State Road 44 (SR 44) is an east–west

state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either ''numbered'' or ''maintained'' by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. It runs from Crystal River on the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

east to

New Smyrna Beach New Smyrna Beach is a city in Volusia County, Florida, United States, located on the central east coast of the state, with the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Its population is 30,142 in 2020 by the United States Census Bureau. The downtown section o ...

on the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

, passing through

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...

, Wildwood, Leesburg and DeLand. A section in Lake County, between eastern Leesburg and a point north of Mount Dora, is

concurrent Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to: Law * Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea'' * Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...

with U.S. Highway 441 ( SR 500).FDOT GIS data
This concurrency is not signed; signs on US 441 mark it as TO SR 44. The former alignment of SR 44 in that area is now mostly County Road 44, which runs north of

Lake Eustis Lake Eustis is located in Central Florida, west of the city of Eustis. It covers approximately . It is spring fed and is a member of the Harris Chain of Lakes, and is connected to Lake Harris by means of the Dead River. It is also connected ...

, on the other side as US 441 and current SR 44. A former western extension of SR 44 from Crystal River to the Gulf of Mexico is now County Road 44. In some locations, it is signed as ''County Road 44W.''

Route description

Crystal River to Inverness

State Road 44 begins as NE 5TH ST (then Gulf to Lake Highway) at the intersection of US 19/98 in Crystal River, a four-lane divided highway. The divider only exists at the intersection, however, the rest of the road is undivided throughout much of Western Citrus County. SR 44 runs directly east, until it leaves the city limits, then makes a sharper southeastern turn prior to the intersection of North Dunkenfield Avenue and West Norvell Bryant Highway (County Road 486). It briefly turns east again as it reaches the intersection of Rock Crusher Road, but curves back to the southeast roughly a mile later. The new interchange with the

Suncoast Parkway Suncoast may refer to: * Florida Suncoast, a 1980s marketing term for peninsular (non-panhandle) Florida's Gulf of Mexico coastal counties ** Florida Suncoast Dome, the original name of Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida ** Suncoast Center, ...

Extension is built just northwest of where the divider begins again near the intersection of County Road 490 in Lecanto, after which the road turns east again. After crossing Lecanto Highway (County Road 491), the divider becomes more prominent, The road runs up and down various hills as it runs along the northern border of

Withlacoochee State Forest The Withlacoochee State Forest is in the western central part in the U.S. state of Florida, near Lecanto, Inverness, Floral City, Brooksville, Ridge Manor, and Dade City. The forest was named for the Withlacoochee River, which passes thr ...

, and though it never stays straight, it still runs mostly east. Near a pair of shopping centers, the divider ends east of Croft Avenue, and the road resumes its status as an undivided four-lane highway with center-left turn lanes. Entering the Inverness City Limits, the road straightens out again at the intersection of South Pleasant Grove Road(County Road 581) and Forest Drive, where it becomes Main Street. CR 581 secretly joins SR 44 as a hidden route. One block before CR 581 leaves SR 44 to become its own route again, southbound US 41 joins SR 44. The two routes continue to move directly east until the intersection of Seminole Avenue, where it curves around the

Old Citrus County Courthouse The Old Citrus County Courthouse (constructed in 1912) is a historic site in Inverness, Florida located at 1 Courthouse Square. On April 17, 1992, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. The building was designed by J. R. ...

, and then moves to the southeast before breaking off at East Highland Boulevard, where US 41 continues towards Floral City, Brooksville, Tampa, and points south, while SR 44 moves onto Gulf-Atlantic Highway and becomes a divided highway once again.

Inverness to Leesburg

East of US 41, SR 44 runs over the

Withlacoochee State Trail Withlacoochee State Trail is a long paved, multi-use, non-motorized rail trail in Florida located in Citrus, Hernando and Pasco counties. It follows along the Withlacoochee River and passes through the Withlacoochee State Forest. It is the ...

with bike ramps on both sides, and then along the southern shore of Lake Henderson. The rest of the road is surrounded by farms, parkland, and boat launching areas, especially as it gets ready to cross the Withlacoochee River at the Citrus-Sumter County Line, where it enters

Rutland Rutland () is a ceremonial county and unitary authority in the East Midlands, England. The county is bounded to the west and north by Leicestershire, to the northeast by Lincolnshire and the southeast by Northamptonshire. Its greatest len ...

. The rural landscape continues even at the northwest end of County Road 470, which leads to Lake Panasoffkee, Sumterville, and Okahumpka in Lake County. Florida 44 @ I-75 Eastbound

As the road enters Wildwood it is lined with truck stops, travel plazas, hotels, and other tourist attractions surrounding the interchange with

Interstate 75 Interstate 75 (I-75) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. As with most Interstates that end in 5, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, traveling from S ...

as well as

Florida's Turnpike Florida's Turnpike, designated as unsigned State Road 91 (SR 91), is a toll road in the U.S. state of Florida, maintained by Florida's Turnpike Enterprise (FTE). Spanning approximately along a northwest–southeast axis, the turnpike is in two s ...

