U.S. Route 601 (US 601) is a north–south United States highway that runs for from

U.S. Route 321 U.S. Route 321 (US 321) is a spur of U.S. Route 21. It runs for from Hardeeville, South Carolina to Lenoir City, Tennessee; with both serving as southern termini. It reaches its northernmost point at Elizabethton, Tennessee. Becaus ...

, near

Tarboro Tarboro is a town located in Edgecombe County, North Carolina, Edgecombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is part of the Rocky Mount, North Carolina, Rocky Mount Rocky Mount metropolitan area, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 ...

, South Carolina, to

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 ...

, in Mount Airy, North Carolina. In North Carolina, it is one of the main north-south corridors connecting the cities of Salisbury, Mocksville, and Mount Airy.

Route description

South Carolina

US 601 begins at US 321 near Tarboro, SC and intersects with such highways as US 278 in Hampton. Beginning in

Bamberg Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. The town dates back to the 9th century, when its name was derived from the nearby ' castle. C ...

US 601 has an overlap with US 301, then intersects US 78. Within the vicinity of Orangeburg, the overlap with US 301 ends at US 21, then it encounters Interstate 26 at Exit 145. In the vicinity of Lugoff, US 601 encounters

Interstate 20 Interstate 20 (I‑20) is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the Southern United States. I-20 runs beginning at an interchange with Interstate 10, I-10 in Scroggins Draw, Texas, and ending at an interchange with Interstate 95, I-95 in Flo ...

at exit 92 near then begins another short overlap with US 1 which last until

Camden Camden may refer to: People * Camden (surname), a surname of English origin * Camden Joy (born 1964), American writer * Camden Toy (born 1957), American actor Places Australia * Camden, New South Wales * Camden, Rosehill, a heritage res ...

where that concurrency is replaced by US 521 which last slightly longer than the previous one, ending in Kershaw. The route joins SC 9 three miles west of Pageland, then leaves SC 9 when it arrives in downtown Pageland before eventually crossing the North Carolina border.

North Carolina

After crossing the north–South Carolina border, US 601 intersects with such highways as US 74 in Monroe, which it shares a short concurrency with until the interchange with the northern terminus of NC 207. Just as it leaves the city limits, it runs past the site of a future interchange with the Monroe Bypass. Traveling north along what is now known as "Concord Highway" it encounters another intersection with the

NC 24 North Carolina Highway 24 (NC 24) is the longest primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Traveling east–west between the Charlotte metropolitan area and the Crystal Coast, connecting the cities of Charlotte, Fay ...

NC 27 North Carolina Highway 27 (NC 27) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The route traverses through southern and central North Carolina, about of it as a concurrency with NC 24. Route description NC&nb ...

overlap in

Midland Midland may refer to: Places Australia * Midland, Western Australia Canada * Midland, Albert County, New Brunswick * Midland, Kings County, New Brunswick * Midland, Newfoundland and Labrador * Midland, Ontario India * Midland Ward, Kohima, Nagal ...

and later an interchange with NC 49 south of Concord. Also in Concord, it joins US 29 which it overlaps until Interstate 85 at Exit 58 and runs along the interstate until it reaches Salisbury, at exit 75, then joins a brief concurrency with US 70. In Mocksville, the road has a short concurrency with US 64 beginning at the western terminus of US 158, and after leaving that overlap encounters Interstate 40 at exit 170. Further north it has an interchange with US 421 in Yadkinville, Interstate 74 at exit 11 near White Plains, and finally terminates at US 52 in Mount Airy.

History

Established in 1927 as an original US Highway; the original routing was from US 1, in

Cheraw The Cheraw people, also known as the Saraw or Saura, were a Siouan-speaking tribe of indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, in the Piedmont area of North Carolina near the Sauratown Mountains, east of Pilot Mountain and north of the Yad ...

, to US 17/ US 76, in Florence. In 1932, US 601 was extended north into North Carolina, replacing SC 96. In North Carolina US 601 was placed on concurrency with almost all of NC 80, from the South Carolina state line, near

McFarlan McFarlan is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Alex McFarlan (1869–1939), American baseball player *Dan McFarlan (1873–1924), American baseball player *Duncan McFarlan (died 1816), American politician See also *McFarlan, Nort ...

