State Highway 74, usually abbreviated as SH-74 or OK-74 (or simply Highway 74) is the numbering of two different highways maintained by the
U.S.
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
state of
Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
. These highways were once a single major north–south route, connecting
Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...
to more rural parts of the state. The original road stretched from
SH-7 near
Tatums, Oklahoma
Tatums is a historic Freedmen's town in Carter County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 151 at the 2010 census, a decline of 12.2 percent from the figure of 172 in 2000. It is part of the Ardmore, Oklahoma Micropolitan Statistical Are ...
to
SH-11 west of
Deer Creek.
Due to encroaching Interstate highways—especially
Interstate 35
Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexican border ...
—the middle section of the route through
Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
,
Moore
Moore may refer to:
People
* Moore (surname)
** List of people with surname Moore
* Moore Crosthwaite (1907–1989), a British diplomat and ambassador
* Moore Disney (1765–1846), a senior officer in the British Army
* Moore Powell (died c. 1573 ...
, and Oklahoma City was decommissioned in 1979 for reasons of redundancy. However, some maps show SH-74 as
concurrent
Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to:
Law
* Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea''
* Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...
with I-35,
I-240, and
I-44
Interstate 44 (I-44) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. Although it is nominally an east–west road as it is even-numbered, it follows a more southwest–northeast alignment. Its western terminus is in Wichita Fa ...
, thus linking the two sections.
The north section of the route is
in length, while the southern section is
long. This leads to a total length of .
Route descriptions
Southern section
From the southern terminus at SH-7, the southern section of SH-74 goes due north to
Elmore City, where it intersects with
SH-29. After a couple of turns in the Elmore City area, the highway continues due north to
Maysville and
SH-19. Still continuing northward, the highway meets the southern terminus of
State Highway 24, and continues into
Purcell
Henry Purcell (, rare: September 1659 – 21 November 1695) was an English composer.
Purcell's style of Baroque music was uniquely English, although it incorporated Italian and French elements. Generally considered among the greatest En ...
.
In Purcell, SH-74 overlaps
US-77
U.S. Route 77 (US 77) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway which extends for in the central United States. As of 2005, Its southern terminus is in Brownsville, Texas, at Veteran's International Bridge on the Mexican border, wh ...
and
SH-39. It finally splits off and begins heading west. From here, the highway becomes more hilly and curvy as it heads toward
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 o ...
. The road never actually enters Washington, passing just one mile
[Distance signage at the SH-74/SH-24 junction.] (1.6 km) north of it. However, Washington is accessible via SH-24, which has its northern terminus at SH-74 as well. (Both termini of SH-24 are at SH-74.)
The highway then returns to a due north course after its intersection with SH-24. It goes through the town of
Goldsby and then ends at I-35.
Northern section
The highway's northern section begins at a
combination interchange
In the field of road transport, an interchange (American English) or a grade-separated junction (British English) is a road junction that uses grade separations to allow for the movement of traffic between two or more roadways or highways, usi ...
with
Interstate 44
Interstate 44 (I-44) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. Although it is nominally an east–west road as it is even-numbered, it follows a more southwest–northeast alignment. Its western terminus is in Wichita Fal ...
in
Bethany
Bethany ( grc-gre, Βηθανία,Murphy-O'Connor, 2008, p152/ref> Syriac: ܒܝܬ ܥܢܝܐ ''Bēṯ ʿAnyā'') or what is locally known as Al-Eizariya or al-Azariya ( ar, العيزرية, " laceof Lazarus"), is a Palestinian town in the West B ...
. The first part of the northern section is a freeway, called the Lake Hefner Parkway because part of it runs along the east shore of
Lake Hefner
Lake Hefner is a reservoir in northwestern Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It was built in the 1940s to expand the water supply for the city of Oklahoma City,[Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...](_blank)
. The freeway ends at 164th Street, and Highway 74 continues northward on Portland Avenue.
The road passes through the towns of
Crescent
A crescent shape (, ) is a symbol or emblem used to represent the lunar phase in the first quarter (the "sickle moon"), or by extension a symbol representing the Moon itself.
In Hinduism, Lord Shiva is often shown wearing a crescent moon on his ...
,
Covington, and
Garber, Oklahoma
Garber is a city in Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 822 at the 2010 census. The city is named after Martin Garber, father of Milton C. Garber, former U.S. congressman, Enid mayor, newspaper editor, and judge. The ...
as it continues, again on a due north course. Between Covington and Garber the road intersects with
US-64/
412, which can be used to access
Enid, just 14 miles
(22.5 km) to the west.
Twenty miles
(32.2 km) north of US-412, the highway meets
US-60
U.S. Route 60 is a major east–west United States highway, traveling from southwestern Arizona to the Atlantic Ocean coast in Virginia.
The highway's eastern terminus is in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where it is known as Pacific Avenue, in the ...
near
Lamont Lamont or LaMont may refer to:
People
*Lamont (name), people with the surname or given name ''Lamont'' or ''LaMont''
* Clan Lamont, a Scottish clan
Places Canada
*Lamont, Alberta, a town in Canada
* Lamont County, a municipal district in Albert ...
. The two roads share a brief concurrency before splitting off again. Eight miles
(12.9 km) north of this, SH-74 intersects with SH-11 between Deer Creek and
Numa, Oklahoma. It is at this intersection that the designation ends.
History
In 1927, a spur from SH-33 to Crescent was created as SH-44.
