Highways 90 through 99

I-90 | STH-91 | STH-92 | STH-93 | I-94 | STH-95 | STH-96 | STH-97 | STH-98 | FORMER STH-99 | Jump to Bottom

Western Entrance:

Minnesota state line on the Mississippi River Bridge on the north side of La Crosse

Eastern Entrance :

Illinois state line on the east side of Beloit

Length:

187.14 miles

Map:

Route Map of I-90

Notes:

I-90 is one of Wisconsin's two original mainline-Interstates, the other being I-94. The two routes run together through the middle portion of the state for 95 miles, from Madison to Tomah. In addition, I-39 also runs concurrently with I-90 from the Illinois state line to Portage, causing the "triple concurrency" of I-39/I-90/I-94 from Madison to Portage. This is the nation's longest three-way concurrency of Interstate routes, by far!

Although I-90 carries a "major" interstate number—multiples of ten for east-west routes and five for north-south routes are considered "major" routes—it can be argued that I-94 is the "major" interstate for Wisconsin. I-90 is only half as long as I-94 and only brushes by LaCrosse, Madison and Janesville, while I-94 hits Eau Claire, Madison, the entire Milwaukee Metro area and serves Racine and Kenosha. This, however, is subjective and a matter of opinion...

With regard to the concurrent signing of I-39 between Beloit and Portage, for several years there were two I-39 routes: one in Illinois and the other in Wisconsin, from Portage northerly toward Wausau. However, no I-39 markers were posted along I-90 to indicate these two routes were connected. During 1998 WisDOT finally let the cat out of the bag when the department erected new freeway guide signs at the US-151, STH-30 and US-12/US-18 interchanges around Madison which included I-39 markers in addition to I-90 and I-94 markers, thus acknowledging the gap between the two segments of I-39 would be filled. Guide signs were the first to feature I-39 markers south of Portage, with three-way I-39/I-90/I-94 marker assemblies appearing north of Madison and I-39/I-90 assemblies appearing south of Madison along the freeway soon after.

History:

The first segment of I-90 in Wisconsin to be completed and opened to traffic was essentially a northerly extension of Illinois' Northwest Tollway. The portion of the freeway from the Illinois state line at Beloit northerly to US-14 on the northeast side of Janesville was opened in 1959. Two years later in 1961, a sizeable segment of freeway was completed beginning at US-12/US-18 east of Madison and continuing northerly to STH-30 where the new highway picked up the I-94 designation and together I-90/I-94 continued northwesterly past Portage, ending at US-12/US-16 on the northwest side of Wisconsin Dells.

A year later in 1962, the two completed segments of I-90 were joined together when the freeway from Janesville to Madison was completed. I-90/I-94 was extended in 1964 from Wisconsin Dells northwesterly past Mauston and New Lisbon to "the split" where I-94 continued northwesterly while I-90 turned westerly, ending at US-12/US-18 on the south side of Tomah. In 1967, the Mississippi River bridges were completed and I-90 extended easterly from the Minnesota state line bypassing La Crosse to the north and ending at US-16 (now STH-16) northeast of the city. In 1969, the final gap in I-90 from northeast of La Crosse to Tomah was filled when the last segment of freeway was completed and opened to traffic. Now motorists could travel from Beloit to La Crosse non stop on I-90.

From the earliest proposals for an "interstate highway system" from the war years of the 1940s, Wisconsin was always scheduled to receive two of these major routes. One route has always approximated the route of I-94 from Chicago via Milwaukee, Madison, Portage, Tomah, Eau Claire, Menomonie and on toward the Twin Cities, while the I-90 route from Beloit via Janesville to Madison was always included. However, it was at Madison that the forerunner of modern-day I-90 turn a turn westerly to Prairie du Chien, then ran across the northern tier of counties in Iowa before jogging northerly into Sioux Falls, South Dakota. However, by the signing of the Interstate Highway Act in 1956 and the subsequent routing and numbering decisions in 1957-58, the Madison-Prairie du Chien route had been replaced by a Tomah-La Crosse route with what would become I-90 continuing westerly to skirt by Rochester, Minnesota to the south and hitting Austin and Albert Lea en route to Sioux Falls.

