US Ends .com
  • Home
  • Store
    • US highway book
    • US highway map
    • Florida US highway map
  • Endpoints
    • US 1 - US 9 >
      • 1 >
        • 201
        • 301
        • 401 [i]
        • 401 [ii]
        • 401
        • 501
        • 601
        • 701
      • 2w >
        • 102
      • 2e >
        • 202
        • 302
      • 3
      • 4 >
        • 104
      • 5
      • 6 >
        • 106
        • 206
      • 7
      • 8
      • 9 >
        • 109*
        • 209
        • 309
    • US 10 - US 19 >
      • 10 >
        • 110
        • 210
        • 310
        • 410
      • 11 >
        • 111
        • 211
        • 311
        • 411 [i]
        • 411 [ii]
        • 411
        • 511*
        • 611
        • 711*
      • 12 >
        • 112
        • 212
        • 312
      • 13 >
        • 113
        • 213
      • 14
      • 15
      • 16 >
        • 116
        • 216
      • 17 >
        • 17-1
        • 117 [i]
        • 117
        • 217
      • 18 >
        • 118
        • 218
      • 19 >
        • 119
        • 219
        • 319
    • US 20 - US 29 >
      • 20e >
        • 120
        • 220
        • 320
        • 420
      • 20w
      • 21 >
        • 121 [i]
        • 121
        • 221
        • 321
        • 421
        • 521
      • 22 >
        • 122 [i]
        • 122 [ii]
        • 222
        • 322
        • 422e
        • 422w
        • 522
        • 622*
      • 23 >
        • 123 [i]
        • 123
        • 223
      • 24 >
        • 124
        • 224
      • 25
      • 26 >
        • 126
      • 27 >
        • 127
        • 227
      • 28
      • 29 >
        • 129
    • US 30 - US 39 >
      • 30 >
        • 130
        • 230
        • 330
        • 430
        • 530
        • 630*
        • 730
        • 830
      • 31 >
        • 131
        • 231
        • 331 [i]
        • 331
        • 431
      • 32
      • 33
      • 34
      • 35
      • 36 >
        • 136
      • 38 >
        • 138
    • US 40 - US 49 >
      • 40 >
        • 140
        • 240
        • 340
      • 41 >
        • 141
        • 241 [i]
        • 241 [ii]
        • 341
        • 441 >
          • 441n
          • 441s
        • 541
        • 641
      • 42
      • 43
      • 44
      • 45
      • 46
      • 48 [i]
      • 48 [ii]
      • 48
      • 49
    • US 50 - US 59 >
      • 50 >
        • 150
        • 250
        • 350
        • 450
        • 550
        • 650
      • 51 - 55 >
        • 51 >
          • 151
        • 52 >
          • 152
        • 53
        • 54 >
          • 154
        • 55
      • 56 >
        • 156
      • 57
      • 58 >
        • 158
        • 258
      • 59 >
        • 159
        • 259
    • US 60 - US 69 >
      • 60 >
        • 160
        • 260
        • 360
        • 460
      • 61 - 65 >
        • 61 >
          • 161
        • 62
        • 63 >
          • 163 [i]
        • 64 >
          • 164 [i]
          • 164 [ii]
          • 264
        • 65 >
          • 165
      • 66 >
        • 166
        • 266
        • 366 [i]
        • 366 [ii]
        • 466 [i]*
        • 466 [ii]
        • 566
        • 666
      • 67 >
        • 167
      • 68 >
        • 168
      • 69 >
        • 169
    • US 70 - US 79 >
      • 70 >
        • 170
        • 270 [i]*
        • 270
        • 370
        • 470
      • 71 >
        • 171
        • 271
        • 371 [i]
        • 371 [ii]
        • 371
      • 72 - 76 >
        • 72
        • 73
        • 74
        • 75 >
          • 175
          • 275
        • 76 >
          • 176
          • 276
      • 77 >
        • 177
        • 277
        • 377
      • 78 >
        • 178
        • 278
        • 378
      • 79
    • US 80 - US 89 >
      • 80 - 84 >
        • 80 >
          • 180 [i]
          • 180
          • 280
          • 380
        • 81 >
          • 181
          • 281
        • 82
        • 83 >
          • 183
          • 283
          • 383
        • 84
      • 85 - 89 >
        • 85 >
          • 185
          • 285 [i]
          • 285
          • 385 [i]
          • 385
          • 485
        • 87 >
          • 187
          • 287n
          • 287s
        • 89n
        • 89s >
          • 189 [i]
          • 189
    • US 90 - US 99 >
      • 90 - 94 >
        • 90 >
