1970 Washington state highways (primary-secondary)

Primary State Highways were major state highways in the U.S. state of

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

used in the early 20th century. They were created as the first organized road numbering system in the state in stages between 1905 and 1937 and used until the 1964 state highway renumbering. These highways had named branch routes as well as secondary state highways with lettered suffixes. The system of primary and secondary state highways were replaced by sign routes (now state routes) to consolidate and create a more organized and systematic method of numbering the highways within the state.

History

The first state road, running across the

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...

roughly where State Route 20 now crosses it, was designated by the legislature in 1893 (However, this road wasn't actually opened until 1972). Two other roads—a Cascade crossing at present State Route 410 and a branch of the first road to Wenatchee—were added in 1897. The Washington Highway Department was established in 1905, and a set of twelve ''State Roads'', numbered from 1 to 12, were assigned. A thirteenth was added in 1907, and State Roads 14 to 18 in 1909.State Roads As Established by Legislature, 1893 to 1935 -
/ref> However, it was not until 1913 that a connected system was laid out—earlier state roads had been disconnected segments of road needing improvements. The seven ''primary roads'' were only assigned names, while the older state roads kept their numbers as ''secondary roads''. In 1923, most state roads were assigned new numbers, though the primary and secondary split remained, and several roads remained named only. The

United States Numbered Highways The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these hi ...

were assigned in late 1926, overlapping some of the State Roads. The first major reworking of the system was passed in 1937, including a complete renumbering. A number of ''Primary State Highways'' were designated, while ''Secondary State Highways'' were suffixed spurs off those. For instance, Primary State Highway 1 was the Pacific Highway (present Interstate 5), and Secondary State Highway 1B was a spur from Bellingham to the Canadian border (now State Route 539). U.S. Routes kept dual designations with State Highways. By 1952, the present highway shield, in the shape of

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

's head, had been adopted. The primary/secondary state highway systems were replaced by the current numbering system in the 1960s, at the behest of the state legislature following the

1962 World's Fair The Century 21 Exposition (also known as the Seattle World's Fair) was a world's fair held April 21, 1962, to October 21, 1962, in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The signs for the new highway numbers, which would be organized based on their general direction and—for secondary routes—a leading digit, first were posted in late 1963 and took effect in January 1964. The new numbers also coincided with existing U.S. Routes and new

Interstate Highways The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. Th ...

to reduce confusion and eliminate duplicate numbers. The PSH/SSH signs were removed by 1970.

Secondary State Highways

Primary State Highway 1

PSH 1 followed the route of

U.S. Route 99 U.S. Route 99 (US 99) was a main north–south United States Numbered Highway on the West Coast of the United States until 1964, running from Calexico, California, on the US–Mexico border to Blaine, Washington, on the U.S.-Canada border ...

(now Interstate 5) from Vancouver to Blaine. It also served U.S. Route 99 Alternate (now SR 11) in Skagit and Whatcom counties.

Primary State Highway 2

This route followed the route of U.S. Route 10 (now

Interstate 90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West, Great Plains, Midwest, and ...

) from Seattle to near Ellensburg, then

U.S. Route 97 U.S. Route 97 (US 97) is a major north–south route of the United States Numbered Highway System in the Pacific Northwest region. It runs for approximately through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, primarily serving in ...

to Peshastin, then U.S. Route 2 to Spokane, then US 10/I-90 from Spokane to the Idaho state line. A southern branch of PSH 2 followed the route of

Washington State Route 18 State Route 18 (SR 18) is a State highways in Washington, state highway in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, serving southeastern King County, Washington, King County. The highway travels northeast, primarily as a Contr ...

from Snoqualmie to Tacoma.

Primary State Highway 3

This route followed Interstate 82 from Ellensburg to the Oregon State line (concurrent with U.S. Route 97 from Ellensburg to Union Gap and U.S. Route 410/12 from Union Gap to the Tri-Cities),

U.S. Route 410 U.S. Route 410 (US 410) was a U.S. Highway in Washington and Idaho that existed from 1926 to 1967. It ran from US 101 in Aberdeen, Washington, to US 95 in Lewiston, Idaho, passing through the cities of Olympia, Tacoma, Yak ...

(now

U.S. Route 12 U.S. Route 12 (US 12) is an east–west United States Numbered Highways, United States highway, running from Aberdeen, Washington, to Detroit, Detroit, Michigan, for almost . The highway has mostly been superseded by Interstate 90 (I-90) an ...