Wisconsin has long had a tradition of not duplicating route numbers along its highway system— between different "systems" (e.g. Interstate, US, State, etc.)—even more so during the 1950s and 60s with the coming of the Interstate Highway System. In 1957 when the final Interstate numbering plan was approved and put into place, Wisconsin found it was to host "I-90" in its borders, but already had a STH-90 running north-south from Palmyra, through Rome, Sullivan and Concord, ending at Ixonia. To make way for the new "90" designation, STH-90 was redesignated as STH-135 in its entirety. (STH-135 no longer exists, as all of that route north of STH-106 was turned back to local control and the portion south of STH-106 actually became part of STH-106 itself.)

Freeway:

Entire length.

NHS:

Entire length.

Continue on:

I-90 west into Minnesota - via Steve Riner's Unofficial Minnesota Highways Page.
I-90 east ("south") into Illinois - via Rich Carlson's Illinois Highways Page.
I-90 - Charles Sarjeant's Illinois Highways Ends website.

Photographs:

Weblinks:

• Exit numbers on I-90 - a complete listing from WisDOT.

• Interstate 90 - from Interstate-Guide.com, part of the AARoads.com empire.

• Sunset on Interstate 90 - from DelsJourney.com: "I had just left Madison, Wisconsin on Interstate 90 and was watching the sun dip low on the horizon when I took out my camera and shot this picture."

• I-90 corridor roadside facilities study - from WisDOT: "WisDOT has initiated a study to evaluate roadside facilities along the I-90 corridor from the Wisconsin/Minnesota state line at La Crosse to Tomah."

Western Terminus:

STH-49 at cnr Huron & Spring Sts in downtown Berlin

Eastern Terminus:

Jct US-41 & STH-44 (at US-41 Exit 116) in southwestern Oshkosh

Length:

18.83 miles

Map:

Route Map of STH-91

Notes:

One of Wisconsin's newer state highways, established in 1996 along the route of CTH-X from STH-44 at Oshkosh to STH-116 at Waukau, then westerly supplanting the STH-116 route from Waukau to Berlin. Early on there was some question as to the precise eastern terminus of this highway—either where it met STH-44 one mile west of US-41 or at the US-41 & STH-44 interchange itself—however this stems from an official terminus which actually changed location early on. In 1999, the Winnebago Co map in WisDOT's "Official State Trunk Highway System Maps" indicated the eastern terminus of STH-91 moved to US-41 that year, however the textual listings did not change to reflect this. Two years later, though, the text listings were brought in line with the maps, both now showing the official eastern terminus of this highway to be at the US-41 & STH-44 interchange.

History:

The first iteration of STH-91 debuted in 1919 in the first major addition to state trunkline mileage, beginning at jct STH-23/STH-49 in Ripon and proceeding northeasterly via present-day STH-44, ending in downtown Oshkosh. Ironically, this first iteration of STH-91 and the current one both share a portion of the same routing immediately west of the US-41 interchange! This first iteration came to a close when the entire length was replaced by an extended STH-44, while the second iteration was immediately established in north-central Wisconsin. Beginning at STH-10 (later US-51, now CTH-K) in Merrill and continuing northerly on the eastern banks of the Wisconsin River (via present-day STH-107) to STH-10 (later US-51) at Gilbert, where it continued northerly with STH-10 through Tomahawk. STH-91 then turned northwesterly via present-day CTH-CC from STH-10 (later US-51, now BUS US-51) on the north side of Tomahawk northwesterly to STH-14 (now US-8) at McCord. In 1934, the southernmost 28 miles of the route (most of present-day STH-107) is relinquished, with the 23 miles from Merrill to Gilbert being turned back to local control and the five miles with US-51 retaining that designation. STH-91 is now just a 12-mile connector route between US-51 and US-8. In 1937, the remaining 12 miles of STH-91 from Tomahawk northwesterly to US-8 is turned back to local control and designated CTH-CC.

