New York State Route 342 (NY 342) is a short east–west state highway in

Jefferson County, New York Jefferson County is a county on the northern border of the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 116,721. Its county seat is Watertown. The county is named after Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United St ...

, in the United States. The western terminus of NY 342 is at an intersection with

NY 12 New York State Route 12 (NY 12) is a state highway extending for through central and northern New York in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 11 (US 11) in the town of Chenango (just n ...

near the

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

of Scoville Corners in the town of Pamelia. The eastern terminus is at a junction with NY 3 in the town of Le Ray, west of the village of Black River. Along the way, NY 342 connects to Interstate 81 (I-81) in Pamelia and intersects U.S. Route 11 (US 11) outside of the Le Ray hamlet of

Calcium Calcium is a chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar t ...

. What is now NY 342 was originally built during the 1950s as a federal-aid highway known as the "Watertown Bypass". It became a state highway in 1960, at which time it was designated as New York State Route 181. The designation was short-lived as NY 181 was renumbered to NY 342 . The portion of NY 342 between US 11 and NY 3 was part of

NY 26 New York State Route 26 (NY 26) is a north–south state highway that runs for through Central New York in the United States. Its southern terminus is located at the Pennsylvania state line south of the town of Vestal in Broo ...

from the late 1950s to the mid-1970s.

Route description

In the west, NY 342 begins at an intersection with

in Pamelia, a town to the north of the city of

Watertown Watertown may refer to: Places in China In China, a water town is a type of ancient scenic town known for its waterways. Places in the United States *Watertown, Connecticut, a New England town **Watertown (CDP), Connecticut, the central village ...

. It heads northeastward through open, mostly undeveloped fields for to an interchange with

I-81 Interstate 81 (I-81) is a north–south (physically northeast–southwest) Interstate Highway in the eastern part of the United States. Its southern terminus is at I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee; its northern terminus is on Wellesley Isla ...

. East of I-81, the development along NY 342 increases as the route enters Pamelia Center, a

centered on NY 342's intersection with NY 37. NY 342 continues on, passing through the eastern portion of the community and serving a local country club before entering another rural area dominated by open fields. Upon intersecting Nellis Road, NY 342 turns to follow a linear, southeasterly routing into the town of Le Ray. The rural surroundings remain until the hamlet of

, where NY 342 meets US 11 north of the community's center in a lightly populated residential area just southwest of the Fort Drum Military Reservation. The route continues on, running along the southwestern edge of Fort Drum to a junction with NY 283. At this point, NY 342 curves to the south, bypassing the village of Black River to the west as it heads through another undeveloped area consisting of little more than open fields. The route ends roughly to the south of NY 283 at an intersection with NY 3 southwest of the village.

History

The portion of modern NY 342 between

in Pamelia and US 11 in Le Ray was originally built in stages between 1951 and 1955 as a federal-aid highway named the "Watertown Bypass". The remainder of the route (via Le Ray and South Main Streets in Black River) was built around this time.

was realigned between 1956 and 1958 to use the portion of the bypass between US 11 and NY 3. The change was part of a larger realignment of NY 26 between

Carthage Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the cla ...

and Antwerp. In 1960, the New York State Department of Transportation assumed ownership and maintenance of the Watertown Bypass. The entirety of the new state highway, including the portion already part of NY 26, was initially designated as NY 181. It was renumbered to NY 342 , eliminating potential confusion between NY 181 and the nearby

. NY 342 was also rerouted to bypass Black River to the west around this time. The

overlap Overlap may refer to: * In set theory, an overlap of elements shared between sets is called an intersection, as in a Venn diagram. * In music theory, overlap is a synonym for reinterpretation of a chord at the boundary of two musical phrases * O ...

with NY 26 was eliminated in the mid-1970s when NY 26 was truncated to

Major intersections

References

External links

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342 __NOTOC__ Year 342 ( CCCXLII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantius and Claudius (or, less frequently, year 109 ...

Transportation in Jefferson County, New York

Route description

History

Major intersections

See also

References

External links