State Road 56 in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

is a route that travels the south central part of the state from west to east.

Route description

The western terminus of SR 56 is near

Hazleton Hazleton may refer to: Places * Hazleton, British Columbia, Canada * Hazleton, Gloucestershire, a village in Gloucestershire, England ** Hazleton long barrows, Neolithic burial mounds at Hazleton, Gloucestershire, England ** Hazleton Abbey, a me ...

U.S. Route 41 U.S. Route 41, also U.S. Highway 41 (US 41), is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs from Miami, Florida, to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Until 1949, the part in southern Florida, from Naples to Miami, ...

. SR 56 heads northeast to Hazleton. After Hazleton SR 56 turns southeast then back northeast, until State Road 65 (SR 65). Where SR 56 heads east towards Petersburg, in Petersburg SR 56 is

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 State Road 57 (SR 57), until the

intersection In mathematics, the intersection of two or more objects is another object consisting of everything that is contained in all of the objects simultaneously. For example, in Euclidean geometry, when two lines in a plane are not parallel, their i ...

with State Road 61 (SR 61). SR 56 leaves Petersburg concurrent with SR 61 heading south, until SR 56 turns east. South of Otwell SR 56 has an intersection with State Road 257. SR 56 enters

Jasper Jasper, an aggregate of microgranular quartz and/or cryptocrystalline chalcedony and other mineral phases,Kostov, R. I. 2010. Review on the mineralogical systematics of jasper and related rocks. – Archaeometry Workshop, 7, 3, 209-213PDF/ref> ...

on the west side and then has an intersection with

U.S. Route 231 U.S. Route 231 (US 231) is a north-south United States Numbered Highway System, U.S highway that is a parallel route of U.S. Route 31, US 31. It runs for from St. John, Indiana, St. John, Indiana, at U.S. Route 41 in Indiana, US 41 ...

, the two routes are concurrent until they leave Jasper on the north side of town. North of Jasper SR 56 turns east towards Paoli passing through

French Lick French Lick is a town in French Lick Township, Orange County, Indiana. The population was 1,807 at the time of the 2010 census. In November 2006, the French Lick Resort Casino, the state's tenth casino in the modern legalized era, opened, drawing ...

. East of Paoli SR 56 heads towards Salem passing through an intersection with State Road 337 before passing by the entrance to

Salem Speedway Salem Speedway is a long paved oval racetrack in Washington Township, Washington County, near Salem, Indiana, United States, approximately south of Indianapolis. The track has 33° degrees of banking in the corners. Major auto racing series ...

. SR 56 and State Road 60 have a concurrency from the west side of Salem to downtown Salem. SR 56 leaves Salem heading northeast, then turning east near the southern terminus of State Road 39 (SR 39). After SR 39, SR 56 passing over

Interstate 65 Interstate 65 (I-65) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates ending in 5, it is a major crosscountry, north–south route, connecting between the Great Lakes and the Gulf ...

(I-65). Then SR 56 enters Scottsburg where SR 56 has an intersection with U.S. Route 31. After leaving Scottsburg, SR 56 has a concurrency with State Road 203 and State Road 3. Then SR 56 heads toward

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

where SR 56 and State Road 62 (SR 62) has a concurrency. East of Hanover SR 62 turns north and SR 56 heads east. East of the intersection with SR 62, SR 56 has an intersection with State Road 256 (SR 256). Then SR 56 enters

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

where SR 56 has an intersection with the southern terminus of State Road 7 and a concurrency with

U.S. Route 421 U.S. Route 421 (also U.S. Highway 421, US 421) is a diagonal northwest–southeast United States Numbered Highway in the states of North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Kentucky, and Indiana. The highway runs for from Fort Fisher, North Caro ...

. East of Madison SR 56 parallels the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

. Then in Vevay SR 56 has an intersection with the southern terminus of State Road 129 and the western terminus of State Road 156 (SR 156). After Vevay SR 56 heads north-northeast toward

Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

passing through intersection with State Road 250, SR 156, and State Road 262, passing through the town of Rising Sun. The northern terminus SR 56 is at an intersection with

U.S. Route 50 U.S. Route 50 or U.S. Highway 50 (US 50) is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching from Interstate 80 (I-80) in West Sacramento, California, to Maryland Route 528 (MD 528) in Ocean City, Maryland, on the Atlanti ...

and State Road 350.

History

In the western part of Indiana SR 56 originally followed the same routing at current State Road 64 takes. In 1930 the east terminus of SR 56 was Lawrenceburg at

U.S. Route 52 U.S. Route 52 (US 52) is a major United States highway in the central United States that extends from the northern to southeastern region of the United States. Contrary to most other even-numbered U.S. Highways, US 52 primarily follows ...

, this route is now part of State Road 1.Indiana Highway Ends - SR 56
East of US 231 in northeastern Dubois County, SR 56 approximates part of the course of the

Buffalo Trace (road) The Vincennes Trace was a major trackway running through what are now the American states of Kentucky, Indiana, and Illinois. Originally formed by millions of migrating bison, the Trace crossed the Ohio River near the Falls of the Ohio and contin ...

, a migration route for buffalo that provided a major avenue for travel by Native Americans and Europeans in what is now

Southern Indiana Southern Indiana is a region consisting of the southern third of the state of Indiana. The region's history and geography has led to a blend of Northern and Southern culture distinct from the remainder of Indiana. It is often considered to be p ...

.Indiana's Historic Pathways, http://usi.edu/ihp/maps.aspx (accessed 2014-03-29).

Major intersections

References

External links

{{attached KML 056 Transportation in Dearborn County, Indiana Transportation in Dubois County, Indiana Transportation in Gibson County, Indiana Transportation in Jefferson County, Indiana Transportation in Ohio County, Indiana Transportation in Orange County, Indiana Transportation in Pike County, Indiana Transportation in Scott County, Indiana Transportation in Switzerland County, Indiana Transportation in Washington County, Indiana