Within a year, the third iteration is commissioned very near the second one, beginning at US-51 north of Tomahawk and running northwesterly via present-day CTH-U, terminating 2.1 miles later at US-8 west of Bradley. While second iteration of this route was a 12-mile long cutoff between US-51 & US-8, the third iteration serves the same purpose, at only 2.1 miles. This version of STH-91 lasted unchanged from 1938 to c.1983 when the original two-lane US-51 expressway bypass of Tomahawk was completed, although the routing remained on the 1985-86 official highway map for some reason. The route was turned back to local control and designated CTH-U.

As noted above, in 1996 the fourth iteration of STH-91 debuted along the route of CTH-X from STH-44 southwest of Oshkosh westerly to STH-116 at Waukau, then westerly replacing that portion of STH-116 from Waukau to Berlin. In 1999 or 2001, the route of STH-91 was extended an additional mile concurrently with STH-44 to end at US-41 in Oshkosh.

Freeway/Expwy:

None.

Photographs:

Weblinks:

• None.

Southern Terminus:

US-14, 1.5 miles east of downtown Brooklyn in southern Dane Co

Northern Terminus:

Jct STH-78 & CTH-ID/BUS US-18/BUS US-151 in downtown Mount Horeb at cnr Eighth St & Springdale St

Length:

30.68 miles

Map:

Route Map of STH-92

Notes:

STH-92 is a relatively minor state trunkline routing beginning at US-14 in southern Dane Co, dipping southerly into Green Co to travel through Dayton before turning northwesterly back into Dane Co to travel through Belleville and Mount Vernon, before terminating at STH-78 and CTH-ID (former US-18/US-151) in downtown Mount Horeb.

STH-92 does not have direct access to the US-18/US-151 expressway bypass of Mount Horeb. Instead, the highway passes underneath US-18/US-151 and motorists must use either the STH-78 interchange west of town or the CTH-ID/BUS US-18/BUS US-151 interchange to the east for access.

History:

The original STH-92 debuted in 1919 along the highway from Waukesha to Sussex, following much of what would later become STH-164 and STH-74. This route was redesignated as STH-164 sometime around 1924. The date is not yet exactly known as official sources simultaneously show the Waukesha-Sussex and Beloit-Evansville-Brooklyn-Belleville-Mount Horeb routes as STH-92! By 1926, however, only the latter route is shown as being STH-92, while the former route from Waukesha to Sussex is properly labeled as STH-164. (One source notes that the redesignation of the first iteration of STH-92 to STH-164 occurred between Nov 1922 and Oct 1924.)

The second iteration of STH-92 actually began in Beloit at the confluence of STH-61 (present-day STH-81) & STH-10/STH-13/STH-26 (now US-51), heading northwesterly through Oxfordville and Magnolia to Evansville via present-day STH-213. From Evansville, STH-92 dualled with STH-13 (now US-14) for a short distance to the Rock/Dane Co line before turning westerly via its present corridor through Brooklyn, Dayton, Belleville and Mount Vernon, terminating at STH-19 (present-day US-18/US-151) in Mount Horeb. (At this time, the route of STH-13 from Evansville to Beloit followed present-day US-14 southeasterly into Janesville before turning southerly via present-day US-51 into Beloit.)

In 1931, STH-13 was realigned to run southerly from Evansville through Magnolia before turning southeasterly via Oxfordville into Beloit along the route of present-day STH-213, while STH-92 was transferred to the former route of STH-13 between Evansville and Janesville via present-day US-14, terminating at STH-20 (later STH-11) in downtown Janesville. What had been designated STH-13 along with STH-10 (later US-51) and STH-26 from Janesville to Beloit became just US-51/STH-26 at that time. This arrangement lasted only until 1933 when US-14 debuted across southern Wisconsin, running with STH-13 from Madison southerly to Evansville, then turning southeasterly supplanting the route of STH-92 into Janesville. STH-92 was scaled back to end at the new US-14/STH-13 route near Brooklyn. Since the mid-1930s, no major changes have taken place along the route of STH-92.

Freeway/Expwy:

None.

Photographs:

Weblinks:

• None.