SH-44 was renumbered to SH-74 in 1931.
On December 10, 1934, SH-74 was extended southward to Oklahoma City.
The highway was further extended on September 9, 1935 to Norman.
In 1935 and 1936, the highway's alignment through Norman was modified; it was extended from its Main Street terminus to US-77.
Also in 1936, SH-74 began expanding northward. On August 18, the designation was added to a new section of highway between Crescent and US-64
(now
State Highway 164) in Covington.
Nearly a year later, the route was extended southward again. The State Highway Commission lengthened SH-74 through Goldsby and Purcell to SH-19 in Maysville on July 1, 1937.
The section of highway from Covington to US-60 in Lamont was added on April 14, 1941.
On June 5, 1945, it was extended further south to SH-29 in Elmore City (at the time simply named Elmore).
Throughout the 1950s, State Highway 74 continued to be realigned and extended. Southwest of Norman, it swapped routings with SH-9 on December 6, 1954.
SH-74 was extended twice in 1957, once in each direction: to the north on February 18 and to the south on June 10.
The 1957 lengthening brought SH-74 to its greatest length, with its present-day northern terminus and a southern terminus at
State Highway 53
The following highways are numbered 53:
Cambodia
* National Road 53 (Cambodia)
Canada
* Alberta Highway 53
India
* National Highway 53 (India)
Ireland
* N53 road (Ireland)
Italy
* Autostrada A53 (Italy), Autostrada A53
Japan
* Japan Natio ...
near
Milo
Milo may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Milo'' (magazine), a strength sports magazine
*'' Milo: Sticky Notes and Brain Freeze'', a 2011 children's novel by Alan Silberberg
* ''Milo'' (video game), a first-person adventure-puzzle computer ga ...
.
By 1967, I-35 had been constructed through Oklahoma City. On January 4, 1967, SH-74 was split into two sections, with the removal of the section between Goldsby and Norman.
The southern section was truncated on December 12, 1974, bringing the highway to its current southern terminus.
The gap between the two sections of SH-74 was widened on March 3, 1975, when the route was eliminated through Cleveland County and much of Oklahoma City, bringing SH-74 to its present-day termini.
The Lake Hefner Parkway opened in 1992. SH-74 was transferred to the new freeway on April 6.
Between April and July 2001, ODOT installed a Brifen Safety Fence
cable barrier
A cable barrier, sometimes referred to as guard cable or wire rope safety barrier (WRSB), is a type of roadside or median safety traffic barrier/guard rail. It consists of steel wire ropes mounted on weak posts. As is the case with any roadside b ...
along the Lake Hefner Parkway section of SH-74. This installation was the first application of this barrier design in the United States.
The freeway was extended from its former terminus just north of the Kilpatrick Turnpike to 164th Street in 2016.
Spurs
SH-74 currently has five spur routes (starting at B, and going up to a suffix of F). Prior to 2009, SH-74A served as a spur route in Norman as well, though it did not intersect SH-74.
SH-74A
SH-74A ran along Lindsey Street in
Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
, connecting I-35 to Classen Boulevard, the contemporary routing of
US-77
U.S. Route 77 (US 77) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway which extends for in the central United States. As of 2005, Its southern terminus is in Brownsville, Texas, at Veteran's International Bridge on the Mexican border, wh ...
. This highway ran straight through the
University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...
(OU) campus. It was long.
SH-74A was established by action of the Highway Commission on September 23, 1936. The highway's original extent was from SH-9/SH-74 (24th Avenue S.W.) to the OU campus, ending at Jenkins Avenue.
It was later extended to I-35 in the west and US-77 in the east.
It was removed by January 2010.
SH-74B
SH-74B connects SH-74 in Goldsby to
SH-76 south of
Blanchard
Blanchard is a French family name. It is also used as a given name. It derives from the Old French word ''blanchart'' which meant "whitish, bordering upon white". It is also an obsolete term for a white horse.
Geographical distribution
As of 2014, ...
.
Cole
Cole may refer to:
Plants
* Cole crops of the genus ''Brassica'', especially cabbage, kale, or rape (rapeseed).
People
* Cole (given name), people with the given name Cole
* Cole (surname), people with the surname Cole
Companies
*Cole Motor C ...
lies along the middle of this hilly spur.
SH-74C
SH-74C connects SH-74 in Crescent to US-77 north of
Guthrie.
SH-74D
SH-74D connected SH-74 to the unincorporated community of
Lovell. It was eliminated from the state highway system on March 5, 2018.
SH-74E
SH-74E goes from SH-51 north to
Marshall
Marshall may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria
Canada
* Marshall, Saskatchewan
* The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia
Liberia
* Marshall, Liberia
Marshall Islands
* Marshall Islands, an i ...
, and then it goes east and ends at SH-74. This spur was commissioned on 1951-08-06.
SH-74F
SH-74F goes from SH-74 west to
Cashion, and then goes north to
SH-33.
Junction list
Southern section
Northern section
References
External links
SH-74's north section at OKHighways.com
{{good article
074
Transportation in Oklahoma City
Transportation in Carter County, Oklahoma
Transportation in Garvin County, Oklahoma
Transportation in McClain County, Oklahoma
Transportation in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma
Transportation in Logan County, Oklahoma
Transportation in Garfield County, Oklahoma
Transportation in Grant County, Oklahoma