State Highway 9, abbreviated as SH-9, OK-9, or simply Highway 9, is a major east–west highway in 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 ...

. Spanning across the central part of the state, SH-9 begins at the

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

state line near Madge, Oklahoma, and ends at the

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

state line near

Fort Smith, Arkansas Fort Smith is the third-largest city in Arkansas and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 89,142. It is the principal city of the Fort Smith, Arkansas–Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Are ...

. State Highway 9 is a major highway around the

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 ...

area. At , SH-9 is Oklahoma's second-longest state highway (second to State Highway 3).

Route description

West of Interstate 35

From the western terminus at State Highway 203 along the Texas border, the highway travels due east for and intersects with SH-30 between Madge and

Vinson VINSON is a family of voice encryption devices used by U.S. and allied military and law enforcement, based on the NSA's classified Suite A SAVILLE encryption algorithm and 16 kbit/s CVSD audio compression. It replaces the Vietnam War-era N ...

. SH-9 continues east for without intersecting another highway until meeting US-283 and SH-34 north of Mangum. The highway overlaps the other two routes for , going north, before splitting off and heading east again through

Granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

and

Lone Wolf A lone wolf is a wolf not belonging to a pack. Lone wolf or Lone Wolf may also refer to: Literature *''Lone Wolf'', a book by Kathryn Lasky, part of the series called ''Wolves of the Beyond'' *''Lone Wolf and Cub'', a 1970 Japanese graphic nov ...

. East of Lone Wolf, the highway forms a concurrency with SH-44. Near

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

, SH-9 overlaps US-183 for (again going northward) before splitting off again. Continuing east, SH-9 passes through Gotebo, Mountain View, and Carnegie. Around Fort Cobb, Oklahoma, the highway begins of travel to the south. There, the route links up with the concurrent U.S. Highways 62 and 281. While US-281 will split off in Anadarko, SH-9 and US-62 remain concurrent until

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

. In

Chickasha Chickasha is a city in and the county seat of Grady County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 16,036 at the 2010 census. Chickasha is home to the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. The city is named for and strongly connected ...

, US-277 joins to form another three-route concurrency with US-62 and SH-9. On the eastern edge of Chickasha, US-62/277/SH-9 have an interchange with

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 Fal ...

, or more commonly known as the

H.E. Bailey Turnpike The H. E. Bailey Turnpike is an toll road in the southwestern region of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The route, opened on April 23, 1964, is a four-lane limited access highway that connects Oklahoma City to Lawton in its northern section and L ...

. Traveling northeast from Chickasha, US-62/277/SH-9 are routed to the town 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, ...

. Four miles later, SH-9 splits away from the two U.S. routes at a

diamond interchange A diamond interchange is a common type of road junction, used where a controlled-access highway crosses a minor road. Design The freeway itself is grade-separated from the minor road, one crossing the other over a bridge. Approaching the ...

that also serves as the eastern terminus of the H.E. Bailey Turnpike Spur. SH-9 remains without any concurrent routes until Goldsby. The section of road east of US-62/277, recently upgraded to a four-lane divided highway, provides a link from the H.E. Bailey Turnpike Spur to

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 ...

. At the interstate, SH-9 merges onto I-35 northbound to cross the

Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .

East of Interstate 35

Through Norman, Highway 9 serves as a major artery providing access to 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 ...

campus (in particular, the

Lloyd Noble Center The Lloyd Noble Center is a 10,967-seat multi-purpose arena located in Norman, Oklahoma, some south of downtown Oklahoma City. It opened in 1975 and is home to the University of Oklahoma men's and women's basketball teams. History Before the co ...

). Around the area, the route is a four-lane divided expressway (with surface crossings and stoplights). However, after a full interchange with 72nd Avenue SE, the road becomes a two lane highway again. SH-9 continues eastward, passing Lake Thunderbird State Park, before reaching the towns of Tecumseh and

Seminole The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, an ...

. The road intersects the

Indian Nation Turnpike The Indian Nation Turnpike, also designated State Highway 375 (SH-375), is a toll road in southeastern Oklahoma, United States, running between Hugo and Henryetta, Oklahoma, a distance of . It is the longest tollway in the state. Route descrip ...

near Hanna, and

US-69 U.S. Route 69 (US 69) is a major north–south United States highway. When it was first created, it was only long, but it has since been expanded into a Minnesota to Texas cross-country route. The highway's southern terminus (as well as ...

near Eufaula. SH-9 provides access to the south side of Lake Eufaula before reaching

Stigler Stigler is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Franz Stigler (1915–2008), Luftwaffe pilot who escorted an American bomber back to safety in 1943 * George Stigler (1911–1991), Nobel Prize–winning U.S. economist, associated w ...