          • 190
          • 290
        • 91 >
          • 191 >
            • 191n
            • 191s
          • 491
        • 92 >
          • 192
        • 93
        • 94
      • 95 -98 >
        • 95 >
          • 195
          • 295
          • 395
        • 96 [i]
        • 96
        • 97 >
          • 197
        • 98
      • 99 >
        • 199
        • 299
        • 399
    • Anomalies >
      • 101
      • 163
      • 400
      • 412
      • 425
  • Places
    • A-L >
      • A >
        • Aberdeen
        • Albuquerque
        • Amarillo
        • Apalachicola
        • Astoria
        • Atlantic
      • B >
        • Baltimore
        • Baton Rouge
        • Bay Area
        • Bishop
        • Boone
        • Brady
        • Bristol
        • Brownsville
        • Brunswick
      • C >
        • Charleston
        • Chattanooga
        • Chicago
        • Cincinnati
        • Cleveland
        • Cody
        • Corpus
        • Cortez
        • Council Bluffs
        • Covington
        • Crescent
        • Cumberland Gap
      • D-E >
        • Dallas
        • Des Moines
        • Detroit
        • Dothan
        • Douglas
        • El Paso
        • Erie
        • Eugene
      • F >
        • Farmington
        • Flagstaff
        • Florence
        • Fox Valley
        • Franklin
      • G >
        • Gallup
        • Georgetown
        • Grand Junction
        • Grand Portage
        • Grayling
        • Great Falls
        • Greeley
      • H-I >
        • Hardeeville
        • Harrisburg
        • Holbrook
        • Idaho Falls
        • Int'l Falls
      • J-K >
        • Jacksonville
        • Joplin
        • Junction
        • Kansas City
        • Keokuk
        • Key West
        • Kingman
      • L >
        • Laredo
        • Lewiston
        • Long Beach
        • Los Angeles
        • Louisville
        • Lubbock
    • M-R >
      • M >
        • Mackinaw
        • Madison
        • Maryhill
        • Maysville
        • Miami
        • Midway
        • Miles City
        • Milford
        • Milwaukee
        • Minneapolis
        • Mobile 31
        • Mobile 31-43-45
        • Montgomery
        • Monticello
        • Mount Vernon
      • N-O >
        • Nags Head
        • Naples
        • Natchez
        • New Castle
        • New Orleans
        • Niagara
        • Norlina
        • Ocean City
        • Oklahoma City
      • P >
        • Pee Dee
        • Pembina
        • Pensacola
        • Petersburg
        • Philadelphia
        • Piegan
        • Pineville
        • Port Arthur
        • Portsmouth
      • Q-R >
        • Quad Cities
        • Rapid City
        • Raton
        • Reading
        • Richmond
        • Rockingham
        • Rouses Point
    • S-Z >
      • S >
        • San Antonio
        • San Antonio NM
        • San Diego
        • Santa Fe
        • Savannah
        • Sioux
        • Springer
        • Springfield
        • St. Ignace
        • St. John
        • St. Paul
        • St. Pete
      • T-U-V >
        • Tallahassee
        • Tampa
        • Toledo
        • Trinidad
        • Tuba City
        • Ucolo
        • VA Beach
      • W >
        • Walterboro
        • Waverly
        • West Memphis
        • Wilmington
        • Wilson
        • Wrightsville
      • Y >
        • Yellowstone E
        • Yellowstone N
        • Yellowstone NE
        • Yellowstone S
        • Yellowstone W
  • Highways
    • Map of all endpoints
    • Sources
    • History
    • 1926 almost-routes
    • Intra-state routes
    • Numbering
    • Colors
    • Gaps
    • Blog
  • Bonus
    • Colorado >
      • Lowest point
      • Antipodes
      • Toponymy >
        • Roots
      • Colloquialisms
      • Populations
      • Denvers
    • Washington Meridian
    • Watersheds >
      • Headwaters Hill
      • Three Waters Mtn.
      • Parting of the Waters
    • Geo-centers >
      • 48 states
      • 50 states
      • North America
    • State corners >
      • AZ-CO-NM-UT
      • CO-UT-WY
      • CO-NE-WY
      • CO northeast
      • CO-KS-NE
      • CO-KS-OK
      • CO-NM-OK
      • NM-OK-TX
      • NM southeast
      • TX northwest
  • Connect
    • Author/history
    • Rationale
    • Contact
    • Contributors
    • Submissions
