End of US highway 77 |
1926-1929
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1929-1930
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1930-1933
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1933-1935
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1935-1945
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1945-1982
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1982-present
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Mileage: in 1989 AASHTO listed a figure of 1399 miles for US 77... however, that included the mileage of US 77's associated business/bypass/alternate routes. According to the state subtotals on AASHTO's 1989 spreadsheet, mainline US 77's actual end-to-end total at the time was 1305 miles. That closely matches our own 2020 measurement, which yielded 1303.0 miles (reroutings and realignments likely explain the difference). Historically, when US 77 went to Ortonville, it was 1530.6 miles long.
US 77 was an original route, commissioned in 1926. At the time its south end was in Dallas. The original north end of US 77 was in South Sioux City NE (just across the river from its current endpoint in Sioux City IA).
In June 1929, US 77 was extended north to its junction with US 12 in Milbank. But that endpoint was very brief: already by September of that same year, there were requests to dual-sign US 77 east with US 12 to jct. US 75 in Ortonville, and that extension was approved in May 1930: |
In Ortonville, the routings of both US 12 and US 75 have changed over the years. When US 77 was first extended into Ortonville, US 75 did not bypass the city as it does today. Instead it continued along its northwesterly angle into town (following what is now MN hwy. 7), then jogged back out to the north and east to rejoin today's US 75 alignment towards Clinton (the preceding map suggests that the east-west segment of US 75 was on Stevens Avenue). Not only that, but it appears US 12 coming eastbound from Big Stone City was about a block south of its modern alignment:
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This last segment of the road was likely realigned when the new US 12 was built to the right. The original US 12-77 probably curved slightly to the east and met US 75 just to the right of this intersection (right about where MN 7 splits off to the south today). US 77 would have ended there at a fairly straightforward four-way junction with US 75. US 12 would have continued straight through this intersection (as opposed to having a jog, like it does today where it multiplexes with MN 7), and then continued east along Oak Avenue.
There we are looking eastbound on US 12 at its junction with MN 7 (old US 75); US 12 continues to the right with MN 7. After one block, the mainline (US 12) veers left, continuing eastward again, while southeastbound MN 7 is a right turn. If a driver were to turn right before they reached that next junction (heading west, across the railroad), they would be on the original US 12... and probably also on a historic north beginning of US 77.
Also at some point, US 75 was changed to its modern alignment, which bypasses Ortonville to the east (based on the architecture along that stretch, this may have happened in the late 1950s - early 1960s). If it was prior to 1982, then the US 77 designation probably would have been extended with US 12 about a half-mile further east, to its junction with the new US 75. If so, then that terminus is shown here:
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Today Sinton carries both US 181 and Business 77, which continues to the left on Vineyard Avenue. For about two years, the south beginning of US 77 to the left, but then in 1935 the US 77 designation was extended further south: co-signed with US 181 into Corpus Christi. In 1945 the US 77 designation was removed from the segment between Sinton and Corpus; instead the route followed its current corridor through Kingsville and all the way down to Mexico at Brownsville.
At their Oct. 1981 meeting, AASHTO approved the truncation of the north end of US 77 to its current terminus in Sioux City. (Actually, the language of their approval shows that it was truncated to the Iowa-Nebraska state line, but Iowa DoT considers US 77 to extend just north of there, to its junction with I-29.)
At their Oct. 1981 meeting, AASHTO approved the truncation of the north end of US 77 to its current terminus in Sioux City. (Actually, the language of their approval shows that it was truncated to the Iowa-Nebraska state line, but Iowa DoT considers US 77 to extend just north of there, to its junction with I-29.)
That is in South Sioux City NE; the bridge leads over the Missouri River to Sioux City IA (and to the west [left] from that bridge, the southeasternmost tip of South Dakota is visible, lying between the Missouri and Big Sioux rivers). The "End" sign is visible in the distance at right, but first a close-up of the overhead sign visible at left:
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That sign dates back to the time when US 77 used northbound I-29 to continue north to Ortonville. I had assumed that when that sign was due for replacement, the reference to US 77 would be removed, but clearly that was not the case. Signage notwithstanding, US 77 no longer exits there -- rather, it ends just ahead, as the sign on the far side of the bridge indicates:
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Upon making that turn, one encounters the first standalone southbound confirming marker:
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For more detailed information about this terminus -- and to view many more photos (including some taken from both directions on I-29) -- please view Jeff Morrison's page.
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And finally, here are some photos showing the north beginning of US 77 as seen from both directions of I-29 (two from southbound, and then two from northbound):
Research and/or photo credits: Jake Bear; Monte Castleman; Jason Hancock; Karin and Martin Karner; Bob Otterson; Dale Sanderson; Michael Summa; Mike Wiley
Page originally created 2000;
last updated Jun. 12, 2022.
last updated Jun. 12, 2022.