State Trunk Highway 131 (also called Highway 131, STH-131 or WIS 131) is a
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 of
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
. The highway is located in Wisconsin's
Driftless Area
The Driftless Area, a topographical and cultural region in the American Midwest, comprises southwestern Wisconsin, southeastern Minnesota, northeastern Iowa, and the extreme northwestern corner of Illinois.
Never covered by ice during the last ...
, passing through
Crawford
Crawford may refer to:
Places Canada
* Crawford Bay Airport, British Columbia
* Crawford Lake Conservation Area, Ontario
United Kingdom
* Crawford, Lancashire, a small village near Rainford, Merseyside, England
* Crawford, South Lanarkshire, a ...
,
Vernon,
Richland, and
Monroe counties. It runs from
WIS 60 near
Wauzeka north to
US Highway 12
U.S. Route 12 (US 12) is an east–west United States highway, running from Aberdeen, Washington, to Detroit, Michigan, for almost . The highway has mostly been superseded by Interstate 90 (I-90) and I-94, but unlike most U.S. routes tha ...
(US 12) and
WIS 16 in
Tomah. WIS 131 is maintained by the
Wisconsin Department of Transportation
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of Wisconsin responsible for planning, building and maintaining the state's highways. It is also responsible for planning transportation in the state ...
(WisDOT).
WIS 131 was designated by 1924 on a road between
Ferryville and
Gays Mills. It was realigned and extended several times in the next twenty-five years, and by 1948 it connected Wauzeka and Tomah roughly along its present route. The highway was rerouted in northern Vernon County in the 1970s in expectation of a new dam on the
Kickapoo River
The Kickapoo River is a tributary of the Wisconsin River in the state of Wisconsin, United States. It is named for the Kickapoo Indians who occupied Wisconsin before the influx of white settlers in the early 19th century.
Watershed
The river be ...
; however, part of the rerouting between
Rockton and
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
was put on hold when the dam project stalled in 1975. WisDOT consequently performed very little maintenance on this section of WIS 131 for the next two decades, and it fell into disrepair. The state ultimately rebuilt the highway in the early 2000s, and the refurbished highway opened in 2003.
Route description
Wauzeka to Viola
WIS 131 runs through hilly, rural terrain characteristic of the Driftless Area and
Western Upland
The Western Upland is a geographical region covering much of the western half of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It stretches from southern Polk County, Wisconsin in the north to the state border with Illinois in the south, and from Rock County i ...
for its entire length. The route generally passes through farmland or wooded areas, though it also enters several small towns. WIS 131 begins in Crawford County at a
three-way intersection
A three-way junction (or three-way intersection) is a type of road intersection with three arms. A Y junction (or Y intersection) generally has three arms of equal size coming at an acute or obtuse angle to each other; while a T junction (or T ...
with WIS 60 northeast of Wauzeka and north of the
Wisconsin River
The Wisconsin River is a tributary of the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. At approximately 430 miles (692 km) long, it is the state's longest river. The river's name, first recorded in 1673 by Jacques Marquette as "Meskousi ...
. The highway heads northward from the intersection toward
Steuben. WIS 131 begins to follow the Kickapoo River here and it runs within the river's valley until
Wilton. The highway enters Steuben from the southeast and heads east as Farris Street toward another 3-way intersection with
WIS 179. WIS 131 heads north from this intersection as Midway Street for about a block before turning east and leaving Steuben as Railroad Street.
WIS 131 turns north again outside of Steuben and passes through
Barnum
Phineas Taylor Barnum (; July 5, 1810 – April 7, 1891) was an American showman, businessman, and politician, remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes and founding the Barnum & Bailey Circus (1871–2017) with James Anthony Bailey. He wa ...
,
Petersburg and
Bell Center
Bell Centre (), formerly known as Molson Centre (), is a multi-purpose arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Opened on March 16, 1996, it is the home arena of the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL), replacing the Montr ...
before intersecting
WIS 171 in Gays Mills. North of Gays Mills, the highway heads north-northeast toward
Soldiers Grove. The route enters Soldiers Grove as Church Street before turning east onto Pine Street and intersecting
US 61
U.S. Route 61 or U.S. Highway 61 (U.S. 61) is a major United States highway that extends between New Orleans, Louisiana and the city of Wyoming, Minnesota. The highway generally follows the course of the Mississippi River and is designated ...
. WIS 131 becomes
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 US 61 and heads north into Vernon County toward
Readstown
Readstown is a village in Vernon County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 415 at the 2010 census.
Geography
Readstown is located at (43.448544, -90.760708).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area ...
.
WIS 131 and US 61 enter Readstown as Soldiers Grove Road and meet
US 14
U.S. Route 14 (abbreviated U.S. 14 or US 14), an east–west route, is one of the original United States highways of 1926. It currently has a length of 1,398 miles (2,250 km), but it had a peak length of 1,429 miles (2,300 km). For ...
at a three-way intersection, where WIS 131 leaves US 61 and follows US 14 east across the Kickapoo River. The highway's concurrencies with US 61 and US 14 are the only parts of the highway which are part of the
National Highway System.
After , WIS 131 turns north and leaves Readstown as 4th Street. Outside of Readstown, WIS 131 cuts east and passes through the community of
Kickapoo Center before turning back north toward
Viola
The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...
