Route 184 is a state highway in southeastern

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

, running from Groton to North Stonington.

Route description

Route 184 begins as a freeway from northbound exit 86 of

I-95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the Canadia ...

just north of the city of Groton. It crosses over Route 12 later at an interchange and soon becomes a surface street after another quarter of a mile. The road continues east northeast towards the village of Center Groton, where it meets Route 117. It continues another via Burnetts Corner to the head of the

Mystic River The Mystic River is a riverU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 in Massachusetts, in the United States. In Massachusett, means "large estuary," alluding to t ...

in the village of Old Mystic near the Stonington town line. Route 184 travels four miles (6 km) through the northern part of Stonington before entering the town of North Stonington. It has a junction with Route 2 at a rotary south of North Stonington center. Beyond Route 2, the surroundings become rural as Route 184 heads towards the

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but it ...

state line. Route 184 ends just short of the state line at Route 216 near exit 93 of I-95. The roadway continues past Route 216 to the state line as State Road 626, which originally connected with

Rhode Island Route 3 Route 3 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. Route 3 serves as a local alternative to Interstate 95 (I-95) as it parallels I-95 for almost its entire length. Route 3 in West Warwick was the site of The Station nightclub fire. ...

prior to the construction of I-95 in the area. Route 184 is also known as Gold Star Highway, New London Turnpike, and Providence-New London Turnpike along its lengths in Groton, Stonington, and North Stonington respectively.

History

In 1818, a

turnpike Turnpike often refers to: * A type of gate, another word for a turnstile * In the United States, a toll road Turnpike may also refer to: Roads United Kingdom * A turnpike road, a principal road maintained by a turnpike trust, a body with powers ...

was chartered to provide an improved road from the

Thames River The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

ferry (between

New London New London may refer to: Places United States *New London, Alabama *New London, Connecticut *New London, Indiana *New London, Iowa *New London, Maryland *New London, Minnesota *New London, Missouri *New London, New Hampshire, a New England town ** ...

and

Groton, Connecticut Groton is a town in New London County, Connecticut located on the Thames River. It is the home of General Dynamics Electric Boat, which is the major contractor for submarine work for the United States Navy. The Naval Submarine Base New London i ...

) to the Hopkinton and Richmond Turnpike in

, known as the Groton and Stonington Turnpike. The toll road ran more or less along the modern alignment of Route 184. The establishment of this road completed a continuous turnpike route from

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...

to New London. The turnpike corporation was dissolved in 1853, one year after opening continuous rail service from

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

via Providence. The route from the borough of Groton to the town center of North Stonington was designated as State Highway 331 in 1922. Highway 331 used modern Route 184 to the junction with Route 201, then Route 201 until the intersection with Route 2. In 1932, Route 84 was established from part of old Highway 331 along the current routes of Route 184 to Old Mystic, then modern Route 234 to US 1 in Pawcatuck. In 1935, Route 84 was relocated to the current route along the old Groton and Stoninton Turnpike alignment to the Rhode Island state line. In 1958, Route 84 was renumbered to Route 95 to serve as a temporary link for motorists following I-95, which had not yet been completed in Southeastern Connecticut. In December 1964, Route 95 was renumbered as I-95 opened in the Groton area. The eastern terminus was also truncated from the state line to its current location.

Junction list

As part of an I-95 signing contract, the CT 12 interchange received a mile-based number.

References

External links

{{Portal, Connecticut 184 Transportation in New London County, Connecticut