U.S. Route 431 (US 431) is a spur of

U.S. Route 31 U.S. Route 31 or U.S. Highway 31 (US 31) is a major north–south U.S. highway connecting southern Alabama to northern Michigan. Its southern terminus is at an intersection with US 90/ US 98 in Spanish Fort, Alabama. It ...

. It currently travels for approximately from US 231/

Alabama State Route 210 State Route 210 (SR 210), also known as Ross Clark Circle or simply "The Circle" to locals, is a route overlaid by U.S. Highway 84 (Alabama), US 84, U.S. Highway 231 (Alabama), US 231, and U.S. Highway 431 (Alabama), US 431 encircling Dothan, Al ...

and US 231 Business (US 231 Bus.) and US 431 Bus. in

Dothan, Alabama Dothan () is a city in Dale, Henry, and Houston counties and the Houston county seat in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is Alabama's eighth-largest city, with a population of 71,072 at the 2020 census. It is near the state's southeastern corner, ...

, to

Owensboro, Kentucky Owensboro is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Daviess County, Kentucky, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in the state by population. Owensboro is located on U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 165 about southwest of Lou ...

, at US 60 and

Kentucky Route 2831 Kentucky Route 2831 (KY 2831) is a state highway in Owensboro, Daviess County, Kentucky. It runs from U.S. Routes 60 and 431 in southern Owensboro to West Fifth Street ( KY 2245) and Frederica Streets in downtown. Route description KY 2831 b ...

Route description

Alabama

U.S. 431 is paired with unsigned State Route1 throughout almost all of Alabama, with the exception of Dothan, where it is paired with signed State Route 210 around the eastern portion of the bypass named Ross Clark Circle. There is also a business route through downtown Dothan signed as Business US 431 and locally known as Reeves Street which runs into Business US 231. The two routes are signed concurrently through downtown and known locally as N. Oates Street north of Main Street (Business US 84) and S. Oates Street south of Main Street. The southern terminus of US 431 is at the intersection of US 231 and the business spurs on the south side of Ross Clark Circle. The route takes a rather meandering path through southeast Alabama. It heads in a northeast direction to pass through

Phenix City Phenix City is a city in Lee and Russell counties in the U.S. state of Alabama, and the county seat of Russell County. As of the 2020 Census, the population of the city was 38,817. Phenix City lies immediately west across the Chattahoochee ...

near the Georgia state line, then cuts back to the west to pass through

Opelika Opelika (pronounced ) is a city in and the county seat of Lee County in the east-central part of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is a principal city of the Auburn-Opelika Metropolitan Area. As of the 2020 census, the population of Opelika is ...

; the portion between Phenix City and Opelika is concurrent with U.S. Route 280. From Opelika, US 431 swings back and forth between northwest and northeast as it works its way through the southern extent of the

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...

, then turning northwest to pass through

Talladega National Forest The Talladega National Forest is located in the U.S. state of Alabama and covers 392,567 acres (613.39 sq mi, or 1,588.66 km2) at the southern edge of the Appalachian Mountains. Before it was bought by the federal government in the 1930s, th ...

, arriving at a junction with

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 ...

a few miles east of

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. The combined routes travel westward from Exit 191 into Oxford, where US 431 splits off at Exit 188 and heads northward through Oxford and the adjacent city of Anniston; through this section the route is named

Veterans Memorial Parkway The Veterans Memorial Parkway (VMP, known as "Veterans" by locals) is a 13.4 kilometre (8.3 mi) expressway located in the Canadian province of Ontario. The expressway was previously known as King's Highway 100 from 1977 until 1993, and as Airpo ...

. From Anniston, US 431 heads northwards towards Gadsden. In East Gadsden, it combines with

U.S. Route 278 U.S. Route 278 (US 278) is a parallel route of US 78. It currently runs for from Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, to Wickes, Arkansas at US 71/ US 59, passing through five states in the process. Landmarks along its route includ ...

; the combined route passes westward through Gadsden and Attalla before splitting just northwest of Attalla. This route is named Meighan Boulevard in Gadsden and Fifth Avenue in Attalla until reaching

US 11 {{Infobox road , country=USA , type=US , route=11 , map={{maplink, frame=yes, plain=yes, frame-align=center, frame-width=290, frame-height=330, type=line, from=U.S. Route 11.map , map_custom=yes , map_notes=US 11 in red, US 11E in blue, US 11W in ...

. In downtown Attalla, the route shares a brief

wrong-way concurrency A concurrency in a road network is an instance of one physical roadway bearing two or more different route numbers. When two roadways share the same right-of-way, it is sometimes called a common section or commons. Other terminology for a concurre ...

with US 11. West of Attalla, US 431 again turns to the northwest. At

Guntersville Guntersville (previously known as Gunter's Ferry and later Gunter's Landing) is a city and the county seat of Marshall County, Alabama, Marshall County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the ...

