State Road 120 (SR 120) is a
state road
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 north-eastern section of the state of
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
. Running for about in a general east–west direction, connecting rural portions of
Elkhart,
Lagrange and
Steuben counties. The western terminus is a junction with Jackson Boulevard and Middleton Run Road in
Elkhart. The eastern terminus is at the Indiana–Michigan border, east of
Fremont.
The modern route of SR 120 was originally just small part of a much longer
Native American trail. In the early 1920s a project to construct a road replacing the Native American trail took place. SR 120 was introduced in 1937 routed along its current routing, as a state road number for Vistula Road, which was falling apart. The western end of SR 120 has been moved a couple of different times within the city of Elkhart.
Route description
SR 120 begins in Elkhart at the intersection of Middleton Run Road and Jackson Boulevard. It follows Jackson Boulevard, northeasterly paralleling the
St. Joseph River and the
Grand Elk Railroad
The Grand Elk Railroad is a Class III railroad which operates in the states of Indiana and Michigan. It is one of 40+ short-line railroads owned by Watco.
The company leases a line from the Norfolk Southern running south from Grand Rapids, Mich ...
.
The road leaves the city of Elkhart and enters Elkhart County before entering the town of
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
. In Bristol the road runs along Vistula Street and has a short
concurrency with
SR 15
Route 15, or Highway 15, can refer to:
For roads named A15, see A15 roads.
International
* Asian Highway 15
* European route E15
* European route E015
Australia New South Wales
* Hunter Expressway
* New England Highway and other local Ne ...
. As SR 120 leaves Bristol it crosses over the Grand Elk Railroad. East of Bristol SR 120 curves and becomes an east-west roadway, passing through rural Elkhart and Lagrange Counties, having intersections with
SR 13 and
SR 5. In Lagrange county the road enters the town of
Howe
Howe may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Howe (surname), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Howe Browne, 2nd Marquess of Sligo (1788–1845), Irish peer and colonial governor
Titles
* Earl Howe, two titles, an ext ...
, passing through an intersection with
SR 9. After the SR 9 intersection SR 120 is concurrent with Defiance Street, until SR 120 turns south onto 3rd Street, before turning east again on Wayne Street.
East of Howe SR 120 passes north of
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 ...
and through an intersection with the northern end of
SR 3 near
Brighton
Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London.
Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...
. Then, upon entering Steuben County, SR 120 enters the town of
Orland on Toledo Street, before having a
four-way stop
An all-way stop – also known as a four-way stop (or three-way stop etc. as appropriate) – is a traffic management system which requires vehicles on all the approaches to a Intersection (road), road intersection to stop at the intersection be ...
with
SR 327. After SR 327, SR 120 leaves Orland heading northeasterly before turning easterly again, closely paralleling the
Indiana Toll Road
The Indiana Toll Road, officially the Indiana East–West Toll Road, is a tolled freeway that runs for east–west across northern Indiana from the Illinois state line to the Ohio state line. It has been advertised as the "Main Street of the ...
. SR 120 passes through an intersection with the northern end of
SR 127, before crossing over
Interstate 69
Interstate 69 (I-69) is an Interstate Highway in the United States currently consisting of 10 unconnected segments with an original continuous segment from Indianapolis, Indiana, northeast to the Canadian border in Port Huron, Michigan, at ...
. After Interstate 69, SR 120 has an entrance to the Indiana Toll Road and then passes under the toll road. SR 120 enters the town of Fremont, running along Toledo Street, having an all-way stop with the northern end of
SR 827 (Wayne Street). After Fremont SR 120 passes near
Clear Lake, as the road turns towards the southeast. Before the Indiana-Michigan state line SR 120 has an intersection with the former northern end of
SR 1.
At the Indiana-Michigan border SR 120 becomes
Territorial Road, a county road in
Hillsdale County, Michigan
Hillsdale County is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 45,746. The county seat is Hillsdale.
Hillsdale County is the only county in Michigan to border both Indiana and Ohio. Due to an a ...
; this roadway was formerly
M-120 which connected to
OH-120.
History
The first path along part of the modern SR 120 roadway was the Vistula Trail, an old Native American trail, between Fort Duquesne and Green Bay via South Bend and the south shore of Lake Michigan. In 1922 Vistula Road was built at a cost of $87,500, .
[ ] During 1930 SR 19 was proposed and accepted as a state road along modern SR 120 from Elkhart to Bristol.
The second state road proposed along modern SR 120 was SR 827 from Fremont east to the Michigan/Indiana border in 1934.
The right-of-way for SR 827, east of Fremont, was purchased in 1935.
[ ] The following year Steuben County was having trouble maintaining the roadway, with bridges needing replacement and the gravel road surface was deteriorating.
[ ] The state highway commission accepted Vistula Road as a state road in 1937 and it becomes part of SR 120.
In late 1938 or early 1939 two parts of SR 120 opens to traffic with the first being between SR 13 and SR 3 and the second being throughout Steuben County.
By 1941 SR 120 went between Elkhart and the Michigan state line, east of Fremont, uninterrupted.
The entire roadway was paved by 1965.
In late 1969 or early 1970 SR 120s western end was moved from an intersection between Middleton Run Road and US 20 (now Old US 20/Toledo Road) to an intersection between Goshen Avenue and Jackson Boulevard. The western end of SR 120 was moved once again to an intersection between Jackson Boulevard and Middleton Run Road on September 9, 2000.
At one time, State Road 120 was to have been rerouted onto
Elkhart County Road 17 to end at U.S. 20.
Major intersections
References
External links
{{Attached KML, display=inline,title
Old Indiana 120 Bridge
120
Transportation in Elkhart, Indiana
Transportation in Elkhart County, Indiana
Transportation in LaGrange County, Indiana
Transportation in Steuben County, Indiana