US highway endpoints in Milford, PA
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1927-present
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When the US routes were first marked out in 1926, the north end of US 209 was at its junction with US 6 in Milford:
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c. 1927, Rand McNally
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In the mid-1930s, US 209 was extended north from Milford. But right about that same time, US 206 was commissioned. The current Milford-Montague Bridge had not yet been built, so US 206 crossed the Delaware via a no-longer-extant span that aligned with what is now called Milford Beach Road. From there US 206 joined US 209 into Milford, and its north terminus was at the same intersection where US 209 had previously ended:
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c. 1940, Rand McNally
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In 1946, US 206 was truncated to its junction with US 209, eliminating the US 206-209 concurrency into Milford. So officially US 206 no longer connects with its implied "parent" route (US 6), but some signage in the area belies that. We will start with a photo looking south on Broad Street at Harford Street:
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Elbert, July 2006 (same as of 2010, except to the right is now "Red Detour")
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US 6 and US 209 join in Port Jervis NY (about eight miles northeast of Milford), cross the Delaware River to Matamoras PA, and then head southwest together into Milford. That photo was from westbound US 6 (which continues to the right on Harford) and southbound US 209 (which continues to the left). Originally to the left on Harford was the north beginning of US 209. Later it was the north beginning of US 206, as was shown on the 1962 version of that same assembly...
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Lindsay, 1962
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...although the modern assembly correctly indicates that today one must go south a ways on US 209 before reaching US 206. Same with the signage heading east on US 6:
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Kaiser, July 2006
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That was looking east on Harford. US 6 continues to the left on Broad, and that is northbound US 209 as well. Straight ahead is southbound US 209 -- that was once the north beginning of US 209, and later the north beginning of US 206. Today US 206 signage within the borough of Milford consistently includes a "TO" banner. But the message changes slightly for drivers continuing straight ahead on southbound US 209:
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Elbert, July 2006
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That was the first confirming assembly posted outside of Milford limits, indicating that we are actually on US 206 after all. Ahead less than a mile, we reach the junction where the two routes diverge:
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Elbert, July 2006
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To the left is officially the north beginning of US 206 now, but other signage at this junction indicates otherwise. In the distance, the backsides of some other signs are visible -- the frontsides are shown in these photos, which were taken from northbound US 209:
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Elbert, July 2006
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That particular sign did not say anything about US 206 continuing ahead, nor did the next assembly posted ahead at the gore:
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Elbert, July 2006
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US 209 was misidentified as PA 209 there, but that assembly was gone as of 2010, and its replacement made no reference to US 209 whatsoever. But more to the point: the overhead sign in the distance implies that US 206 does continue ahead. That sign is also visible in the distance of the lower-right corner of this photo:
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Kaiser, July 2006
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That was taken coming across the toll bridge from Montague NJ. Signage there also indicates that US 206 does not end at that junction, but rather continues north into Milford, where the road aligns with Harford. Since that junction is within the jurisdiction of the National Park Service, signage there is their responsibility. Perhaps they never got the memo that US 206 ends there. But continuing north, as soon as travelers exit Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and cross into Milford, there are no further references to US 206, and at Harford's junction with Broad, there is no "End US 206" sign...
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Elbert, July 2006
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...only directions for US 6 and US 209. However -- despite the fact that US 206 was truncated in 1946 -- during the 1960s, US 206 was still overlapped with US 209 all the way up to that junction. So, to summarize: that is the historic endpoint of US 206, and before that it was also the north end of US 209. Technically that should still be the north end of US 206, because that route should connect with its parent.
Research and/or photo credits: Chris Elbert; Edward Fitzgerald; Robert Goodman; Cameron Kaiser; Jeff Kitsko; Jim Lindsay; Dale Sanderson
Page originally created 2000;
last updated Jun. 23, 2021.
last updated Jun. 23, 2021.
