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US 87 and US 287 converge in Dumas, Texas, and share about 49 miles of pavement down to Amarillo, where the two routes separate again.
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Shield images courtesy of Michael Summa
(Most recently updated 6/22/2021) One of San Angelo's marketing slogans is "The Oasis of West Texas". This is not hyperbole; most approaches to the city are somewhat stark, so in contrast upon arrival in Angelo, one may well be pleasantly surprised at all of the rivers, reservoirs, trees and other vegetation. One of the city's other monikers is "The Pearl of the Conchos", which has a double meaning, referring to the freshwater Concho pearls that were historically harvested from area waterways. The three branches of the Concho River all converge in San Angelo; here is another slogan from days gone by:
On display at ASU's Mayer Museum, Jun. 2021
When the US highway system was inaugurated in late 1926, the only US route to initially serve San Angelo was US 385 (that is, the original US 385, not the current US 385). The new designation was added to Texas State Highway 9:
Many Route 66 tourists simply enjoy the romance and the lore of the fabled road. The facts aren't all that important, and if one of the legends turns out to be a tall-tale, they'd rather not know about it. And that's fine -- if you're one of those people, I say you gotta do you -- get out there and enjoy the Mother Road.
...then you might want to stop reading here, because this page contains research that discredits some of the "conventional wisdom" about US 66 that is found elsewhere. On the other hand, if you're interested in facts and details, then please carry on.
In 1975 TX and NM asked AASHTO to assign a new US highway designation between Dallas and Elida NM; following is the route description from the actual minutes of the meeting:
When the US highway numbers were assigned in 1927, US 81 was the only route initially serving Waco. But US 77 soon joined with it, when it was extended down from Dallas in 1933. These routes were concurrent south of Hillsboro, and through Waco they followed New Dallas Highway, Hillsboro Drive, Elm Street, Washington Street, 18th Street, and Circle Road, to the Circle. From there they diverged, with US 77 following Robinson Road, and US 81 following the corridor now occupied by I-35.
(Most recently updated 2/9/2021.) At 568 miles*, Texas 16 is the longest state highway in Texas (that is, the longest road with a state highway designation, as opposed to a US route or an interstate). The second-longest is Texas 6, at 551 miles*. These two routes intersect in the town of De Leon. Actually, they overlap for about a half-mile:
US 96 is one of the worst numbering violations in the US route system, because it is wrong on several levels:
At the time, the south terminus of US 59 was in Port Arthur, and the diagonal highway between Houston and Laredo was designated US 96:
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