End of US highway 319 |
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Summa
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Mileage: in 1989 AASHTO listed a figure of 325 miles for US 319... however, that included the mileage of US 319's associated business route. According to the state subtotals on AASHTO's 1989 spreadsheet, mainline US 319's actual end-to-end total at the time was 318 miles. That is reasonably close to our own 2020 measurement, which yielded 312.3 miles (reroutings and realignments likely explain the difference).
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US 319 was commissioned in 1933 to run the short distance from Tallahassee to Apalachicola. By 1937 the north terminus had been extended to its implied parent route (US 19) in Thomasville:
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c. 1938, GA DoT
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Here we are looking south on Jackson Street (Business 319) at Madison Street (Business 84):
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Nelson, Aug. 2005
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Historically that was mainline US 19-84, and US 319 began straight ahead. (As of June 2006, Business 319 was no longer signed through town.)
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Three years later, the US 319 designation was extended north to Moultrie, and then north along today's GA hwy. 33 to end at US 41 at Wenona; here is that agenda item from the minutes of AASHO's meeting:
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c. 1943, GA DoT
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This photo shows modern signage at the historic endpoint; the north end of GA 33 is an historic north end of US 319...
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Holt, July 2001
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...but in 1945, the US 319 designation was truncated at Moultrie and instead extended northeast from there, this time to Wadley:
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c. 1946, GA DoT
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At the time, there was no bypass around the east side of town, so US 319 ended at Main Street (US 1 at the time, but currently Business US 1):
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Karners, Dec. 2016
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Today's US 1 was built in about 1965, and the old route became Business 1. But apparently the US 319 designation continued to end at Business 1 for the next 15 years; it was not until 1980 that Georgia obtained AASHTO's permission to extend US 319 about a half-mile ahead to its current terminus. Visible in the background is a reassurance assembly which also functions as the last northbound US 319 marker. It is shown close-up here:
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Karners, Dec. 2016
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These photos show the junction signage approaching the endpoint, as well as the "End" assembly visible in the background:
Nasiatka, Jan. 2002
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Nitzman, Dec. 2016
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Nasiatka, Jan. 2002
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Karners, Dec. 2016
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These shots show the north beginning of US 319 as seen from southbound US 1:
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Nasiatka, Jan. 2002
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Nitzman, Dec. 2016
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...and this shows the beginning from the opposite direction (northbound):
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Karners, Dec. 2016
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Drivers turning to the west there will soon see the first southbound confirming marker:
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Karners, Dec. 2016
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Research and/or photo credits: Justin Cozart; Brian Holt; Karin and Martin Karner; J.P. Nasiatka; Steven Nelson; Alex Nitzman; Dale Sanderson; Michael Summa
Page originally created 2003;
last updated Nov. 28, 2021.
last updated Nov. 28, 2021.
