Mississippi Highway 41 (MS 41) is a state highway in northeastern

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

. The route starts at

U.S. Route 45 U.S. Route 45 (US 45) is a major north-south United States highway and a border-to-border route, from Lake Superior to the Gulf of Mexico. A sign at the highway's northern terminus notes the total distance as . US 45 is notable for incorporatin ...

(US 45) and

US 278 U.S. Route 278 (US 278) is a parallel route of US 78. It currently runs for from Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, to Wickes, Arkansas at US 71/ US 59, passing through five states in the process. Landmarks along its route includ ...

north of Wren and travels westwards. It then intersects US 45 Alt. east of Okolona. The road enters Okolona, and intersects MS 32 and MS 245. MS 41 then turns northwest and travels toward Pontotoc. Once inside the city, the route turns north at MS 15 and travels through downtown Pontotoc. MS 41 ends at its intersection with MS 9 and MS 338. The route that became MS 41 was first used as an

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

trail. The route was designated by 1932 from Amory to Pontotoc, and it was truncated from Amory to US 45 by 1955. The entirety of MS 41 was paved by 1958.

Route description

MS 41 is located in Monroe,

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands. Their traditional territory was in the Southeastern United States of Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee as well in southwestern Kentucky. Their language is classif ...

, and Pontotoc counties. The route is legally defined in Mississippi Code § 65-3-3, and all of it is maintained by the

Mississippi Department of Transportation The Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) is the organization in charge of developing and maintaining all state and federal roadways in the U.S. state of Mississippi. In addition to highways, the department also has a limited role in sup ...

(MDOT), as part of the Mississippi State Highway System. The route starts at a partial cloverleaf interchange with US 45 and US 278 north of Wren, and travels westward from the interchange. MS 41 intersects McAllister Road and Camargo Road within farmland, before entering a

diamond interchange A diamond interchange is a common type of road junction, used where a controlled-access highway crosses a minor road. Design The freeway itself is grade-separated from the minor road, one crossing the other over a bridge. Approaching the ...

with US 45 Alt. The route enters Chickasaw County past the interchange, at Chickasaw County Road 139 (CR 139). The road enters Okolona west of CR 139, and passes through a residential area within the city as East Monroe Avenue. West of South Child Street, MS 41 crosses over a railroad operated by

Kansas City Southern Railway The Kansas City Southern Railway Company is an American Class I railroad. Founded in 1887, it operates in 10 midwestern and southeastern U.S. states: Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and ...

and becomes West Monroe Avenue. The route continues westward and intersects MS 32 and MS 245 at the center of the city. West of the intersection, MS 32 and MS 41 are

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 ...

for two city blocks. At McDonnell Street, MS 41 turns north and ends the concurrency with MS 32. The road turns northwestwards at Main Street, and it leaves the city limits past Academy Street. The route continues traveling through farmland, intersecting CR 137 and smaller driveways. Southeast of CR 243, MS 41 enters the northeastern edge of the

Tombigbee National Forest Tombigbee National Forest is a U.S. National Forest in eastern and northeastern Mississippi. It is named for the nearby Tombigbee River. It is divided geographically into two non-contiguous sections. The larger southern section, about 60% of the t ...

. On the forest boundary, the road enters Pontotoc County at Chickasaw Line Road. Inside Pontotoc County, the road intersects the Natchez Trace Parkway at a

quadrant roadway intersection A quadrant roadway intersection adds an additional "quadrant roadway" between two legs of an intersection. This roadway adds two three-way intersections in addition to the original four-way intersection moving all left turns (in right-hand traff ...

on the northern end of the Tombigbee National Forest. MS 41 continues northwestwards and intersects CR 97 in

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in present-day Turkey, south-west of Ç ...

, which leads to

Woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (se ...

. The route then meets CR 115, a road that ends at Chiwapa. Between CR 113, the road crosses Garrett Creek and Chiwapa Creek, and Calloway Creek north of CR 134. MS 41 then intersects the western terminus of MS 342 near Webster Creek. The route enters the city of Pontotoc east of Country Village Lane, and it turns north at MS 15. Past Tenth Street, the road crosses over the Mile Branch. As South Main Street, MS 41 enters downtown Pontotoc and intersects multiple city streets, the majority within the Pontotoc Historic District. The road becomes North Main Street at Reynolds Street, and it passes by schools that are part of the Pontotoc City School District, including Pontotoc High School. MS 41 ends at MS 9 and MS 338 at Oxford Street, and the road continues as MS 9.

History

The road that became part of MS 41 first existed as an

trail, later used by both belligerents in the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. By 1928, it was a

gravel road A gravel road is a type of unpaved road surfaced with gravel that has been brought to the site from a quarry or stream bed. They are common in less-developed nations, and also in the rural areas of developed nations such as Canada and the Unit ...

from Amory to Pontotoc. Part of it was designated as MS 41 by 1932, from Okolona to Pontotoc. The remaining part of the road was added to the route by 1935. Around 1936, the section of MS 41 from Okolona to US 45 was rerouted southwards, creating a concurrency at US 45. The route from Amory to US 45 was paved by 1940, and a small part east of Okolona by 1945. By 1955, MS 41 was paved from Okolona to US 45. US 278 was designated during that time, and it replaced MS 41 east of US 45. One year later, half of MS 41 in Pontotoc County was paved, and the remaining parts of the route were paved by 1958. The eastern terminus at US 45 was also rerouted northwards to the US 45's intersection with US 278. By 1962, the Natchez Trace Parkway was connected to MS 41. Interchanges were added at US 45 and US 45 Alt. by 1999 and 2000 respectively.

Major intersections

References

{{Good article 041 Transportation in Monroe County, Mississippi Transportation in Chickasaw County, Mississippi Transportation in Pontotoc County, Mississippi

Route description

History

Major intersections

See also

References