State Route 51 (SR 51) is a northwest-southeast highway (signed north-south) in northwest

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. Its southern terminus is at

U.S. Route 20 U.S. Route 20 or U.S. Highway 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that stretches from the Pacific Northwest east to New England. The "0" in its route number indicates that US 20 is a major coast-to-coast route. S ...

just south of

Elmore, Ohio Elmore is a village in Ottawa and Sandusky counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 1,410 at the 2010 census. The Ottawa County portion of Elmore is part of the Toledo Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the Sandusky County porti ...

, and its northern terminus is at its interchange, along with State Route 184, at

U.S. Route 23 } U.S. Route 23 or U.S. Highway 23 (US 23) is a major north–south U.S. Highway between Jacksonville, Florida, and Mackinaw City, Michigan. It is an original 1926 route which originally reached only as far south as Portsmouth, Ohio, and has sinc ...

Sylvania, Ohio Sylvania is a city in Lucas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 19,011 at the 2020 census. Sylvania is a suburb of Toledo, and encompassed by Sylvania Township. Its northern border is the southern border of the state of Michigan. T ...

. Before an ODOT signage project in 2010, the northern (western) portion of the route, from its northern (western) terminus to the

Maumee River The Maumee River (pronounced ) ( sjw, Hotaawathiipi; mia, Taawaawa siipiiwi) is a river running in the United States Midwest from northeastern Indiana into northwestern Ohio and Lake Erie. It is formed at the confluence of the St. Joseph and ...

was signed as an east-west route. The portion from the Maumee to its southern (eastern) terminus was signed north-south. ODOT has now signed all portions as north-south.

Route description

From its southern terminus, State Route 51 heads north to an interchange with the

Ohio Turnpike The Ohio Turnpike, officially the James W. Shocknessy Ohio Turnpike, is a limited-access toll highway in the U.S. state of Ohio, serving as a primary corridor between Chicago and Pittsburgh. The road runs east–west in the northern section of ...

before it enters Elmore. After exiting Elmore, the route heads northwest through the village of

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

and near the town of Millbury before entering Northwood. The route from here to the Maumee River is also known as Woodville Road. The route interchanges with Interstate 280 before entering southwest

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

and into Toledo. After it crosses the Maumee, it eventually moves onto Monroe Street, which moves in a generally northwesterly direction until it reaches U.S. Route 23 in Sylvania, where it ends. SR 184 and US 223 end here as well.

History

The original route of State Route 51 was that of current State Route 49 in western Ohio. The route was generally changed from 51 to 49 until the entire route became 49 in 1935. A new State Route 51 was certified in 1955, with its southern terminus where it is now and its northern terminus at then- State Route 120 (close to where I-280 is now) in Northwood. State Route 51 was extended to State Route 2 in Oregon in 1959. In 1989, State Route 51 replaced the route of

U.S. Route 223 US Route 223 or US Highway 223 (US 223) is a diagonal (northwest–southeast) United States Numbered Highway System, United States Numbered Highway lying in the states of Michigan and Ohio. The southernmost section is completely concurrency ( ...

though Toledo and Sylvania across the Maumee River and on Monroe Street. U.S. Route 223 now officially ends at U.S. Route 23's interchange with State Routes 51 and 184 in Sylvania. State Route 51's interchange with the Ohio Turnpike was opened in 1997.

Major junctions

References

{{Reflist 051 Transportation in Lucas County, Ohio Transportation in Wood County, Ohio Transportation in Ottawa County, Ohio Transportation in Sandusky County, Ohio