Southern Terminus:

Jct US-53 & STH-35 three miles north of Holmen in northwestern La Crosse County

Northern Terminus:

US-53 in southeastern Eau Claire, just south of the US-12 & US-53 interchange

Length:

68.00 miles

Map:

Route Map of STH-93

Notes:

The southern end of STH-93 is one of those odd occurrences in Wisconsin where the first 15 miles of a highway are signed concurrently with two other routes, first with US-53, then for three miles as US-53/STH-54/STH-93, then for another six miles with STH-54. It is clear this situation exists due to the route-swap between STH-93 and STH-35 in c.1990 (as detailed in the note below), but as to why WisDOT did not simply truncate this route at jct STH-35 & STH-54 in Centerville is not readily apparent.

In c.1990, the routes of STH-35 and STH-93 between the present-day jct of US-53/STH-93 & STH-35 three miles north of Holmen and jct STH-35, STH-54 & STH-93 in Centerville were "swapped." Formerly, STH-35 followed US-53 northerly out of La Crosse and Onalaska to jct STH-54, then west for an additional three miles as US-53/STH-35/STH-54 to Galesville. From there STH-35/STH-54 continued westerly through Centerville. At that time, STH-93 began at US-53/STH-35 three miles north of Holmen, continued westerly to Trempealeau, then northerly through the jct of STH-35/STH-54 at Centerville. At the time of the "swap," STH-35 was rerouted to follow the former route of STH-93 through Trempealeau to Centerville, where it resumed its former configuration with STH-54 westerly. Since the older route of STH-35 already carried at least one route number, it would have seemed logical for WisDOT to just end STH-93 in downtown Centerville. However, the department extended it easterly from Centerville, then south to follow the former route of STH-35 along STH-54 and US-53. Thus, not only are the southermost 15 miles of this highway co-signed with at least one other route designation, the route itself terminates at a nondescript interchange in northern La Crosse Co.

This highway and US-53 have an interesting relationship, to say the least. First, not only do both termini of STH-93 lie along US-53, but the southernmost nine miles of STH-93 are concurrently designated with US-53! Second, STH-93 has seen many upgrades over the years, resulting in it—and not US-53—being the preferred through route between La Crosse and Eau Claire. Some armchair transportation planners have suggested WisDOT relocate the US-53 designation onto the STH-93 corridor, as the latter is a straighter thoroughfare than US-53's route, which twists and turns much more. It is interesting to note that WisDOT actually symbolizes STH-93 with a red line on their official highway map, while parallel US-53 only gets a grey line, signifying that even WisDOT realizes which of these two routes is the preferred, through corridor. Even the federal government has designated the STH-93 corridor to be the National Highway System (NHS) corridor between La Crosse and Eau Claire instead of US-53.

A portion of STH-93 east of Trempealeau (now part of STH-35) was the first segment built as part of what was then called the "Mississippi River Parkway," now better known as the Great River Road. An historical marker was erected recording the dedication of the segment:

History:

In 1919, during the first major expansion of the state trunkline highway system, STH-93 was commissioned along a portion of its present routing, beginning at STH-25 (now STH-35/STH-54) in Centerville and running northerly 15 miles, terminating at STH-53 (now parts of STH-95, STH-93 and STH-121) in Arcadia. By 1924, STH-93 had been extended northerly to Eau Claire via then-STH-53 to Independence, then northerly along what primarily were county roads into Eau Claire. In 1934, STH-93 was extended south from Centerville along CTH-K to Trempealeau, then easterly supplanting the STH-167 designation to US-53/STH-35 north of Holmen.

In 1941, for reasons not yet clear, the state abandoned the Black River crossing east of Trempealeau, instead routing STH-93 back north along today's CTH-M to a new terminus on the west side of Galesville. It seems a river crossing along the former STH-93 still existed at that time, designated CTH-M in Trempealeau Co and CTH-XA in La Crosse Co, although that crossing seems to have disappeared in 1950. In 1952, a new bridge and approach highway across the Black River was completed, and as is stated in WisDOT's "Wisconsin Highways: 1945-1985," was "the first completed section of Mississippi River Parkway (Great River Road) in Wisconsin."

In c.1983-84, STH-93 was routed onto an eastern bypass of Arcadia a portion of which had originally been constructed as CTH-A, while the northern portion was constructed on new alignment spanning the Canadian National Railway and the Trempealeau River, before merging back into the former route. The final major change to the route of STH-93 came in c.1990, when its routing south and east of Centerville was swapped with STH-35's routing, as detailed in the notes section above.

