End of US highway 169

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: Jody Aho, Monte Castleman, Jeff Morrison

When US 169 was first commissioned in 1930, its north end was at International Falls. From Virginia MN, the 169 designation went north along what is now US 53, all the way to the Canada border. You can view photos of that location on this page. The original south end of US 169 was in Kansas City MO - if you know exactly where, please let me know. Until then, I'll hazard a guess that US 169 would've come in on Burlington Street, crossed the river at the location of today's "Heart of America Bridge", and ended at Admiral Boulevard (US 24). The photo below is looking west on Admiral:

Today the south beginning of MO hwy. 9 is to the right on Locust Street, and that may have been the historic south beginning of US 169. (Jeff also notes that, while I-70 and US 24 are signed on that assembly, the freeway running just to the north also serves as I-35 and US 40.)

In 1934, when US 53 was extended north of Superior WI through Duluth and Virginia to International Falls, the north end of US 169 was truncated at Virginia... or somewhere around there...

Let's start from the beginning: from 1930-1934, US 169 came east from Parkville (now incorporated by Mountain Iron) into Virginia, via what is now CR 102/9th Street North. It then turned north on 9th Avenue, and then essentially followed today's US 53 all the way up to I-Falls.

US 53 replaced US 169 from Virginia to I-Falls in 1934. That same year, Minnesota commissioned state trunk highway 169 to run from jct. US 53 about 3 miles north of Virginia to the Ely area (pronounced EE-lee). So, travellers wanting to follow "highway 169" through the area (be it US 169 or SH 169) would either have a confusing 3-mile gap in the numbering, or else MNDoT would have to co-sign 169 with US 53 along that stretch north of Virginia. I don't know when they decided to go with the co-signing option. Maybe they've done that since 1934; or maybe, as Monte points out, they simply left up the US 169 signs that already would've been there since 1930. At any rate, that's the way it is today. So: was that 3-mile segment part of "US 169" or "SH 169"? Good question (it remains a question yet today). Depending on the answer, the north end of US 169 would've been on 9th St at 9th Av (US 53)... or else it was co-signed north with US 53 to the junction with MN 169 (I'll refer to that as "Ely Junction" from here on).

In about 1969, the US 53 bypass was built around Virginia. Old US 53 became Business 53 through town. So at that time, the north terminus of US 169 could've remained at 9th and 9th (ending at Business 53). Or it could've been shortened by 3/4ths of a mile to the new US 53, at what is now the intersection with CR 102/9th St... or else it was still co-signed with US 53 to MN 169 at Ely Jct.

Regardless, that situation lasted only a few years, because in the early- to mid-1970's the US 169 expressway was built west of Virginia, and thus the modern highway configuration in the area was established. At that time, the north end of US 169 could've been shortened by another half-mile to its new junction with US 53... or else it was still co-signed with US 53 to MN 169 at Ely Jct.

We may never know the truth. Indeed, when official information conflicts, how can the facts be known? According to some official sources and reputable maps, US 169 goes west from Virginia, and it's SH 169 north of Virginia. In other words, US 169 ends at its junction with US 53 in Virginia - and that would be consistent with US route numbering conventions elsewhere. Here's an example:

That's a detail from the Virginia inset on the 1990 edition of the official state highway map (one of the last years this inset was included). A few things have changed since then: the town of Franklin (the pink area on the right) has been annexed by Virginia. Also, neither MN 135 nor Business 53 are signed through town anymore. Hard to say what else would be changed if they were still printing this inset, but what I wanted to point out is that the road to Hibbing is US 169, and the road to Ely is labeled SH 169.

That arrangement would make the most sense, in my opinion. For one thing, inland US routes should end at junctions with other US routes. Also, Virginia marks the point where the physical direction of travel on 169 changes from east/west to north/south, so it's a logical place to change the designation.

However, what's shown on that map is not what's reflected on actual signage along the roads. The signs indicate that US 169 extends north of Virginia with US 53 for 3 miles, and ends at MN 169 at Ely Jct. The following series of photos begins by travelling northbound on US 169. First, we're looking east at the US 53 interchange:

Aho, July 2000

It could be (should be) that this is the official north end of US 169. But as you can see, the signage indicates that the route continues north with US 53. Heading that direction, we come to the intersection with CR 102 in about 1/2 mile:

Aho, July 2000

US 169 is still signed northward from here, as it is again about a mile further north:

Aho, July 2000

That's at the north city limits (incidentally, the hillcrest in the distance is the Laurentian Divide, a ridge in the Mesabi Iron Range which separates Lake Superior and Hudson Bay watersheds). Highway 169 is not co-signed with all US 53 trailblazers on this 3-mile stretch... but where it is, it's always a "US 169" sign. That's consistent all the way to Ely Jct, where SH 169 signs appear:

Castleman, summer 2003

So, based on signage in the field, that's the north end of US 169. Below, we're heading the opposite direction:

Aho, July 2000

That's where MN 169 merges with southbound US 53. As you can see, the US 169 signs begin at Ely Jct. Another one appears heading south at CR 102:

Aho, July 2000

One more shot - this is looking east on old US 169:

Castleman, summer 2003

This is now CR 102 at US 53. This could've been the north end of US 169 for a few years around 1970, before the new US 169 was built. This becomes 9th St ahead, and the point where that meets 9th Av (old US 53) could've also been an historic terminus of US 169 (I don't have photos from that location).

So, in summary, US 169 ends at a junction shown in one of those photos... or maybe all of them, depending who you believe.

In 1936 the US 169 designation was extended into Oklahoma (the dates I give on this page for OK endpoints are based on historic DoT state highway maps). Since then, the south end of the route has been at several different locations in and around Tulsa. I have no intention to post photos of all of these endpoints - the ones shown in italics in the chart above are endpoints that I consider "transitional", and therefore not worthy of much attention. At the heart of the matter, I think, is the fact that OK DoT got itself a new US route designation, but they could never quite figure out what to do with it. You can get more info and view photos on this page.