End of US highway 178

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. Photo credits: Alex Nitzman; Chris Patriarca; Adam Prince; me

US 178 was commissioned in 1933, at the time running only as far west as Anderson SC. The photo below was taken looking south on Main Street:

Google Maps Street View, 2008

Downtown Anderson is a few blocks behind the camera. During the 1930s, US 29 was routed along Main, and to the left on River Street was the west beginning of US 178. Since the route was assigned an east-west number, I imagine it was originally signed as an east/west road in its entirety...

...but then in 1937, when the US 178 designation was extended due north from Anderson to Rosman NC, was that entire segment signed north/south? At any rate, US 64 used to be routed through Rosman, so US 178 used to end right in town. The photo below shows the place:

me, Oct. 2000

That's looking northeast, where Chestnut Street dead-ends at the high school on Church Street (old US 64). Notice how, if you want to head east from this point (towards Brevard), the sign still recommends that you use the old highway to the right (instead of going left to modern US 64). US 178 used to end here, but now it's routed about a half-mile further north (left) along old US 64, to its junction with the new US 64:

me, Oct. 2000

There was no "End" sign present to proclaim US 178's terminus at US 64. That same sign was still present in 2004, but it appears it had been moved further back. The photo below shows the north beginning of 178, as you approach on eastbound US 64:

me, Oct. 2000

You can see the cut for US 64 through the hillside at left. That bypasses the town of Rosman, and it was not 64's original route. That sign had been changed a bit by a few years later:

Nitzman, July 2004

Here's a shot from the opposite direction:

Nitzman, July 2004

If you take that left turn, the first southbound reassurance marker:

Nitzman, July 2004

The east end of US 178 has always been at US 78 just outside Dorchester SC - not far from Charleston. The photo below shows the east end of US 178:

Prince, 2000

Straight ahead is eastbound US 78, towards Charleston. The fork to the right goes to westbound 78; Dorchester is about two miles that way.

US 78 heads northwest out of Charleston, paralleling I-26 for about 20 miles until the junction outside Dorchester. From there, US 78 heads more westerly, towards Aiken and Augusta GA... but there US 178 begins by continuing roughly along the same corridor as I-26 for another 30 miles or so to Orangeburg (at that point, it too bears west of I-26). Both shots below are from westbound US 78; first this:

Patriarca, 2003

The green sign in the distance is shown close-up below...

Nitzman, May 2007

...and you can see by the time of that photo, some new directional signage had been added. The sign that used to be further ahead, at the intersection, has now been removed:

Patriarca, 2003

If you follow the right fork, the photo below shows the first westbound sign on US 178, about 1000 feet past the "Y" intersection with US 78:

Nitzman, May 2007

Heading east on US 78, the east beginning of US 178 is marked thus:

Nitzman, May 2007