Freeway:

The southernmost mile of STH-93, concurrently designated with US-53, runs along the US-53 freeway bypass of Onalaska and Holmen in northern La Crosse Co.

Freeway/Expwy:

None.

NHS:

From jct STH-35/STH-54 & STH-93 at Centerville to northern terminus at US-53 in Eau Claire.

Photographs:

Weblinks:

• WIS 93 improvements - from WisDOT: "WIS 93 is being expanded to four lanes from Lorch Avenue to Cedar Road to accommodate increasing traffic volumes. Traffic count analyses project traffic to nearly double along this section of WIS 93 within 20 years."

Western Entrance:

Minnesota state line on the Saint Croix River bridge at Hudson (concurrently w/US-12)

Eastern Entrance:

Illinois state line at Pleasant Prairie (concurrently w/US-41)

Length:

348.28 miles

Map:

Route Map of I-94

Notes:

I-94 is one of Wisconsin's two original mainline-Interstates, the other being I-90. The two routes run together through the middle portion of the state for 95 miles, from Madison to Tomah. In addition, I-39 also runs concurrently with I-90 from the Illinois state line to Portage, causing the "triple concurrency" of I-39/I-90/I-94 from Madison to Portage. This is the nation's longest three-way concurrency of Interstate routes, by far!

Although I-90 carries a "major" interstate number—multiples of ten for east-west routes and five for north-south routes are considered "major" routes—it can be argued that I-94 is the "major" interstate for Wisconsin. I-90 is only half as long as I-94 and only brushes by LaCrosse, Madison and Janesville, while I-94 hits Eau Claire, Madison, the entire Milwaukee Metro area and serves Racine and Kenosha. This, however, is subjective and a matter of opinion...

With regard to the concurrent signing of I-39 between Beloit and Portage, for several years there were two I-39 routes: one in Illinois and the other in Wisconsin, from Portage northerly toward Wausau. However, no I-39 markers were posted along I-94 and I-90 to indicate these two routes were connected. During 1998 WisDOT finally let the cat out of the bag when the department erected new freeway guide signs at the US-151, STH-30 and US-12/US-18 interchanges around Madison which included I-39 markers in addition to I-90 and I-94 markers, thus acknowledging the gap between the two segments of I-39 would be filled. Guide signs were the first to feature I-39 markers south of Portage, with three-way I-39/I-90/I-94 marker assemblies appearing north of Madison and I-39/I-90 assemblies appearing south of Madison along the freeway soon after.

In the Metro Milwaukee area, I-94 runs along the East-West Freeway from Waukesha Co to the Marquette Interchange (jct I-43/I-94/US-41/I-794) downtown, and along the North-South Freeway from the Marquette southerly past the airport.

History:

The first segment of I-94, or any Interstate, to begin construction in Wisconsin was in 1956 between the present-day Exit 297 (US-18/STH-164/CTH-Y/CTH-JJ) at Goerkes Corners (between Brookfield and Waukesha) and Exit 290 (CTH-SS) west of Waukesha. It opened on September 4, 1958 originally as part of US-16 and STH-30. In 1959, two sizable segments of I-94 were opened, one from the Saint Croix River Bridge at Hudson easterly to present-day Exit 59 (modern day STH-124/North Crossing) northwest of Eau Claire and the other a conversion of the original US-41 divided highway from the Illinois state line southwest of Kenosha northerly to the Racine/Milwaukee Co line

In 1961, two more segments of I-94 were completed, one major and one relatively minor. The major segment began at the then still under construction Badger Interchange (jct I-90, I-94 & STH-30) east of Madison—this freeway segment actually opened from US-12/US-18 four miles to the south, but that segment was only part of I-90—and continued northwesterly past Portage to US-12/US-16 just northwest of Wisconsin Dells. The more minor segment was the portion of the East-West Freeway in Milwaukee from 16th St westerly through the Stadium Interchange to 60th St. The next year, in 1962, a short extension of Milwaukee's East-West Freeway (I-94) opened from 60th St westerly to 68th St.