. SH-9 overlaps US-59 for , after which the road becomes concurrent with US-271. Both remain concurrent, until the highway ends at the Arkansas border. After passing the Arkansas state line, State Highway 9 becomes I-540, and US-271 continues over the state line concurrent with the Interstate.

History

Officially designated on August 24, 1924, the original route encompassed all of current SH-9 west of Blanchard. East of Blanchard, SH-9 followed a more northerly route. Bypassing Norman, SH-9 ran north to

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 ...

before going east through Harrah, Meeker,

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

Henryetta Henryetta is a city in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 5,927 at the 2010 census, down 9.6 percent from the figure of 6,096 recorded in 2000. History Hugh Henry established a ranch on Creek Nation land in 1885. He so ...

, and Checotah. The highway ended at the original State Highway 3 in Spiro. Upon the creation of the

United States Numbered Routes 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 h ...

system in 1926, the section between Oklahoma City and Warner was overlaid with U.S. Highway 266. Four years later in 1930, SH-9 was truncated to Chickasha. By this time, much of the route had become part of U.S. Highway 62. On 1935-08-27, the route was extended eastward, taking over the original SH-37. SH-9's eastern terminus became SH-48 near Seminole. On 1937-08-25, the route was brought further east to end at US-69 in Eufaula. Part of the newly commissioned section was rescinded on 1937-10-19, when a small segment just east of SH-48 and the entire Hughes County portion were dropped from the highway. These sections were re-added on 1938-09-27. State Highway 9 was extended eastward twice in the route's history. The first extension occurred on 1941-02-26, and extended SH-9 to SH-2 at Whitefield. The final extension brought SH-9 to the Arkansas state line on 1941-11-12. The only major realignment in SH-9's history since 1941 was the Norman expressway bypass, which was designated as SH-9 on 1971-11-08. After the

I-40 bridge disaster The I-40 bridge disaster was a bridge collapse that occurred southeast of Webbers Falls, Oklahoma, United States at 7:45 a.m. on May 26, 2002. Freight barges being transported on the Arkansas River collided with a pier supporting the Inters ...

, parts of State Highway 9 in eastern Oklahoma served as an emergency detour for eastbound

I-40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...

traffic. All eastbound traffic was routed along the section of SH-9 between SH-2 in Whitefield and US-59. In addition, the section of SH-9 between US-59 and the Arkansas state line were used for eastbound traffic for

commercial truck Truck classifications are typically based upon the maximum loaded weight of the truck, typically using the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) and sometimes also the gross trailer weight rating (GTWR), and can vary among jurisdictions. United ...

Future

Discussions are under way to widen SH-9 to four lanes east of US-77 in Norman. The City of Norman and ODOT have conflict in their proposals for the design of the widened highway. ODOT has proposed a paved median, with shoulders to accommodate bicyclists. Norman's proposal includes a grass median and a separate bike path along the north side of the right-of-way, running from 24th Avenue S.E. to

Lake Thunderbird Lake Thunderbird is a reservoir located in Norman, Oklahoma. The lake was constructed between 1962 and 1965 for the purpose of providing municipal water to the nearby communities of Del City, Midwest City and Norman. It is formed by an earthfill em ...

. ODOT criticized the city's plan as too expensive. The city is now proposing a compromise, with a narrower raised concrete median and separate bike path.

Spurs

State Highway 9 creates three spur highways throughout the state. Additionally, it has two business routes, serving towns the main route bypasses. These routes are: *Business SH-9, a three-mile (5 km) loop through Hobart. * Another instance of Business SH-9 that loops through Gotebo. (This is not shown on the state highway map.) Oklahoma State Highway 9A

*SH-9A is a designation for three distinct highways: ** A highway that intersects SH-9 in Earlsboro and links the parent highway to I-40 and SH-39 in Konawa. The spur also passes through the town of Maud. ** A connector highway from US-69 to SH-9 south of Eufaula. ** A spur route to SH-112 in Arkoma. This section is a former alignment of U.S. Highway 271.

Junction list

References

External links

OKHighways.com -- OK 9

{{good article

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 * ...