State Route 444 (SR 444, Ohio 444) is an

state route 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 ...

that runs from

Dayton Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Da ...

through

Fairborn Fairborn is a city in Greene County, Ohio, United States. The population was 34,620 at the 2020 census. Fairborn is a suburb of Dayton, and part of the Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the only city in the world named Fairborn, a port ...

in the US state of

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. Most of the north–south signed route is an urban four-lane highway which passes through both commercial and residential properties. For some of its path, SR 444 passes through

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB) is a United States Air Force base and census-designated place just east of Dayton, Ohio, in Greene County, Ohio, Greene and Montgomery County, Ohio, Montgomery counties. It includes both Wright and Patte ...

. The highway was first signed in 1959 on much the same alignment as today. SR 444 replaced the SR 4 designation of the highway, which dated back to 1927. In 1927, SR 4 replaced SR 52, which was established in 1923. The northern terminus was moved to its current location when a section of Interstate 675 (I–675) opened in 1976. In 2012 a section of the road was rerouted away from the base, using city streets in Fairborn.

Route description

SR 444 begins at an interchange on SR 4, in Montgomery County. The highway heads southeast as a four-lane divided highway, passing through woodland and entering Greene County. The road passes through

, then curves northeast, having an interchange with SR 844. SR 444 turns southeast crossing a railroad track, before turning northeast again, as a two-lane highway. The highway heads northeast through

, passing residential properties, before curving due north and becoming a four-lane undivided highway. As the highway heads north it crosses the railroad track again. The route turns due west towards the base, before turning due north. SR 444 begins a concurrency with SR 235, west of downtown Fairborn. The concurrency heads northeast, passing through commercial properties, before SR 235 turns due north. SR 444 continues northeast, passing through commercial properties, before becoming a two-lane highway. As a two-lane highway SR 444 passes through woodland, before having an interchange with I–675. This interchange is the northern terminus of SR 444. SR 444 is designated "Freedom Memorial Highway", in honor of the 52 U.S. hostages held for 444 days during the 1979-1981

Iran hostage crisis On November 4, 1979, 52 United States diplomats and citizens were held hostage after a group of militarized Iranian college students belonging to the Muslim Student Followers of the Imam's Line, who supported the Iranian Revolution, took over t ...

and of the eight service members who died during a 1980 rescue attempt. The entire length of SR 444 is part of the National Highway System, a system of routes important to the nation's economy, mobility and defense. The highway is maintained by the

Ohio Department of Transportation The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT; ) is the administrative department of the Ohio state government responsible for developing and maintaining all state and U.S. roadways outside of municipalities and all Interstates except the Ohio T ...

(ODOT).

History

In 1923 the route that became SR 444 was signed as SR 52. SR 52 was changed to SR 4 in 1927. SR 444 was originally signed in 1959, from its current southern terminus to

Interstate 70 Interstate 70 (I-70) is a major east–west Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the United States that runs from Interstate 15, I-15 near Cove Fort, Utah, to a park and ride lot just east of Interstate 695 (Maryland), I-695 in ...

, at the time it was U.S. Route 40. The northern terminus moved to its current position in 1976, when Interstate 675 was completed and signed along the alignment from SR 444’s current northern terminus north to I–70. In 2012, WPAFB extended its boundary; on October 9 of that year, the portion of route that would otherwise run through WPAFB was rerouted through Fairborn.

Major intersections

References

External links

{{Attached KML, display=title,inline
State Route 444 Endpoint Photos
444 Transportation in Montgomery County, Ohio Transportation in Greene County, Ohio Transportation in Clark County, Ohio