Several more segments of I-94 were completed and opened to traffic in 1963, all in Southern Wisconsin. In Milwaukee, the temporary eastern end of the East-West Frwy at 16th St was removed when the freeway was extended to the east a short distance to a new interchange with 13th St, at the western end of the Marquette Interchange, which was just underway at the time. On the west, the East-West Frwy was extended from 68th St westerly through the new Zoo Interchange (jct I-894/US-45) and on through Brookfield to Goerkes Corners, where the I-94 designation was then applied to the first Interstate segment to be completed in Wisconsin bypassing Waukesha to the north and continuing westerly along the STH-30 corridor to west of Delafield, merging back down into the two-lane STH-30 route east of STH-67. The last 1963 segment of I-94 to open began at the newly-completed Badger Interchange (jct I-90 & STH-30) east of Madison easterly along the STH-30 corridor to just east of the CTH-N interchange near Cottage Grove, where the freeway merged back into the existing STH-30 two-lane highway.

I-90/I-94 was extended in 1964 from Wisconsin Dells northwesterly past Mauston and New Lisbon to "the split" where I-90 turned westerly (temporarily ending at US-12/US-16 on the south side of Tomah) while I-94 continued northwesterly a short distance before temporarily terminating at US-12 on the north side of Tomah. Additional segments of the STH-30 between Madison and Waukesha were also converted to full freeway as I-94 in 1964: from the temporary end of the freeway east of the CTH-N interchange near Cottage Grove easterly to just west of the Dane/Jefferson Co line and from CTH-E at Concord easterly to the 1963 end of the freeway east of STH-67 between Oconomowoc and Delafield. Official maps from this time indicate the remainder of the STH-30 corridor through Jefferson Co was re-designated as a temporary routing of I-94 at this time with all STH-30 markers removed.

The 1965 progress on I-94 in Wisconsin involved the conversion of the final portion of the old STH-30 corridor through Jefferson Co to full freeway, from just west of the Dane/Jefferson Co line easterly to CTH-E near Concord. A year later in 1966, the I-94/North-South Frwy had been completed from the Racine/Milwaukee Co line northerly through the Airport and Mitchell Interchanges to a temporary terminus at Holt Ave in south Milwaukee. Also completed were the ramps to and from 6th St through the Marquette Interchange leading to and from I-94 west of downtown. In 1967, with I-94 nearing completion in the state, two new segments were completed and opened to traffic: from present-day STH-124 northwest of Eau Claire southeasterly to US-12 at Black River Falls and from Holt Ave on the south side of Milwaukee northerly to Beecher St.

The final segment of I-94 in outstate Wisconsin to be completed—from US-12 at Black River Falls (present-day Exit 115) to US-12 north of Tomah (Exit 143)—is opened to traffic in 1968. Then in early 1969, the final piece of the I-94 puzzle falls into place in Wisconsin. The monstrous Marquette Interchange is finally completed, linking the East-West and North-South Freeways and allowing I-94 (West), I-94 (East/South), I-794 and US-141 to finally meet for the first time in downtown Milwaukee. The I-94 freeway from Becher St northerly through the Marquette and westerly past 13th St becomes the last link in I-94 opened to traffic, allowing motorists to drive on that route from the Illinois state line to the Saint Croix River for the first time, non-stop.

Freeway:

Entire length.

NHS:

Entire length.

Continue on:

I-94 west into Minnesota - via Steve Riner's Unofficial Minnesota Highways Page.
I-94 east ("south") into Illinois - via Rich Carlson's Illinois Highways Page.
I-94 in Michigan - via the Michigan Highways website.

Photographs:

Weblinks:

• Exit numbers on I-94 - a complete listing from WisDOT.

• Interstate 94 - from Interstate-Guide.com, part of the AARoads.com empire.

• Marquette Interchange Project - a comprehensive site from WisDOT detailing the major reconstruction of Wisconsin's busiest interchange in downtown Milwaukee. Includes an interesting "Map-It" tool to help you plan your route through (or around) the interchange.

• Marquette Interchange - project page from WisDOT.