  • Home
  • Store
    • US highway book
    • US highway map
    • Florida US highway map
  • Endpoints
    • US 1 - US 9 >
      • 1 >
        • 201
        • 301
        • 401 [i]
        • 401 [ii]
        • 401
        • 501
        • 601
        • 701
      • 2w >
        • 102
      • 2e >
        • 202
        • 302
      • 3
      • 4 >
        • 104
      • 5
      • 6 >
        • 106
        • 206
      • 7
      • 8
      • 9 >
        • 109*
        • 209
        • 309
    • US 10 - US 19 >
      • 10 >
        • 110
        • 210
        • 310
        • 410
      • 11 >
        • 111
        • 211
        • 311
        • 411 [i]
        • 411 [ii]
        • 411
        • 511*
        • 611
        • 711*
      • 12 >
        • 112
        • 212
        • 312
      • 13 >
        • 113
        • 213
      • 14
      • 15
      • 16 >
        • 116
        • 216
      • 17 >
        • 17-1
        • 117 [i]
        • 117
        • 217
      • 18 >
        • 118
        • 218
      • 19 >
        • 119
        • 219
        • 319
    • US 20 - US 29 >
      • 20e >
        • 120
        • 220
        • 320
        • 420
      • 20w
      • 21 >
        • 121 [i]
        • 121
        • 221
        • 321
        • 421
        • 521
      • 22 >
        • 122 [i]
        • 122 [ii]
        • 222
        • 322
        • 422e
        • 422w
        • 522
        • 622*
      • 23 >
        • 123 [i]
        • 123
        • 223
      • 24 >
        • 124
        • 224
      • 25
      • 26 >
        • 126
      • 27 >
        • 127
        • 227
      • 28
      • 29 >
        • 129
    • US 30 - US 39 >
      • 30 >
        • 130
        • 230
        • 330
        • 430
        • 530
        • 630*
        • 730
        • 830
      • 31 >
        • 131
        • 231
        • 331 [i]
        • 331
        • 431
      • 32
      • 33
      • 34
      • 35
      • 36 >
        • 136
      • 38 >
        • 138
    • US 40 - US 49 >
      • 40 >
        • 140
        • 240
        • 340
      • 41 >
        • 141
        • 241 [i]
        • 241 [ii]
        • 341
        • 441 >
          • 441n
          • 441s
        • 541
        • 641
      • 42
      • 43
      • 44
      • 45
      • 46
      • 48 [i]
      • 48 [ii]
      • 48
      • 49
    • US 50 - US 59 >
      • 50 >
        • 150
        • 250
        • 350
        • 450
        • 550
        • 650
      • 51 - 55 >
        • 51 >
          • 151
        • 52 >
          • 152
        • 53
        • 54 >
          • 154
        • 55
      • 56 >
        • 156
      • 57
      • 58 >
        • 158
        • 258
      • 59 >
        • 159
        • 259
    • US 60 - US 69 >
      • 60 >
        • 160
        • 260
        • 360
        • 460
      • 61 - 65 >
        • 61 >
          • 161
        • 62
        • 63 >
          • 163 [i]
        • 64 >
          • 164 [i]
          • 164 [ii]
          • 264
        • 65 >
          • 165
      • 66 >
        • 166
        • 266
        • 366 [i]
        • 366 [ii]
        • 466 [i]*
        • 466 [ii]
        • 566
        • 666
      • 67 >
        • 167
      • 68 >
        • 168
      • 69 >
        • 169
    • US 70 - US 79 >
      • 70 >
        • 170
        • 270 [i]*
        • 270
        • 370
        • 470
      • 71 >
        • 171
        • 271
        • 371 [i]
        • 371 [ii]
        • 371
      • 72 - 76 >
        • 72
        • 73
        • 74
        • 75 >
          • 175
          • 275
        • 76 >
          • 176
          • 276
      • 77 >
        • 177
        • 277
        • 377
      • 78 >
        • 178
        • 278
        • 378
      • 79
    • US 80 - US 89 >
      • 80 - 84 >
        • 80 >
          • 180 [i]
          • 180
          • 280
          • 380
        • 81 >
          • 181
          • 281
        • 82
        • 83 >
          • 183
          • 283
          • 383
        • 84
      • 85 - 89 >
        • 85 >
          • 185
          • 285 [i]
          • 285
          • 385 [i]
          • 385
          • 485
        • 87 >
          • 187
          • 287n
          • 287s
        • 89n
        • 89s >
          • 189 [i]
          • 189
    • US 90 - US 99 >
      • 90 - 94 >
        • 90 >