, to downtown Mount Airy. In 1934, NC 80 was expunged from US 601. In 1935, most of US 601 was replaced by the arrival of US 52. From

Salisbury, North Carolina Salisbury is a city in the Piedmont region of North Carolina, United States; it has been the county seat of Rowan County since 1753 when its territory extended to the Mississippi River. Located northeast of Charlotte and within its metropolita ...

Florence, South Carolina Florence is a city in and the county seat of Florence County, South Carolina, United States. It lies at the intersection of Interstates 20 and 95 and is the eastern terminus of the former. It is the primary city within the Florence metropolit ...

, the route was converted to US 52; which marked its departure from South Carolina. Around 1952, US 601 was extended south from Salisbury. Starting with a concurrency with US 29 to Kannapolis, from there it followed US 29A to downtown Concord. Replacing NC 151, it continues south through Monroe and to the state line. In South Carolina, US 601 returns by replacing SC 151 from the border to Pageland. From there it replaced SC 902 and part of SC 265 to Kershaw. Between Kershaw and

, it overlaps with US 521, replacing SC 26 ( SC 52 before 1935) from

to Orangeburg, then in concurrency with US 301 to

. Then finally replacing SC 36 to US 321, where it continues and ends with US 321 in

Hardeeville Hardeeville is a city in Jasper and Beaufort counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 7,473 as of the 2020 census, an increase of over 150% since 2010. Hardeeville is included within the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Beaufo ...

. In 1965, US 601 was realigned on new road bypassing west of downtown Concord, leaving a business loop. In 1970, US 601 was realigned on new road bypassing east of Dobson, leaving a business loop. In 1974, US 601 was extended to

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1, US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between M ...

; however, by 1977, US 601 was truncated to its current southern terminus at US 321, near

. In 1979, US 601 was rerouted west of Salisbury, with concurrency with US 70; Innis Street was downgraded to secondary status. In the late 1980s, US 601 was rerouted onto Interstate 85, in Salisbury from exit 68 to exit 74; which was extended in the late 1990s, going south to exit 58 in Concord. In 1999, US 601 was truncated to its current northern terminus at US 52 in Mount Airy.

South Carolina Highway 26

South Carolina Highway 26 (SC 26) was an original

state highway 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 was established in 1935 as a renumbering of SC 52 from U.S. Route 21 (US 21; now US 21/ US 176) in St. Matthews to US 76 near the Wateree River. In July 1936, it was extended north to the

Kershaw County Kershaw County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 65,403. The county seat and largest city is Camden. The county was created in 1791 from parts of Claremont, Lancaster, Fairfie ...

line, east of Fort Jackson. In May 1937, SC 26 was extended again to US 1 in Lugoff. In November of that year, its path from the Eastover area to Lugoff was re-routed on new roadway. Its former path through Eastover was redesignated as SC 26 Alternate (US 26 Alt.) In 1940, its path in Richland County was straightened instead of a zigzag shape. Approximately 1948, its crossing of the Congaree River was shifted slightly to the east. In 1950, it was extended south to replace US 21 and ended at US 301 (now SC 33 in Orangeburg. The next year, SC 26 was decommissioned and redesignated as part of US 601.

Eastover alternate route

South Carolina Highway 26 Alternate (SC 26 Alt.) was an alternate route that was established in November 1937 as a renumbering of SC 26 through Eastover. Around 1942, it was decommissioned. It was redesignated as SC 764 east outside of the town and SC 263 north outside of it.

South Carolina Highway 52

South Carolina Highway 52 (SC 52) was a

that was established around 1926 from SC 31 / SC 45 (now US 601 and SC 6) in St. Matthews, through Wateree and Eastover, to SC 3 (now US 76/ US 378) northwest of Eastover. In 1935, it was decommissioned and redesignated as SC 26. Today, most of its path is known as US 601 and SC 764.

South Carolina Highway 96

South Carolina Highway 96 (SC 96) was a

that was established in 1926 on a path from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) and SC 9 in

to the North Carolina state line, where the roadway continued as North Carolina Highway 80. In 1933, it was decommissioned, and its entire length became part of the original routing of US 601. Today, most of its path is part of US 52.

Junction list

References

External links