• Milwaukee Freeways - including articles on freeways traversed by I-94: North-South Frwy and East-West Frwy.

• I-94 Exit Guide: Western Wisconsin - from I-494/I-694 in Minnesota to I-90 at Tomah, from Matt Salek's Upper Midwest Freeway Exit Guides website.

• I-94 Interstate Bridge - from John Weeks' The Bridges Of Minneapolis And St. Paul website.

Western Terminus:

STH-35 in Fountain City at cnr Shore Dr & North St

Eastern Terminus:

STH-73 three miles south of Neillsville

Length:

73.76 miles

Map:

Route Map of STH-95

Notes:

None.

History:

The first iteration of STH-95 debuted in 1919 when a new state trunkline was commissioned, beginning at STH-15 (later US-41) in Oshkosh and running northwesterly through Winchester, ending at STH-18 (later US-10, now STH-96) in Readfield, east of Fremont. By 1924, the northern portion of STH-95 had been shifted west to run from Winchester to Fremont with the former route turned back to local control as CTH-B (later CTH-W, now a town road). In 1927, when the various US Highways were posted across the state, STH-95 was supplated by a new US-110 routing connecting the new US-10 at Fremont with the new US-41 at Oshkosh. This worked out well, as what had been designated STH-53 in west-central Wisconsin had to be renumbered to avoid duplication with the newly-designated US-53 north of there. The STH-95 designation was immediately transferred to that route, where it remains today.

Freeway/Expwy:

None.

Photographs:

Weblinks:

• None.

Western Terminus:

Jct US-10, STH-110 & STH-96 at the east end of Fremont

Eastern Terminus:

I-43 at Exit 171 at Denmark

Length:

55.94 miles

Map:

Route Map of STH-96

Notes:

From 1997 through 2003, STH-96 had a western terminus that was "on the move," if you will. As detailed in the History section below, the western end of this highway gradually moved over the years from Appleton to west of Grand Chute and now on to Fremont, essentially replacing older segments of US-10 as that route was relocated onto parallel freeway segments. In 1998, STH-96 was only 36.08 miles long, while it is now nearly 56 miles in length, an increase of approximately twenty miles.

History:

STH-96 debuted in 1919, beginning at STH-57 in Greenleaf and continuing east along its present alignment to Denmark, then east along today's CTH-KB, north on CTH-AB to Strangelville, then east again along present-day CTH-J to end at STH-17 (now STH-42) south of Kewaunee. By 1924, STH-96 had been scaled back on the east from STH-42 to terminate at STH-163 (now CTH-AB) south of Strangelville, while it was simultaneously lengthened on the west from STH-57 to STH-15 (later US-41, now CTH-D) at Wrightstown. In 1947, SR-96 was again extended to the west, from just west of Wrightstown along a the alignment of US-41 (which had just been relocated onto the CTH-OO/Northland Ave-North Ave corridor) through Kaukauna and Appleton, to US-10 (cnr Wisconsin Ave & Badger Ave) on the west side of Appleton. In c.1983-84, the easternmost 9 miles of STH-96 from I-43 near Denmark to STH-163 were turned back to local control as CTH-KB.

Then in November 1997, when US-10 was transferred from Wisconsin Ave west of Appleton (past the Fox River Mall) onto a new, 3.5-mile westerly freeway extension from the end of STH-441, the routing of STH-96 was extended westerly along the former routing of US-10 past the Fox River Mall and the airport for 3.55 miles to end at the jct of US-10 & US-45 (present-day jct STH-96 & STH-76). On December 5, 2003, when an additional westerly extension of the US-10 freeway was opened to traffic from US-45 (then redesignated as STH-76), the portion of the former US-10 from US-45 (now STH-76) westerly to STH-110 at Fremont is redesignated as a westerly extension of STH-96, where it then turns to dual with STH-110 for the short distance southerly to the new US-10 freeway interchange on the east side of Fremont.

Freeway/Expwy:

None.

NHS:

Concurrently with STH-55 along Lawe St from Taylor St to Delanglade St in Kaukauna.

Photographs:

Weblinks:

• Future Highway Name Changes: Effective October 31, 2003 - a handy map produced by WisDOT illustrating all of the various Fox Valley state trunkline route number changes resulting from the US-10 and US-45 relocation projects.

