Illinois Route 9 (IL 9) is a cross-state, east–west rural

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 ...

in the central part of the U.S. state of Illinois. It travels from Niota at the

Fort Madison Toll Bridge The Fort Madison Toll Bridge (also known as the Santa Fe Swing Span Bridge for the old Santa Fe Railway) is a tolled, double-decked swinging truss bridge over the Mississippi River that connects Fort Madison, Iowa, and unincorporated Niota, Illino ...

, that crosses the Mississippi River into Iowa, eastward across central Illinois to State Road 26 (SR 26) at the Indiana state line.

Route description

IL 9 is a major arterial route in rural central Illinois. It is a parallel highway to IL 116 to the north and

U.S. Route 136 U.S. Route 136 is an east-west U.S. highway that is a spur route of U.S. Route 36. It runs from Edison, Nebraska, at U.S. Route 6 and U.S. Route 34 to the Interstate 74/Interstate 465 interchange in Speedway, Indiana. This is a distance of . U ...

(US 136) to its south. It is a two-lane highway for most of its length. Illinois Route 9 runs eastward from the Mississippi River at the

to the Indiana state line near Cheneyville at SR 26 and SR 352. It crosses the

Illinois River The Illinois River ( mia, Inoka Siipiiwi) is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River and is approximately long. Located in the U.S. state of Illinois, it has a drainage basin of . The Illinois River begins at the confluence of the D ...

on the

John T. McNaughton Bridge The John T. McNaughton Bridge, also known as the Pekin Bridge, is a steel girder bridge that carries Illinois Route 9 over the Illinois River from downtown Pekin to Peoria County in central Illinois. The John T. McNaughton Bridge was built in 1 ...

at Pekin, where it becomes known as Court Street in the city. It has an interchange with

I-155 Interstate 155 is the designation for two Interstate Highways in the United States, both of which are related to Interstate 55: *Interstate 155 (Illinois), a spur to Peoria *Interstate 155 (Missouri–Tennessee) Interstate 155 (I-155) is a ...

at Tremont; I-55/ I-74 at Bloomington; and Interstate 57 (I-57) at Paxton.

History

IL 9 was established in 1918 as one of the original 46

State Bond Issue Route The organized State Highway System of the U.S. state of Illinois comprises all of the state routes in the state. Illinois Highway Code The states that all state highways are to be numbered and that no state highway shall go unnumbered. In addi ...

(SBI) routes. The routing of IL 9 has had two major changes since its establishment. The original western terminus was in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

, at the old

Keokuk Rail Bridge The Keokuk Bridge, also known as the Keokuk Municipal Bridge, is a double-deck, single-track railway and highway bridge across the Mississippi River in the United States between Keokuk, Iowa, and Hamilton, Illinois, just downstream of Mississip ...

completed in 1916 and then proceeded east through Carthage and Macomb ( county seats of Hancock and McDonough counties), east of Macomb, southwest of New Philadelphia, the highway turned north to Bushnell and then proceeded east along the current IL 9 alignment to

Canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ent ...

, Peoria County, and Pekin. * US 136, Hamilton to New Philadelphia, * IL 41, New Philadelphia to Bushnell * IL 9, Bushnell to Indiana state line. This current highway moved north to terminate in Niota at the

(longest double-deck swing-span bridge in the world) after its completion in July 1928. The route parallels the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway and Mississippi River to Dallas City then turns slightly southeast to LaHarpe. From LaHarpe, the highway parallels the original Toledo, Peoria and Western Railway right-of way to Bushnell. From 1935 to 1937, IL 9 traveled a different route from Pekin to Bloomington, that original route is now posted as: * IL 29, Pekin to North Pekin, * IL 98, North Pekin to Morton, * US 150, Morton to Bloomington.

Future

Between Macomb and Peoria, the next section of IL 336 is being studied Portions of IL 9 are being considered for the IL 336 project from Peoria to Macomb.

Major intersections

References

External links

{{commons category, Illinois Route 9
Illinois Highway Ends: Illinois Route 9

009 009 may refer to: * OO9, gauge model railways * O09, FAA identifier for Round Valley Airport * 0O9, FAA identifier for Ward Field, see List of airports in California * British secret agent 009, see 00 Agent * BA 009, see British Airways Flight 9 * ...