. The

Florida Department of Transportation The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is a decentralized agency charged with the establishment, maintenance, and regulation of public transportation in the state of Florida. The department was formed in 1969. It absorbed the powers of t ...

and

Florida's Turnpike Enterprise Florida's Turnpike Enterprise (FTE) is a unit of the Florida Department of Transportation that operates toll roads in Florida. The current Executive Director is Nicola Liquori. History The Florida State Turnpike Authority was authorized by the F ...

have combined the ramps to and from the turnpike into those onto I-75. The road curves to the southeast again, as it approaches the western terminus of County Road 44A. After straightening out again, it approaches a four-lane bridge over the

CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of track. ...

Wildwood or Ocala Subdivision that was completed in 2010, just before the road intersects with

US 301 U.S. Route 301 (US 301) is a spur of U.S. Route 1 running through the South Atlantic States. It runs from Biddles Corner, Delaware at Delaware Route 1 to Sarasota, Florida at U.S. Route 41. It passes through the states of Delaware, Mar ...

. East of US 301, the road takes another slight southeastern curve and later meets the eastern terminus of County Road 44A and then CR 468 in Orange Home, just before crossing the Lake County Line. A former railroad line running from Wildwood to Leesburg that ran along the south side of CR 44A runs along the north side of the road, when CR 44A ends Before reaching Downtown Leesburg, SR 44 makes a sharp right turn onto a truck bypass at the intersection of Main Street and County Road 468. The name of this section is South Street and it runs north and south, until it takes a sharp curve at Casteen Road, which it replaces. South Street continues to run in its easterly direction and approaches Venture Avenue, which was built on a former southwest-to-northeast railroad right-of-way, and Carpenter Avenue which runs along the east side of this former ROW. SR 44 approaches the intersection of

US 27 U.S. Route 27 (US 27) is a north–south United States Highway in the southern and midwestern United States. The southern terminus is at U.S. Route 1 in Florida, US 1 in Miami, Florida. The northern terminus is at Interstate 69 in India ...

, and turns into West Dixie Avenue, where it runs northeast momentarily, and then turns east again. At the intersection of South Palmetto Street and west end of Dozier Circle, West Dixie Avenue turns into East Dixie Avenue. The road curves to the northeast again at Lake Port Boulevard and crosses the same abandoned railroad line that originated in Wildwood. Right after the intersection of East Main Street, SR 44 joins Southbound

US 441 U.S. Route 441 (US 441) is a auxiliary route of U.S. Route 41. It extends from US 41 in Miami, Florida to US 25W in Rocky Top, Tennessee. Between its termini, US 441 travels through the states of Florida, Georgia, North ...

, but both continue to run east.

Leesburg to Mount Dora

The US 441-SR 44 segment is a six-lane divided highway with provisions for bicycles. The road serves as the western terminus of County Road 44 then passed by

Leesburg International Airport Leesburg International Airport , formerly known as Leesburg Regional Airport, is a public airport located three miles (5 km) northeast of the central business district of Leesburg, a city in Lake County, Florida, United States. It is owne ...

. From here it squeezes between Lake Harris and Lake Eustis where it crosses over the Dead River on a bridge between the two lakes. The southbound wye at State Road 19 in Tavares, is also shared by County Road Old 441, and northbound SR 19 joins US 441 and SR 44 through the rest of Tavares into Eustis until it encounters an interchange with State Road 19 and part of CR 19A. North of Mount Dora, SR 44 leaves US 441, which curves south towards Orlando and Miami. SR 44 turns north then narrows from four lanes to two lanes before it curves between Lake Joanna and Loch Leven before passing by the Mid Florida Air Service Airport in Eustis. From there the road turns right onto East Orange Avenue, which continues Route 44's status as a two lane rural scenic highway.

Seminole State Forest through DeLand

EB FL 44; Seminole SF & Camp Boggy Creek

Before the road curves northeast, an intersection with County Road 46A gives motorists the option of taking a turn towards State Road 46. As the road curves and intersects County Road 44A, it enters

Seminole State Forest The Seminole State Forest is in the U.S. state of Florida. The forest is located in Central Florida, near Eustis. Access to the forest is available from Florida State Road 44, Lake County Road 46A and Florida State Road 46. Surrounding parks a ...