, it joins with

Alabama State Route 79 State Route 79 (SR 79) is a state highway that extends northeastward from Birmingham to the Tennessee state line. Prior to the completion of Interstate 65 (I-65), SR 79 was the southern part of the route that connected Birmi ...

. Through downtown Guntersville the route is divided into two separate one-way streets; the northbound street is named Blount Avenue, and the southbound street is Gunter Avenue. At the northern edge of Guntersville, the split streets combine and the joint route crosses the

Tennessee River The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. It is approximately long and is located in the southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. The river was once popularly known as the Cherokee River, among other names, ...

via the George S. Houston Bridge, before US 431 splits off and again heads in a northwest direction. At

Huntsville Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in th ...

, US 431 passes over

Monte Sano Mountain Monte Sano Mountain is a mountain located in Huntsville, Alabama. The name ''Monte Sano'' is Spanish for "Mountain of health". This name comes from the fact that curative health resorts used to be located on the mountain to take advantage of th ...

and through Huntsville's medical district before reaching Memorial Parkway; this portion of the route forms a portion of

Governors Drive Governors Drive is a major east–west thoroughfare in Huntsville, Alabama. It follows U.S. Route 431 (US-431) in east Huntsville and State Route 53 (SR-53) in west Huntsville. Governors Drive is one of the main entrance points to the city from ...

. At the Parkway, the route joins 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 combined routes then travel northward to the Tennessee state line.

Tennessee

US 431 NB past Hillsboro Drive Nashville

A few miles north of the state line, in Fayetteville, US 231 and 431 split again, with 431 heading northwest in combination with State Route 50. In the town of Petersburg, the combined route briefly joins with State Route 129; the trio head a few miles northwest before SR-129 splits off to the west. From here, US 431/SR 50 travels through mountainous and largely undeveloped territory in south central Tennessee until arriving in Lewisburg. On the east side of Lewisburg, it joins with

U.S. Route 31A U.S. Route 31A (US 31A) is a alternate route of U.S. Route 31 that exists between Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville and Pulaski, Tennessee. It is located entirely in Middle Tennessee and except for the Lewisburg, Tennessee, Lewisburg bypass, wher ...

; the combined routes form part of a bypass around the eastern side of Lewisburg. This portion is named Ellington Parkway, and it forms brief unions with State Routes 272 and 11, plus a longer-lasting combination with State Route 106. Meanwhile, SR 50 splits off to travel through downtown Lewisburg, rejoining US 431 on the north side of town. On the north side of Lewisburg, US 31A splits off, and then a few miles later SR-50 splits off, while US 431 and SR-106 jointly continue north. The route pair, variously known through this section as Lewisburg Pike or Franklin Pike, eventually passes underneath

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 ...

to enter the town of

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...

. Continuing north, the route pair passes through the exclusive

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

subdivision of Brentwood before entering Nashville proper. The route skirts the campus of

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

before entering downtown Nashville from the southwest. Crossing under

Interstate 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 ...

(where SR-106 ends), the route follows Broadway to its intersection with Rosa L. Parks Boulevard. Here the route makes a left turn towards the northwest, joining with

and

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, ...

and several state routes. The route snakes around the state capitol and crosses the

Cumberland River The Cumberland River is a major waterway of the Southern United States. The U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 8, 2011 river drains almost of southern Kentucky and ...

going northwest as James Robertson Parkway. In east Nashville, the route crosses under

Interstate 24 Interstate 24 (I-24) is an Interstate Highway in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It runs diagonally from I-57, south of Marion, Illinois, to Chattanooga, Tennessee, at I-75. It travels through Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, ...

, then follows Spring Street and then Dickerson Pike northward. At Whites Creek Pike, US 431 splits off from the other routes, heading westward back across north Nashville and then north out of Nashville. In combination with State Route 65, it heads to

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

, where it again joins with US-41 and SR-11. The combined routes pass north through Springfield, and then US-431/SR-65 split off and head north to the Kentucky state line.

Kentucky

Confluence of the Rough and Green Rivers at Livermore

U.S. 431 enters Kentucky south of Adairville, where it runs north into Russellville. It continues through Russellville northbound where many new re-construction projects have widened it to a four-lane highway. U.S. 431 continues its northward journey passing through many small towns when it enters Drakesboro, after which it follows most of its original route into

Central City In urban planning, a core city, principal city metropolitan core, or central city, is the largest or most important city or cities of a metropolitan area. A core city is surrounded by smaller satellite cities, towns, and suburbs. A central city i ...