          • 190
          • 290
        • 91 >
          • 191 >
            • 191n
            • 191s
          • 491
        • 92 >
          • 192
        • 93
        • 94
      • 95 -98 >
        • 95 >
          • 195
          • 295
          • 395
        • 96 [i]
        • 96
        • 97 >
          • 197
        • 98
      • 99 >
        • 199
        • 299
        • 399
    • Anomalies >
      • 101
      • 163
      • 400
      • 412
      • 425
  • Places
    • A-L >
      • A >
        • Aberdeen
        • Albuquerque
        • Amarillo
        • Apalachicola
        • Astoria
        • Atlantic
      • B >
        • Baltimore
        • Baton Rouge
        • Bay Area
        • Bishop
        • Boone
        • Brady
        • Bristol
        • Brownsville
        • Brunswick
      • C >
        • Charleston
        • Chattanooga
        • Chicago
        • Cincinnati
        • Cleveland
        • Cody
        • Corpus
        • Cortez
        • Council Bluffs
        • Covington
        • Crescent
        • Cumberland Gap
      • D-E >
        • Dallas
        • Des Moines
        • Detroit
        • Dothan
        • Douglas
        • El Paso
        • Erie
        • Eugene
      • F >
        • Farmington
        • Flagstaff
        • Florence
        • Fox Valley
        • Franklin
      • G >
        • Gallup
        • Georgetown
        • Grand Junction
        • Grand Portage
        • Grayling
        • Great Falls
        • Greeley
      • H-I >
        • Hardeeville
        • Harrisburg
        • Holbrook
        • Idaho Falls
        • Int'l Falls
      • J-K >
        • Jacksonville
        • Joplin
        • Junction
        • Kansas City
        • Keokuk
        • Key West
        • Kingman
      • L >
        • Laredo
        • Lewiston
        • Long Beach
        • Los Angeles
        • Louisville
        • Lubbock
    • M-R >
      • M >
        • Mackinaw
        • Madison
        • Maryhill
        • Maysville
        • Miami
        • Midway
        • Miles City
        • Milford
        • Milwaukee
        • Minneapolis
        • Mobile 31
        • Mobile 31-43-45
        • Montgomery
        • Monticello
        • Mount Vernon
      • N-O >
        • Nags Head
        • Naples
        • Natchez
        • New Castle
        • New Orleans
        • Niagara
        • Norlina
        • Ocean City
        • Oklahoma City
      • P >
        • Pee Dee
        • Pembina
        • Pensacola
        • Petersburg
        • Philadelphia
        • Piegan
        • Pineville
        • Port Arthur
        • Portsmouth
      • Q-R >
        • Quad Cities
        • Rapid City
        • Raton
        • Reading
        • Richmond
        • Rockingham
        • Rouses Point
    • S-Z >
      • S >
        • San Antonio
        • San Antonio NM
        • San Diego
        • Santa Fe
        • Savannah
        • Sioux
        • Springer
        • Springfield
        • St. Ignace
        • St. John
        • St. Paul
        • St. Pete
      • T-U-V >
        • Tallahassee
        • Tampa
        • Toledo
        • Trinidad
        • Tuba City
        • Ucolo
        • VA Beach
      • W >
        • Walterboro
        • Waverly
        • West Memphis
        • Wilmington
        • Wilson
        • Wrightsville
      • Y >
        • Yellowstone E
        • Yellowstone N
        • Yellowstone NE
        • Yellowstone S
        • Yellowstone W
  • Highways
    • Map of all endpoints
    • Sources
    • History
    • 1926 almost-routes
    • Intra-state routes
    • Numbering
    • Colors
    • Gaps
    • Blog
  • Bonus
    • Colorado >
      • Lowest point
      • Antipodes
      • Toponymy >
        • Roots
      • Colloquialisms
      • Populations
      • Denvers
    • Washington Meridian
    • Watersheds >
      • Headwaters Hill
      • Three Waters Mtn.
      • Parting of the Waters
    • Geo-centers >
      • 48 states
      • 50 states
      • North America
    • State corners >
      • AZ-CO-NM-UT
      • CO-UT-WY
      • CO-NE-WY
      • CO northeast
      • CO-KS-NE
      • CO-KS-OK
      • CO-NM-OK
      • NM-OK-TX
      • NM southeast
      • TX northwest
  • Connect
    • Author/history
    • Rationale
    • Contact
    • Contributors
    • Submissions