. In Crow's Bluff, SR 44 serves as the eastern terminus of County Road (former State Road) 42 and immediately crosses the Francis P. Whitehair Bridge over the

St. Johns River The St. Johns River ( es, Río San Juan) is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and its most significant one for commercial and recreational use. At long, it flows north and winds through or borders twelve counties. The drop in eleva ...

, where it enters Volusia County and curves back east. West of DeLand, SR 44 is named West New York Avenue and runs along a bridge over an Amtrak line north of

DeLand (Amtrak station) DeLand station is a train station in DeLand, Florida, United States. It is served by Amtrak (the National Railroad Passenger Corporation). It is about three miles west of downtown DeLand, at the location formerly known as DeLand Junction. DeLand ...

, but then crosses a grade crossing for a railroad spur leading from the station into Downtown DeLand. Motorists know they're getting close to Downtown DeLand itself when they intersect State Road 15A, but SR 44 doesn't actually enter downtown until it passes through the Downtown DeLand Historic District and approaches U.S. Route 17/92. Here, West New York Avenue becomes East New York Avenue, but no turns at this intersection are allowed from either direction. Access to US 17/92 is only available from nearby side roads two or more blocks away. The road begins to move southeast from Talmadge Gardens Road to East Voorhis Avenue then takes a south turn along the west coast of Lake Winnemisett and becomes a four-lane divided highway again at the south end of Lake Winnemisett. It then bypasses a former section of SR 44 just before it approaches Interstate 4, which contains partial cloverleaf ramps on the southwest and northeast corners of the bridge.

Toward New Smyrna Beach

East of I-4, SR 44 a four lane divided highway. SR 44 serves as the northern terminus of State Road 415 and the southern terminus of County Road 415, where the

New Smyrna Speedway New Smyrna Speedway is a 1/2-mile asphalt oval racetrack located near New Smyrna Beach, Florida, that races the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series every Saturday night. It also has a smaller track, known as "Little New Smyrna Speedway" in t ...

can be found on the northwest corner. O'Reilly Road, a gateway to a housing development is slated to become County Road 4009. A partial cloverleaf exists for

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1, US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between M ...

, with separate westbound and eastbound off-ramps for southbound traffic. Northbound traffic uses a half-diamond interchange. When the road finally arrives within the New Smyrna Beach city limits, Florida State Road 44 Business branches off to the northwest as Canal Street, while SR 44 itself becomes Lytle Avenue. The final segment of SR 44 runs on top of a bridge that goes over the

Florida East Coast Railroad The Florida East Coast Railway is a Class II railroad operating in the U.S. state of Florida, currently owned by Grupo México. Built primarily in the last quarter of the 19th century and the first decade of the 20th century, the FEC was a pro ...

Main Line and

U.S. Route 1 U.S. Route 1 or U.S. Highway 1 (US 1) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs from Key West, Florida, north to Fort Kent, Maine, at the Canadian border, making i ...

where the road becomes a segment of

State Road A1A State Road A1A (SR A1A) is a major north–south Florida State Road that runs along the Atlantic Ocean, from Key West at the southern tip of Florida, to Fernandina Beach, just south of Georgia on Amelia Island. It is the main road through m ...

. Access to and from US 1 is only available from SR A1A, unless motorists from SR 44 use side streets within New Smyrna Beach.

History

In Lake County, SR 44 originally passed through downtown Leesburg on Main Street, merging with US 441 east of downtown. It then split to the north on current County Road 44, passing north of Lake Eustis. North of Eustis, it turned southeast on present County Road 452, merging with State Road 19 into downtown Eustis, where it turned east on Orange Avenue to rejoin current SR 44 east of Eustis.

, General Highway Map, Lake County, Florida, February 1969 (reprinted September 1978) The current alignment around the south side of Leesburg was taken over ca. 1986.

Pavement Management Office Report - Lake County
(

PDF Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems. ...

) It had previously been State Road 468 from the west end to U.S. Highway 27 ( SR 25) and State Road 33 from roughly Canal Street east to Main Street, but was given to the county by the early 1980s. At some point, SR 44 from US 441 east of Leesburg to State Road 19 north of Eustis was given to the county and numbered County Road 44; the route via US 441 and SR 19 south of Lake Eustis became SR 44. CR 44 has since been realigned to bypass Eustis to the north. SR 44 was realigned around downtown Eustis in 2005, taking over what had been County Road 44B between US 441 and SR 44 east of Eustis. The

gave SR 44 west of CR 44B to Lake County. CR 44B had been marked from US 441 as a bypass to SR 44 east and from SR 44 as a bypass to US 441 south, as part of a longer bypass of Eustis also including County Road 44 north and west to SR 19.

Major intersections

Related roads

State Road 44 Business

State Road 44 Business is a state road in

New Smyrna Beach, Florida New Smyrna Beach is a city in Volusia County, Florida, United States, located on the central east coast of the state, with the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Its population is 30,142 in 2020 by the United States Census Bureau. The downtown section of ...

