U.S. Highway 26 (US‑26) is an east–west highway in western
Nebraska. It enters the state from
Wyoming just west of
Henry. The eastern terminus of US‑26 is in
Ogallala at an interchange with
Interstate 80
Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...
(I-80). The highway largely parallels the
North Platte River for the majority of its route in Nebraska and as such, runs at a northwest-southeast angle. The highway also parallels the original paths of the
Oregon Trail, the
California Trail
The California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California. After it was established, the first half of the California Trail f ...
and the
Mormon Pioneer Trail.
Route description
US‑26 enters Nebraska from Wyoming, and shortly thereafter enters
Henry. After passing through
Morrill, US‑26 becomes a divided highway. At
Mitchell, US‑26 meets
Nebraska Highway 29
Nebraska Highway 29 is a highway in western Nebraska. It runs for . It has a southern terminus at U.S. Highway 26 in Mitchell and a northern terminus at U.S. Highway 20 in Harrison.
Route description
Nebraska Highway 29 begins in Mitchell at ...
(N‑29). Continuing southeast, US‑26 enters
Scottsbluff
Scottsbluff is a city in Scotts Bluff County, in the western part of the state of Nebraska, in the Great Plains region of the United States. The population was 14,436 at the 2020 census. Scottsbluff is the largest city in the Nebraska Panhandl ...
. Through Scottsbluff, US‑26 runs concurrent with
N‑71 and
N‑92 on a highway which goes through northern Scottsbluff. After N‑71 and N‑92 separate, US‑26 continues to
Minatare, Nebraska, where the divided highway ends. The highway runs due east until an intersection with
Nebraska Link 62A
Nebraska Connecting Link, Nebraska Spur, and Nebraska Recreation Road highways are a secondary part of the Nebraska highway system. They connect small towns and state parks to the primary Nebraska highway system. All of these highways are maint ...
(L-62A), when the highway turns south. US‑26 passes through
Bayard and, after crossing the North Platte River meets with N‑92 again near
Chimney Rock.
Nebraska Highway 27
Nebraska Highway 27 is a highway in Nebraska. It is divided into three segments. The southernmost segment begins at the Kansas border and goes north to Haigler. The middle segment begins at Interstate 80 near Chappell and goes north to Oshko ...
. At Lewellen, US‑26 and N‑92 separate for the last time and shortly thereafter, US‑26 crosses the North Platte River again. After passing through Ash Hollow State Historical Park
Ash Hollow State Historical Park is located south of Lewellen in Garden County, Nebraska. The park comprises two attractions located from each other: Ash Hollow Cave and Windlass Hill.
Ash Hollow Cave
A spring in the vicinity of Ash Hollow C ...
, the highway passes through no communities until meeting N‑61 northwest of Ogallala. US‑26 runs concurrent with N‑61 the rest of its length in Nebraska. The two highways go south to US‑30, then the three highways run concurrent into Ogallala. They then separate from US‑30, turn south to cross the South Platte River and US‑26 ends at I‑80.
History
From the creation of the highway in 1926 until the 1930s, US-26 went north of the North Platte River east of Lewellen. This alignment went east to Martin, where US‑26 met N-61 and the two highways went south from there into Ogallala. When Lake McConaughy was built in the 1930s, the current alignment was constructed.
Major intersections
Related route
Between 1936 and 1959, there was a U.S. Highway 26N. It went east along today's L-62A, then south along today's US-385 to just north of Bridgeport and east along today's US‑26 to Broadwater. In those years, the mainline of US‑26 between Bridgeport and Broadwater went on the south side of the North Platte River, along today's Nebraska Highway 92.The Nebraska Highways Page: Highways 1 to 30
References
{{state detail page browse, type=US, route=26, state=Nebraska, statebefore=Wyoming}
26
Transportation in Sioux County, Nebraska
Transportation in Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska
Transportation in Morrill County, Nebraska
Transportation in Garden County, Nebraska
Transportation in Keith County, Nebraska
Nebraska