US Highways Blog

Midpoint of historic US 99 in California

8/29/2021

0 Comments

 
Currently the longest single-state mileage of any US route is 893 miles (US 83 in Texas).  Historically, before US 101 was truncated to Los Angeles, that route was undoubtedly the record-holder: the California segment of US 101 was about 941 miles (give or take a few, depending on which year, since the alignment changed many times and in many places). 

Historic US 99 in California was the second-longest route through a single state, although its mileage is even more difficult to measure, since it was replaced by I-5 in many areas, and as a result some segments of the original route have been vacated.  The Historic Highway 99 Association of California offers a length of 917 miles.  Although that page does not specify a year, I am sure that figure is reliable, since my own back-of-the-envelope calculation yielded a similar distance.  (Note that drivers choosing US 99E between Sacramento and Red Bluff had to travel 2.2 miles further than those who chose US 99W.)

Thanks to this blog post, I recently became aware of "the Palm and the Pine" along what is now CA state hwy. 99, just southeast of Madera.  In the median of the highway, a palm tree and a pine tree are planted side by side (one representing southern California, and the other representing northern California):

And why that particular location?  The legend commonly told today states that the trees were planted at the midway point along US 99 in California -- that is, halfway between the Oregon border and the Mexico border.  (US 99 no longer exists, but much of its historic corridor was re-designated as CA 99 in the 1960s.)  So in other words, the implication is that these trees mark the point where one leaves SoCal and enters NorCal (or vice versa).  But as I have noted before, the claimed midway points are not always the true midpoints, so I was interested in finding out whether or not this particular midpoint was accurate, and whether the legend could be true.

So the first question is: when were the original trees planted?  US 99 was commissioned in 1926, so if the trees were planted prior to that, then we would know that their location could not have been based on the midway point of US 99.  But unfortunately, not much information has been uncovered regarding the history of the trees.  Other researchers have proposed dates that fall somewhere in the range of 1915 to 1928.  So that leaves the question unanswered, although it does cast a little doubt on the idea that the trees were planted during the timeframe when the midpoint of US 99 in California could have been established.

