At that time, there was also a "US 30N" in the area: it departed US 30 at Fruitland and followed today's US 95 north through Payette to Weiser. Routings through town have changed a bit over the years, but from Weiser it was essentially directed along what is now signed as "Spur US 95" across the river into Oregon, where it reconnected with US 30 at Weiser Jct.
• Originally the south beginning of US 95 was at its junction with US 30N in Weiser.

1927:
c. 1927, Teminal Hotels

• US 630 was commissioned, in a move that may have been an attempt to get rid of the US 30N designation: some maps (such as the one above) indicate that US 630 replaced US 30N from Weiser ID to Weiser Jct, and US 95 was extended down to US 30 at Fruitland, replacing US 30N between there and Weiser. Other information suggests that US 30N was never decommissioned, but that US 630 and US 95 were co-signed with it.

1933:

• However, if that was the intent (to get rid of US 30N), it was unsuccessful: it was actually US 630 that got decommissioned - just six years later - while US 30N lasted for another 50 years. It's unclear whether US 95 was cut back to its original terminus in Weiser, or whether it had ever been signed down to Fruitland at all. The maps below seem to indicate that its southern endpoint was still in Weiser:

c. 1937, Smiling Associated

c. 1937, Texaco

(Note that the one above shows "US 30S" between Fruitland and Weiser Jct - that's probably an error.) If US 95 hadn't been signed down to Fruitland beforehand, it certainly was by 1940, because the designation was extended far to the south of Idaho (see below... and incidentally, note also how US 20 had been extended through this area, taking over what had been "US 30S" between Ontario and Nyssa):

c. 1944, State Farm

The photo below shows the historic junction in Weiser, as seen from what used to be southbound US 95:

Elbert, July 2005

Originally US 95 followed State Street to this point and ended. It's possible that westbound US 30N was to the right on Main Street, although some maps indicate that it may have gone ahead two blocks before turning right on Commercial Street. Either way, eastbound US 30N was to the left (a movement you can't make anymore, because Main is one-way through downtown. Today the next block [Idaho Street] is used for eastbound traffic.) Starting the next year (1927), the north beginning of US 630 was either straight ahead or to the right on Main. (Much later, when Spur 95 was introduced, its north beginning was to the right, and the signs shown in these photos are leftovers from that arrangement.) If US 95 was extended down to Fruitland in 1927, it would've turned left here on Main and then followed the Snake River south to US 30:

Elbert, July 2005

That's in Fruitland, looking south on Whitley Drive at 16th Street. That was the east end of US 30N... and if US 95 ever replaced US 30N, then its south end would've been here too. Below we're looking the opposite direction:

me, Mar. 2001

That's westbound US 30, which turns left on 16th. The east beginning of US 30N was straight ahead, and it's possible that was the south beginning of US 95 as well. Both routes passed through Payette and came to the junction in Weiser described above and shown again below:

Elbert, July 2005

That's looking west on Main at State. This used to be westbound US 30N (which continued either by turning left or going straight ahead). Also going one of those two directions was the north beginning of US 630. Northbound US 95 originally began to the right. Chris reports that Spur 95 (the designation that now serves in place of both US 30N and US 630 south and west from here) is well-signed through Weiser. Ahead about a mile or so is where the highway crosses the Snake River and exits the state of Idaho. Just before that bridge, Chris observed an "End" sign...

Elbert, July 2005

...which is strange, because Spur 95 certainly continues ahead into Oregon:

Elbert, July 2005

That's looking into the little community of Annex, just across the river from the photo above. About a mile ahead, we reach the true south end of Spur 95:

Elbert, July 2005

Back when US 630 existed, it ended here because US 30 was routed along what is now OR hwy. 201. This was also the west end of US 30N. The sign in the distance is shown close-up below:

Elbert, July 2005

From eastbound historic US 30, the former south beginning of US 630 (and west beginning of US 30N) looks like this today...

Elbert, July 2005

...and here's the signage from westbound:

Elbert, July 2005

That's the original US 30 heading off into the distance, and US 630 used to begin to the right. If you turn that way, you soon see this sign:

Elbert, July 2005

Today in Weiser, Spur 95 goes a few blocks beyond its original north end (and the historic north end of US 630), because in the 1990's US 95 was rerouted such that it bypasses downtown to the east via East 7th Street. Here's where Spur 95 ends now:

Elbert, July 2005

That's looking east on Main at 7th. At various times, this was also eastbound US 30N and southbound US 95, both of which continued to the right.