) from the Tri-Cities to Clarkston,

U.S. Route 195 U.S. Route 195 (US 195) is a north–south United States Highway, of which all but 0.65 miles of its 94.02 miles (1.05 of 151.95 km) are within the state of Washington. The highway starts in rural Idaho north of the city ...

from Clarkston to Pullman, SR 27 from Pullman to Oaksedale, US 195 from Oakesdale to Spokane, U.S. Route 2 from Spokane to Mead and

U.S. Route 395 U.S. Route 395 (US 395) is a U.S. Route in the western United States. The southern terminus of the route is in the Mojave Desert at Interstate 15 near Hesperia. The northern terminus is at the Canada–US border near Laurier, where the road be ...

from Mead to the U.S.-Canada border. Spurs extended along I-82/, SR 125 and SR 129 from Tri-Cities, Walla Walla and Clarkston to the Oregon State Line This route was also known as the "Inland Empire Highway" and crossed the first, and for a time, the only highway bridge over the middle Columbia River. That bridge was located between the towns of Kennewick, WA and Pasco, WA.

Primary State Highway 4

This route followed State Route 30 (now part of State Route 20) from

Tonasket Tonasket is a city in Okanogan County, Washington, United States. The population was 1,032 at the 2010 census. History Tonasket was officially incorporated on December 16, 1927. It is named after Chief Tonasket of the Okanogan people, a local ...

Republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

and State Route 21 from Republic to Wilbur.

Primary State Highway 5

PSH 5 began at PSH 2 in Seattle and traveled south along the

Green River Green River may refer to: Rivers Canada *Green River (British Columbia), a tributary of the Lillooet River *Green River, a tributary of the Saint John River, also known by its French name of Rivière Verte *Green River (Ontario), a tributary of ...

Valley and across the Cascade Range to a junction with PSH 3 in Yakima. The section from

Enumclaw Enumclaw ( ) is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 12,543 at the 2020 census. The Enumclaw Plateau, on which the city resides, was formed by a volcanic mudflow (lahar) from Mount Rainier approximately 5,700 ye ...

to Yakima was co-signed with US 410. PSH 5 had several branch routes that connected to Renton, Tacoma,

Mount Rainier National Park Mount Rainier National Park is an American national park located in southeast Pierce County and northeast Lewis County in Washington state. The park was established on March 2, 1899, as the fourth national park in the United States, preservi ...

, and

Cayuse Pass Cayuse Pass (el. ) is a mountain pass in the Cascade Mountains in the state of Washington. The pass is about southeast of Enumclaw on State Route 410. The intersection with State Route 123 is at the pass. The pass carries State Route 410 a ...

. Two branches, the

White Pass Highway U.S. Route 12 (US 12) is a major east-west U.S. Highway, running from Aberdeen, Washington, to Detroit, Michigan. It spans 430.8 miles across the state of Washington, and is the only numbered highway to span the entire state from west to east, ...

and

Naches Pass Highway Primary State Highways were major state highways in the U.S. state of Washington used in the early 20th century. They were created as the first organized road numbering system in the state in stages between 1905 and 1937 and used until the 1964 ...

, were fully not built at the time. During the 1964 renumbering, the trunk route of PSH 5 was divided between SR 167 from Seattle to Enumclaw and US 410 (now SR 410) from Enumclaw to Yakima. SR 167 was later rerouted away at Auburn, leaving the former highway to Enumclaw signed as SR 164. Its branches became various highways, including SR 7 from Tacoma to

Morton Morton may refer to: People * Morton (surname) * Morton (given name) Fictional * Morton Koopa, Jr., a character and boss in ''Super Mario Bros. 3'' * A character in the ''Charlie and Lola'' franchise * A character in the 2008 film '' Horton ...

, the former SR 14 (now US 12) from Morton to Yakima, SR 165, SR 169, and SR 706. ;Branches *PSH 5 AT (Auburn–Tacoma): Traveled southeast from Tacoma to Puyallup and north to Auburn. Now part of SR 167. *PSH 5 CP (Cayuse Pass): Connected PSH 5 to the White Pass Highway via

. It became SR 143 and was renumbered to SR 123. *PSH 5 EF (Enumclaw–Fairfax): Connected the northwest entrance of Mount Rainier National Park to Enumclaw. Most of the highway became SR 165. *PSH 5 EK (Elbe–Kosmos): Connected the now-defunct town of Kosmos to

and

Elbe The Elbe (; cs, Labe ; nds, Ilv or ''Elv''; Upper and dsb, Łobjo) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Repu ...