. In Central City, U.S. 431 has a cloverleaf intersection (a former toll plaza when the parkway was toll) with the

Western Kentucky Parkway The Wendell H. Ford Western Kentucky Parkway is a controlled-access highway running from Elizabethtown, Kentucky to near Nortonville, Kentucky. It intersects with Interstate 65 (I-65) at its eastern terminus, and I-69 at its western terminus. I ...

. The route continues north and intersects with

U.S. 62 U.S. Route 62 or U.S. Highway 62 (US 62) runs from the Mexican border at El Paso, Texas, to Niagara Falls, New York, near the Canadian border. It is the only east-west United States Numbered Highway that connects Mexico and Canad ...

where it then parallels the route in a westerly direction to a western bypass around the

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...

of Central City, in which city it is named in honor of

the Everly Brothers The Everly Brothers were an American rock duo, known for steel-string acoustic guitar playing and close harmony singing. Consisting of Isaac Donald "Don" Everly (February 1, 1937 – August 21, 2021) and Phillip "Phil" Everly (January 19, 1939 ...

, locally-born prominent singers. U.S. 431 turns north at the

Kentucky Route 189 Kentucky Route 189 (KY 189) is a State highway#United States, state highway in Kentucky that runs from Kentucky Route 507 and Flat Rock Road west of Allegre, Kentucky, Allegre to U.S. Route 62 in Kentucky, U.S. Route 62 northeast of Pow ...

and

bypass and continues on through many small farming communities of

Muhlenberg Muhlenberg may refer to: People * Muhlenberg (surname) * The Muhlenberg family, American political, religious, and military dynasty Places * Muhlenberg County, Kentucky * Muhlenberg College, in Allentown, Pennsylvania * Muhlenberg School Distr ...

and

McLean MacLean, also spelt Maclean and McLean, is a Goidelic languages, Gaelic surname Mac Gille Eathain, or, Mac Giolla Eóin in Irish language, Irish Gaelic), Eóin being a Gaelic form of Johannes (John (given name), John). The clan surname is an A ...

counties. After bisecting many rural rolling hills and farms of the

Western Coal Fields The West Kentucky Coal Field comprises an area in the west-central and northwestern part of the state, bounded by the Dripping Springs Escarpment and the Pennyroyal Plateau and the Ohio River, but is part of the Illinois Basin that extends into ...

as well as crossing through river lowlands of the

Ohio Valley 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 Illinoi ...

on its journey to Daviess County, it enters the city of

Owensboro Owensboro is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Daviess County, Kentucky, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in the state by population. Owensboro is located on U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 165 about southwest of Lou ...

as a four-lane highway and one of the main arterial roads into the city. Many shopping centers line its outer reaches in Owensboro. As of mid-2010, U.S. 431 now officially terminates at the former

US 60 U.S. Route 60 is a major east–west United States highway, traveling from southwestern Arizona to the Atlantic Ocean coast in Virginia. The highway's eastern terminus is in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where it is known as Pacific Avenue, in the ...

By-Pass (

Wendell H. Ford Wendell Hampton Ford (September 8, 1924 – January 22, 2015) was an American politician from the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He served for twenty-four years in the U.S. Senate and was the 53rd Governor of Kentucky. He was the first person to be ...

Expressway) on Owensboro's south side, following AASHTO's approval of Kentucky's renumbering of the US 60 By-Pass as simply U.S. 60. The former route of U.S. 60 through downtown Owensboro (Second and Fourth streets) is to be turned over to the city and made more "pedestrian-friendly" as part of the city's latest downtown revitalization plan. In early 2011, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet renumbered the former section of U.S. 431 from

to Fifth Street in Owensboro as

. A small portion of U.S. 431 is famous for a unique reason. U.S. 431 crosses the

Green River Green River may refer to: Rivers Canada *Green River (British Columbia), a tributary of the Lillooet River *Green River, a tributary of the Saint John River, also known by its French name of Rivière Verte *Green River (Ontario), a tributary of ...

in McLean County, Kentucky. It is at that crossing in the city of Livermore that U.S. 431 crosses two rivers and also crosses into Ohio County before completing the river crossing back in McLean County. This is the only known crossing of this type in the United States: a road starts in one county, crosses two separate rivers, crosses a sliver of land within another county, and then terminates the bridge crossing in the original county it started in. This special feature is marked by a state historical marker on both approach ends of the bridge.

History

Original U.S. Route 241

U.S. Route 241 (US 241) was formed in 1930. It went from US 231 in

to US 41 in

Murfreesboro, Tennessee Murfreesboro is a city in and county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 152,769 according to the 2020 census, up from 108,755 residents certified in 2010. Murfreesboro is located in the Nashville metropol ...