.
The highway enters Viola from the southwest as Commercial Street, passes
Kickapoo High School and briefly becomes concurrent with
WIS 56. WIS 131 enters northwest Richland County while in Viola and it remains in the county for a short distance northward.
La Farge to Tomah
After it returns to Vernon County, WIS 131 heads north toward
La Farge. It enters La Farge from the south as State Street and follows
WIS 82 west for four blocks before turning north and leaving the village as Mill Street. The highway enters the
Kickapoo Valley Reserve north of La Farge; it continues through the Reserve until its northern border south of Ontario. WIS 131 passes through unincorporated Rockton and briefly enters the southwest corner of
Wildcat Mountain State Park
Wildcat Mountain State Park is a state park of Wisconsin, United States, on the Kickapoo River in the Driftless Area. Sandstone bluffs topped with limestone, two of which are Wildcat Mountain and Mount Pisgah, provide views over the narrow valley ...
before reaching the village of Ontario. The road crosses the Kickapoo River seven times in the between Rockton and Ontario.
In Ontario, WIS 131 meets
WIS 33 and briefly follows it east before turning north and entering Monroe County. The highway heads north into Wilton, where it becomes concurrent with
WIS 71. WIS 131 follows WIS 71 northeast out of Wilton as Walker Street, and the two highways are concurrent for . The two highways parallel the
Elroy-Sparta State Trail
The Elroy-Sparta State Trail is a Wisconsin State rail trail between Elroy and Sparta, Wisconsin. Considered to be the first rail trail when it opened in 1967, it was designed for foot, bicycle, equestrian and light motorized traffic. Designat ...
for most of their concurrency, and the trail crosses over the roads before they separate at a 3-way intersection northeast of Wilton.
WIS 131 heads due north from this intersection toward Tomah. The highway intersects with
Interstate 90
Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West, Great Plains, Midwest, and ...
(I-90) in south Tomah and enters the city as Superior Avenue. This section of WIS 131 is the busiest of its entire route; according to WisDOT, this portion had an average daily traffic of 6800 vehicles in 2017.
WIS 131 terminates at a four-way intersection with US 12 and
WIS 16 in southern Tomah; traffic continues straight as US 12.
History
WIS 131 was first designated by 1924 on a route from
WIS 35 near Ferryville to
WIS 11 in Gays Mills. When WIS 11 moved to a new route that bypassed Gays Mills in 1925, WIS 131 took on its route from there north to Soldiers Grove. The
Wisconsin Highway Commission extended WIS 131 northward to La Farge in 1939 along a county highway that had been transferred to the state. In 1947, the Highway Commission switched the designations of WIS 131 and WIS 171 south and west of Gays Mills; WIS 131 took over the route between Gays Mills and Wauzeka, and its original route between Ferryville and Gays Mills became WIS 171.
WIS 131 was extended from La Farge to its current terminus in Tomah in 1948.
In the 1970s, the federal government planned to dam the Kickapoo River between La Farge and Ontario. As WIS 131 crossed the river eleven times between these towns, the state had to relocate the highway to make way for the dam. The first section of WIS 131 to be moved, between La Farge and Rockton, was realigned away from the river to the east in 1976. The original highway was abandoned at first, as the dam was expected to flood the surrounding area, but was later converted to a
recreational trail
Cycling infrastructure is all infrastructure cyclists are allowed to use. Bikeways include bike paths, bike lanes, cycle tracks, rail trails and, where permitted, sidewalks. Roads used by Motor vehicle, motorists are also cycling infrastructu ...
.
The state planned to relocate the portion of WIS 131 between Rockton and Ontario as well; the proposed new highway would run along the east bank of the Kickapoo River to a realigned WIS 33, which it would follow into Ontario.
The relocation plans were put on hold when work halted on the dam project, which was ultimately canceled in the 1990s; the federal government did not fully resolve the ownership of the underlying land until 2000.
Despite continued talks of reconstructing WIS 131 in the 1980s and 1990s, the ownership issues and local opposition delayed any plans to rebuild it. In the meantime, the section between Rockton and Ontario received little to no maintenance, leaving the road with a heightened accident rate and issues with flooding.
Due to the opposition to the original relocation proposal, the state instead planned a $20 million project to rebuild the existing stretch of WIS 131; plans for this project were finalized in January 2000.
The Kickapoo Valley Stewardship Alliance sued WisDOT to stop this plan as well, claiming it had violated the
Water Resources Development Act of 1996
The Water Resources Development Act of 1996 (WRDA 1996) is part of , was enacted by Congress of the United States on October 12, 1996. Most of the provisions of WRDA 1996 are administered by the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
Title I: Wat ...
and the
Transportation Act of 1966.
The
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin struck down the lawsuit, and construction continued on the road. The improved section of WIS 131 was completed and dedicated in August 2003.
Major intersections
See also
*
References
External links
* {{Osmrelation-inline, 4041690, State Trunk Highway 131, link=https://www.openstreetmap.org/relation/4041690
WIS 131at Wisconsin Highways
131
Transportation in Crawford County, Wisconsin
Transportation in Vernon County, Wisconsin
Transportation in Richland County, Wisconsin
Transportation in Monroe County, Wisconsin