Kentucky Route 97 (KY 97) 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 ...

Graves County Graves County is a county located on the southwest border of the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 36,649. Its county seat is Mayfield. The county was formed in 1824 and was named for Major Benjamin Fr ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

that runs from

Tennessee State Route 69 State Route 69 (SR 69) is a state highway in West Tennessee, West and Middle Tennessee that runs parallel to the Tennessee River for the majority of its length. SR 69 carries both primary and secondary highway designations and is routed through ru ...

(SR 69) and State Line Road West on the

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

state border southeast of Sedalia to

KY 80 Kentucky Route 80 (KY 80) is a state highway in the southern part of the U.S. state of Kentucky. The route originates on the state's western border at Columbus in Hickman County and stretches across the southern portion of the state, ...

, KY 121, and KY 121 Business just southeast of Mayfield.

Route description

KY 97 enters Kentucky on the Graves-

Calloway County Calloway County is a county located in the southwest part of the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 37,103. Its county seat is Murray. The county was founded in November 1822 and named for Colonel Richard ...

line and travels north for a few tenths of a mile before curving toward the northwest away from the Calloway County line. It continues to the northwest through rural sections of southeastern Graves County, passing through the

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

of Bell City. Nearly from the Tennessee state line, KY 97 forms a junction with KY 94 and continues toward the northwest passing through Sedalia and forming a junction with KY 339/ KY 381. After passing through Sedalia the route travels due north for nearly and terminates at a junction with KY 80/KY 121/KY 121 Business just south of Mayfield. The route remains two lanes for its entirety and passes through mostly rural sections of Graves County.

History

By 1937, KY 97 was a mostly unpaved road that terminated in the center of Mayfield. By 1989, KY 97 ended at its current northern terminus at a junction with KY 121 just south of Mayfield.

Major intersections

References

{{Attached KML, display=inline,title 0097 Transportation in Graves County, Kentucky