. It was renumbered as part of SR 7. *PSH 5 ER (Enumclaw–Renton): Traveled north from Enumclaw to Renton, where it connected to a branch of PSH 1. It was renumbered to SR 169 *PSH 5 SB (Sumner–Buckley): An east–west route connecting Sumner to Buckley. It was renumbered to be part of US 410 and later SR 410. *PSH 5 TR (Tacoma–Rainier): Traveled south from Tacoma to

and east to the Nisqually Entrance of Mount Rainier National Park. The north–south section became SR 7, while the remainder to the national park is now SR 706. *PSH 5 WP (White Pass): A connector between PSH 1 and PSH 5 in Naches. Now part of US 12. *An additional branch, the

, was not given a separate designation. It became SR 168.

Primary State Highway 6

The route followed present-day U.S. Route 2 from Spokane to Newport, and State Route 31 (a portion of which is now State Route 20) from Newport to the Canada-United States border

Primary State Highway 7

This route followed U.S. Route 10/Interstate 90 from

Ellensburg Ellensburg is a city in and the county seat of Kittitas County, Washington, United States. It is located just east of the Cascade Range near the junction of Interstate 90 and Interstate 82. The population was 18,666 at the 2020 census. and was ...

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

, State Route 281 from George to Quincy, and State Route 28 from Quincy to

Davenport Davenport may refer to: Places Australia *Davenport, Northern Territory, a locality * Hundred of Davenport, cadastral unit in South Australia **Davenport, South Australia, suburb of Port Augusta **District Council of Davenport, former local govern ...

Primary State Highway 8

The route followed State Route 14 (designated as Washington State Route 12 from 1964-67) from Vancouver, Washington to Maryhill,

from Maryhill to Toppenish and State Route 22 from Toppenish to Buena.

Primary State Highway 9

This route followed

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

from Olympia to Aberdeen.

Primary State Highway 10

This route ran on

from the U.S.-Canada border to Wenatchee, and State Route 28 from Wenatchee to Quincy. A spur extended along State Route 17 from Brewster to Coulee City

Primary State Highway 11

This route followed

from Pasco to Ritzville and U.S. Route 10/

from Ritzville to Spokane

Primary State Highway 12

This route followed State Route 6 from Chehalis to Raymond, and

from Raymond to Johnsons Landing, and

State Route 4 Route 4, or Highway 4, may refer to several highways in the following countries: International * AH4, Asian Highway 4 * European route E04 * European route E004 * Cairo – Cape Town Highway Albania * SH-4 road in Albania from Durres to Kakav ...

from Johnsons Landing to Kelso.

Primary State Highway 13

This route followed

U.S. Route 101 in Washington U.S. Route 101 (US 101) is a United States Numbered Highway that runs along the West Coast of the United States, West Coast from Los Angeles, California to Tumwater, Washington. Within the state of Washington (state), Washington, US 1 ...

from Aberdeen to Raymond.

Primary State Highway 14

This route followed State Route 16 from Hoodsport to Tacoma

Primary State Highway 15

This route followed U.S. Route 2 from Everett to Peshastin

Primary State Highway 16

This route followed State Route 20 from Fredonia to

Pateros Pateros, officially the Municipality of Pateros ( tgl, Bayan ng Pateros), is the lone municipality of Metro Manila, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 63,643 people. This municipality is famous for its duck-rai ...

, and State Route 153 from Pateros to Twisp

Primary State Highway 17

Primary State Highway 18

The route followed the route of U.S. Route 10 (now

) from

to Ritzville

Primary State Highway 19

The provisional designation of a proposed outer bypass of the Seattle metropolitan area between

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

and Bothell, also known unofficially as Interstate 605.

Primary State Highway 21

View shows in foreground rock fill slope protection at about Sta

The route followed present-day State Route 104 from the Kingston Ferry to the

Hood Canal Bridge The Hood Canal Bridge (officially William A. Bugge Bridge) is a floating bridge in the northwest United States, located in western Washington. It carries State Route 104 across Hood Canal of Puget Sound and connects the Olympic and Kitsap P ...

, then State Route 3 from the Hood Canal Bridge to Belfair, then State Route 106 from Belfair to Skokomish

Primary State Highway 22

The route followed present-day

Washington State Route 25 State Route 25 (SR 25), named the Coulee Reservoir Highway, is a state highway serving communities in Lincoln and Stevens counties in the U.S. state of Washington. The highway begins at an intersection with (US 2) east of Daven ...

References

;General * ;Notes {{reflist Primary State Highways