. The latest

GIS A geographic information system (GIS) is a type of database containing Geographic data and information, geographic data (that is, descriptions of phenomena for which location is relevant), combined with Geographic information system software, sof ...

data has it listed as SR 44 even though there are two signs which have "business" tabs on them. Business 44 was the old alignment of SR 44 through downtown New Smyrna Beach.

County Road 44W (Citrus County)

County Road 44W exists as the western tip of old State Road 44, south of Crystal River. The suffix, "W", was most likely added to not confuse this section with State Road 44, to the north, and to show its location by being west of

US 19 U.S. Route 19 (US 19) is a north–south U.S. Highway in the Eastern United States. Despite encroaching Interstate Highways, the route has remained a long-haul road, connecting the Gulf of Mexico with Lake Erie. The highway's southern ...

and US 98( SR 55). As with the majority of these type of 'coastal spur' routes, in West Central Florida, it is county maintained.

County Road 44A (Sumter County)

County Road 44A exists along the north side of State Road 44 in Wildwood and Orange Home. The road begins southeast of the interchange with

, and instantly intersects with CR 225, which runs north and south, while CR 44A runs directly east and west until it curves slightly to the right and becomes Kilgore Street. The road then moves south onto Central Avenue running parallel to the CSX line until reaching Lynum Street, and crosses the tracks until Lynum Street terminates at

. County Road 44A then not only crosses US 301 to enter Huey Street, but the wye for the former Leesburg and Tavares railroad line. One block away, CR 44A breaks away from Huey Street and curves south before running along the north side of the right-of-way of the previously mentioned abandoned railroad line. The line contained a series of abandoned freight cars until the 2000s (decade), and the road and railroad line followed each other until CR 44A terminates at a recreational vehicle park in Orange Home.

Lake County

County Road 44 is a

county highway A county highway (also county road or county route; usually abbreviated CH or CR) is a road in the United States and in the Canadian province of Ontario that is designated and/or maintained by the county highway department. Route numbering can ...

in Lake County in the

. It runs from U.S. Route 441 near Leesburg in the west to State Road 44 near Mount Dora in the east. The western terminus County Road 44 is at an intersection with the concurrency of U.S. Route 441, State Road 44, and State Road 500 at the eastern edge of Leesburg, near Leesburg Regional Airport. From there, it heads northeast past

Silver Lake Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...

, then east past

, before arriving in the town of Eustis. In Eustis, CR 44 intersects State Road 19. There, CR 44 splits into two branches. The northern branch heads east from the intersection to its terminus at County Road 44A. The southern branch continues south from the intersection, concurrent with SR 19, before turning east on East Orange Avenue. It then passes by Lake Joanna before terminating at State Road 44 between the towns of Eustis and Mount Dora. County Road 44 Leg A is a short spur near CR 44's western terminus in Leesburg. It serves as an alternate route for northbound

traffic to reach eastbound CR 44.

County Road 44A

County Road 44A is an east/west

county road A county highway (also county road or county route; usually abbreviated CH or CR) is a road in the United States and in the Canadian province of Ontario that is designated and/or maintained by the County (United States), county highway departme ...

in Lake County in the

. Its western terminus is at State Road 19 in Umatilla, and its eastern terminus is at State Road 44 about east of Mount Dora. The western terminus of County Road 44A is at an intersection with State Road 19 in the town of Umatilla. CR 44A heads out of Umatilla eastward on Rose Street before turning south. Then in Dalhousie Acres (near Lake Dalhousie), it intersects County Road 450A before continuing south towards Eustis. On the eastern edge of Eustis, CR 44A intersects one of the eastern termini of County Road 44 before turning east once again on DeLand Road. It then continues east on DeLand Road for approximately , passing by Black Bear Golf Club, before reaching its eastern terminus at State Road 44.

County Road 44B

County Road 44B, formerly a short north–south county route in the Mount Dora area. In 2004, CR 44B was turned over to State Road 44 when SR 44 was re-routed out of downtown Eustis, with SR 44 becoming a complete eastern and southern bypass of Eustis. The remaining portion of SR 44 through Eustis was reverted to CR 44, and remains unsigned to this day.

County Road 44C

County Road 44C, is Eudora Road, a short north–south county route also in the Mount Dora area. It spans from the convoluted intersection between Old County Road 441 and the eastern terminus of County Road 19A to US 441-SR 44 almost crossing the Mount Dora- Eustis border.

References

External links

{{Attached KML, display=title,inline
Florida Route Log (SR 44)
044 SR044 044 044 044 044 044 044 1945 establishments in Florida