But since we don't know for sure, let us proceed as if the location was indeed thought to be the midpoint of US 99.  If so, then the question that follows is: how precisely were the trees placed?  If we use the 917 mile figure cited above, the location would have been reasonably accurate, although it was not exact.  458.5 miles south of the Oregon border would put the midpoint right in the city of Fresno, about 11 miles south of the Palm and Pine.  (The author of this blog post came to the same conclusion, despite using a different mileage figure for US 99.)

So, given what we know so far...
  • the trees may have been planted before US 99 existed, and
  • the true midpoint of US 99 is about 11 miles to the south,
...my hunch is that the trees were never intended to mark the California midpoint of US 99.  Rather, I suspect it would be more accurate to say the trees were planted at a point on a major highway that was close to what was believed to be the geographic center of California. 

Where is the geographic center of California?  Reportedly in 1996 it was determined to be near the small town of North Fork.  This is in Madera County, not far from the Fresno County line.  But back in the 1910s and '20s, determining the center of a state was much more of a manual process, often involving some guesswork.  How would it have been done back then?  Well, one could take a map of California (with an equal-area projection) and measure the distance from the state's northwest corner (near Brookings OR) to the southeasternmost extent (near Yuma AZ).  The midpoint of that line would have been quite close to North Fork.  Then, one could construct a perpendicular line bisecting the midpoint.  That perpendicular line would intersect the main highway at a point between the cities of Madera and Fresno.  I suspect that little tidbit of knowledge was enough to inspire a business owner (who had a store and rental cabins fronting the highway between Madera and Fresno) to plant some symbolic trees on his property, perhaps with the idea that the novelty might attract more customers.
Get your very own map showing all current and historic US routes!
Get your copy of this epic book that commemorates the first century of the US route system!

References:
  • Historic Highway 99 Association of California mileage
  • Gribblenation blog post
  • Geographer's Scrapbook blog post
  • Roadside America article

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    RSS Feed

    Author

    This guy.

    Categories

    All
    Alabama
    Arizona
    Boston
    California
    Colorado
    Denver
    Florida
    Geo-center
    Geography
    Historic
    Idaho
    Illinois
    Indiana
    Kansas
    Kentucky
    Maryland
    Massachusetts
    Michigan
    Midpoint
    Mileage
    Minnesota
    Missouri
    Nebraska
    New Hampshire
    New Jersey
    New Mexico
    Newport
    New York
    North Carolina
    North Dakota
    Numbering
    Oddity
    Ohio
    Oklahoma
    Oregon
    Pennsylvania
    Proposed
    Renumbering
    Signage
    South Carolina
    South Dakota
    Tennessee
    Texas
    Updates
    US 101
    US 127
    US 13
    US 136
    US 150
    US 154
    US 16
    US 160
    US 163
    US 164
    US 169
    US 177
    US 180
    US 183
    US 190
    US 191
    US 20
    US 210
    US 212
    US 218
    US 220
    US 23
    US 231
    US 24
    US 241
    US 25
    US 259
    US 26
    US 266
    US 27
    US 270
    US 271
    US 277
    US 281
    US 283
    US 285
    US 287
    US 3
    US 31
    US 311
    US 321
    US 331
    US 34
    US 36
    US 360
    US 371
    US 377
    US 383
    US 385
    US 40
    US 400
    US 411
    US 431
    US 450
    US 46
    US 48
    US 491
    US 50
    US 530
    US 55
    US 59
    US 6
    US 60
    US 61
    US 62
    US 63
    US 65
    US 66
    US 666
    US 67
    US 730
    US 74
    US 77
    US 80
    US 81
    US 83
    US 84
    US 85
    US 87
    US 89
    US 93
    US 94
    US 96
    US 99
    Utah
    Virginia
    Washington
    Watersheds
    West Virginia
    Wyoming

    Archives

    April 2025
    July 2024
    August 2023
    May 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    August 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    April 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    August 2020
    July 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    May 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    June 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    November 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016

Copyright © 1998-2025
Picture