Southern Terminus:

STH-13 in downtown Marshfield at cnr Central Ave & Veterans Parkway

Northern Terminus:

STH-64 two miles west of Goodrich

Length:

36.11 miles

Map:

Route Map of STH-97

Notes:

The length of STH-97 was elongated by approximately 1/10th mile when the STH-13/Veterans Parkway officially opened to traffic on Thursday, October 9, 2003. The former route of STH-13 via Arnold St from Veterans Parkway to STH-97/Central Ave was removed as a state trunkline "connecting highway" route, while the portion of the former STH-13 along Central Ave from Veterans Parkway southerly to jct US-10/STH-13 south of the city limits was officially redesignated by WisDOT as BUS STH-13 (and not as an extension of STH-97 as had been surmised by some). Since STH-97 formerly ended at the cnr of Central Ave & Arnold St, where STH-13 turned southerly to head through downtown Marshfield, the 1-1/2 blocks of Central from the new Veterans Parkway northerly to Arnold St were redesignated as an extension of STH-97 at that time.

STH-97 serves as a secondary state trunk highway route, existing in Marathon Co for much of its length, with the first and last few miles in Wood and Taylor Cos, respectively.

History:

This route was first designated in 1919 along the southernmost 18 miles of the current highway, from Marshfield northerly to STH-16 (later STH-29, now CTH-N) north of Stratford. It was extended by 1924 to its present length generally along the same corridor, although the highway used Pioneer Dr 1/2-mile east of the present highway for several miles south of Athens. It was transferred on to its present alignment in 1930. It has remained relatively unchanged ever since.

Freeway/Expwy:

None.

Photographs:

Weblinks:

• None.

Western Terminus:

STH-73 two miles south of Greenwood

Southern Terminus:

STH-13 in Spencer at cnr Clark St & Pacific St

Length:

16.20 miles

Map:

Route Map of STH-98

Notes:

With the normal practices of the WisDOT, it seems that STH-98 could easily be a part of STH-153 or vice versa. Where other state highways can run concurrently for dozens of miles, a 3.1-mile long concurrency with STH-13 between Spencer and STH-153 isn't much.

History:

In 1921, STH-98 is shown as being proposed/under construction from STH-32 at Argonne northerly to the Michigan state line. However, the route was redesignated as an extension of STH-55 soon after and the STH-98 designation was applied to its current routing by 1924.

Freeway/Expwy:

None.

Photographs:

Weblinks:

• None.

Former
Western Terminus:

STH-67 one mile south of Eagle

Former
Eastern Terminus:

STH-83 in downtown Mukwonago at cnr of Eagle Lake Ave & Rochester St

Former Length:

8.40 miles

Map:

Route Map of FORMER STH-99

Notes:

STH-99 ceased to exist as a state trunkline highway on January 1, 1999, when it was transferred to local control and became a Waukesha Co highway. A Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel article stated that "the highway, which primarly functions as a local road, will become (CTH-)LO, after longtime County Board Chairman Lloyd Owens. The highway designation was unveiled...during a ceremony honoring Owens." With this change, there are now no east-west state highways connecting STH-67 and STH-83 between STH-20 and STH-59. This highway transfer was one of two in Waukesha Co on January 1, 1999 (the other being the notherly extension of STH-164).

A January 28, 1999 article in the Journal-Sentinel desribed Owens:

History:

STH-99 was commissioned in 1919 along a route beginning at STH-26 in Milton and heading easterly into Whitewater, then northerly, turning easterly to Palmyra and Eagle, terminating at STH-83 just north of Mukwonago. By 1924, though, the portion of STH-99 from Milton to Eagle had been redesignated as part of STH-59, leaving STH-99 only on the Eagle to Mukwonago segment. In 1967, the entire route of STH-99 was shifted onto a parallel road to the south, running from just south of Eagle into downtown Mukwonago. The former route was redesignated CTH-NN. Then on the first day of 1999, STH-99's days came to an end, as detailed above.

Freeway/Expwy:

None.

Photographs:

Weblinks:

• None.

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