End of historic US highway 240
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Approx. time period
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North Terminus
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South Terminus
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1926-1938
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Frederick, MD
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Washington, DC
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1938-1945
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Frederick, MD
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Arlington, VA
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1945-1971
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Frederick, MD
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Washington, DC
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(about 101 k)
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: Robert
Mortell; Alex
Nitzman
The US 240 designation had a sketchy early history in Pennsylvania - it may
have been assigned as far north as Harrisburg, but it was probably never signposted
anywhere in that state. Ignoring that footnote, the route basically served the
Frederick-DC corridor until it was decommissioned in 1971. The photo below was
taken in Frederick, looking west on Patrick Street, or MD hwy. 144:
Mortell,
Aug. 2007
MD 144 is the original route of US 40. To the left on Market Street was the
north beginning of US 240. As far as I can tell, US 240 followed what is now
MD 355 into the District, entering on Wisconsin Avenue, then turning onto Massachusetts
Avenue. But from there the D.C. routing apparently changed over the years: originally
it may have been signed to its junction with US 1 in Arlington. My 1947 atlas
shows US 240 turning south on Connecticut Avenue. At "K" Street, Connecticut
becomes 17th Street, and US 240 proceeded down to "E" Street, where
it turned east. The atlas seems to indicate that US 240 ended at 14th Street,
which carried US 1:
EveryScape,
2008
That's looking east on "E" (or at least as close as you can come
today - I think this area was reconfigured). US 240 ended at the intersection
ahead (14th). The photo below is looking north on 14th:
EveryScape,
2008
US 240 began to the left on "E". By the time of my 1959 atlas, the
map is quite different: it shows US 240 didn't even make it as far east as DuPont
Circle and Connecticut Av. Instead, it turned south off Mass. Av. via 22nd/23rd
Streets, and ended at the Lincoln Memorial, where it met US 50. The photo below
is looking southwest at the Memorial:
Smithsonian,
1995
At the time, US 50 came across the bridge at upper right and continued off
the left edge of the photo via Independence Avenue. US 240 came from the north
on 23rd, junctioned with US 50 in the circle, and ended there:
EveryScape,
2008
The photo below is looking east, just after crossing the Arlington Memorial
Bridge:
EveryScape,
2008
US 50 continued to the right, while to the left would've been the south beginning
of US 240.
According to AASHTO's 1969 route log, US 240 was back to using Connecticut
and 17th; but this time the designation continued past "E", ending
instead on 17th at Constitution Avenue, or US 50:
EveryScape,
2008
The Washington Monument is visible at far left, and it's also visible in the
photo below, which is looking east on Constitution:
EveryScape,
2008
To the left on 17th was a former south beginning of US 240. That route was
decommissioned in 1971.
Page created 25 February 2005; last updated 28 April 2008.
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