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100 years of US routes: 1926-2026
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AASHO's April 1927 route log listed US 320 at just 26 miles in total length, which made it one of the shortest mainline US routes ever:
US 320 was a connector route between US 20 at Shoshoni and US 87W at Riverton (which was a precursor to today's US 287):
c. 1933, WY DoT
While the entirety of its former route is now part of US 26, that did not happen until 1948. So presumably US 320 was decommissioned because AASHO had begun to encourage the state DOTs to re-designate their intra-state US routes as state highways.
Riverton
Following are photos of modern signage at the historic junctions. This first one was in Riverton, looking north on WY hwy. 789, or Federal Boulevard:
Elbert, Jul. 2005
(detail)
This next photo shows a more recent version of that sign bridge:
When the US routes were first commissioned, the road northwest out of Lander (today's US 287 through Ft. Washakie) was not used as a highway. Instead, northbound US 87W traffic had to go northeast from Lander to Riverton, then continue northwest via modern US 26. In other words, the preceding photo shows signage from the perspective of a driver on northbound US 87W, which continued to the left on Main Street via today's US 26. Straight ahead was the west beginning of US 320.
This photo was looking the opposite direction (south on Federal)...
Elbert, Jul. 2005
...and again, this next photo shows the updated version of those signs:
That was the west end of US 320; ahead was southbound US 87W, and northbound was to the right. Here, we are looking east on Main/US 26:
Teresco, Jul. 2003
That was southbound US 87W, which continued to the right. To the left was the west beginning of US 320.
Shoshoni
After heading a mere 22 miles in that direction, a traveler would come to the junction pictured in these next two photos:
Teresco, Jul. 2003
That was looking east on 2nd Street in Shoshoni; that intersection with Idaho Street marks the historic east end of US 320:
These next two photos show the view from southbound Idaho, or eastbound US 20, which continues to the left on Main. Until 1938, to the right was westbound US 320:
Elbert, Jul. 2005
Lastly, we are looking west on 2nd/US 20; US 20 continues to the right on Idaho; straight ahead was the east beginning of US 320:
Elbert, Jul. 2005
Research and/or image credits: Chris Elbert; Dale Sanderson; Michael Summa; Jim Teresco
Page originally created 2005;last updated Sep. 4, 2025.
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