. The route of the highway went north from

. From there, it traveled north through

Alexander City Alexander City, known to locals as "Alex City", is the largest city in Tallapoosa County, Alabama, United States, with a population of 14,843 as of the 2020 census. It has been the largest community in Tallapoosa County since 1910. It is know ...

, Goodwater,

Sylacauga Sylacauga is a city in Talladega County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 12,578. Sylacauga is known for its fine white marble bedrock. This was discovered shortly after settlers moved into the area and has been ...

, and Talladega before entering

. It also went north through Anniston, Gadsden,

Boaz Boaz (; Hebrew: בֹּעַז ''Bōʿaz''; ) is a biblical figure appearing in the Book of Ruth in the Hebrew Bible and in the genealogies of Jesus in the New Testament and also the name of a pillar in the portico of the historic Temple in Jerusa ...

Albertville Albertville (; Arpitan: ''Arbèrtvile'') is a subprefecture of the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Southeastern France. It is best known for hosting the 1992 Winter Olympics and Paralympics. In 2018, the commune had ...

and

(on what is now SR 205). It then went through New Hope, and Owens Cross Roads (on a road currently named "Old Highway 431") before reaching its former northern terminus in

. Around 1952, the terminus was truncated and the route was extended north, entering

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

and went through Fayetteville and ended up in Shelbyville. In 1953, US 241 was decommissioned. However, since US 431 was being extended northward from

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

and into Tennessee and

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. The lost section from Oxford to Huntsville gained the US 431 designation. The route was then later redesignated along SR 37 route, through Opelika, Alexander, Goodwater, Sylacauga, and Talladega. However, the Sylacauga to Opelika section of the original highway did gain the US 280 designation. From Opelika to Phenix City, the final section of the decommissioned US 241 gained the US 431 designation.

Kentucky Route

US 431 from South Carrollton to

was originally signed as Kentucky Route 75 (KY 75) from its 1929 establishment until US 431 replaced the designation in 1953.Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (1939).
Official Kentucky State Highway Map
' (PDF) (Map). Frankfort: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Retrieved June 14, 2016. KY 81 was also once designated to travel on US 431's course from South Carrollton to the Tennessee state line until 1953. In

, the highway was rerouted from its original alignment to the former

bypass. The original alignment is now designated as Kentucky Route 1031. In the city of Russellville, the original alignment was redesignated to

Kentucky Route 3519 Kentucky Route 3519 (KY 3519) is a secondary highway located entirely in Logan County Logan County is the name of ten current counties and one former county in the United States: * Logan County, Arkansas * Logan County, Colorado * Logan ...

in the mid 2000s and US 431 was rerouted onto the northwest quadrant of the

Russellville Bypass The Russellville Bypass is a beltway around Russellville, Kentucky, Russellville in Logan County, Kentucky, Logan County in south central Kentucky. The highway comprises overlapping portions of U.S. Route 68 in Kentucky, U.S. Route 68 (US 68) ...

Major intersections

;Alabama : in

Dothan Dothan is a place-name from the Hebrew Bible, identified with Tel Dothan. It may refer to: * Dothan, Alabama, a city in Dale, Henry, and Houston counties in the U.S. state of Alabama * Dani Dothan, lyricist and vocalist for the Israeli rock and ne ...

: in Dothan. The highways travel concurrently through Dothan. : in Eufaula. The highways travel concurrently through Eufaula. : in

. The highways travel concurrently to

. : in Phenix City. The highways travel concurrently through Phenix City. : in Opelika : east of

. The highways travel concurrently into Oxford. : in Oxford : in Gadsden. The highways travel concurrently to northwest of Attalla. : in Gadsden : in Attalla : in Attalla. The highways travel concurrently through Attalla. : in

. The highways travel concurrently to

Fayetteville, Tennessee Fayetteville is a city and the county seat of Lincoln County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 6,994 at the 2000 census, and 6,827 at the 2010 census. A census estimate from 2018 showed 7,017. History Fayetteville is the largest cit ...

. : in Huntsville : in Huntsville. The highways travel concurrently through Huntsville. ;Tennessee : in Fayetteville : in

. The highways travel concurrently through Franklin. : in

: in Nashville. The highways travel concurrently through Nashville. : in Nashville. The highways travel concurrently through Nashville. : in Nashville. US 31/US 41/US 431 travels concurrently through Nashville. : in Nashville : in Nashville. US 31W/US 431 travels concurrently through Nashville. : in Nashville : in Nashville : in

. The highways travel concurrently through Springfield. ;Kentucky : in Russellville : in Russellville. The highways travel concurrently through Russellville. : in

: in Central City : in

References

External links

Endpoints of U.S. Highway 431
{{DEFAULTSORT:31-4 United States Numbered Highway System