U.S. Route 64 is a

U.S. highway The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these h ...

running from

Teec Nos Pos, Arizona Teec Nos Pos (Navajo: '')'' is a census-designated place (CDP) in Apache County, Arizona, United States. The population was 507 at the 2020 census. It is the western terminus of U.S. Route 64. Geography Teec Nos Pos is located at (36.923142, - ...

east to Nags Head, North Carolina. In the U.S. state of

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

, the route runs from the

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

border in Fort Smith east to the

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 ...

border in Memphis. The route passes through several cities and towns, including Fort Smith, Clarksville, Russellville, Conway, Searcy, and

West Memphis West Memphis is the largest city in Crittenden County, Arkansas, Crittenden County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 26,245 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, ranking it as the state's 18th largest city, behind Bella Vista, ...

. US 64 runs parallel to Interstate 40 until Conway, when I-40 takes a more southerly route.

Route description

US 64 crosses Arkansas' western border over the

Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in the western United Stat ...

, heading southeast into downtown Ft. Smith. Upon entry to

, the highway passes the Fort Smith National Historic Site, Ft. Smith Confederate Monument, Commercial Hotel and the West Garrison Avenue Historic District, all on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. The highway turns northwest near the New Theatre, following the Arkansas and Missouri Railroad and concurring with US 71 Business onto 10th and 11th Streets. Westbound traffic runs on 10th St and eastbound traffic on 11th St past the

Fort Smith Masonic Temple The Fort Smith Masonic Temple is a historic building at 200 North 11th Street in Fort Smith, Arkansas. It is a large stone-walled structure, with styling that is an Art Deco-influenced version of Egyptian Revival architecture. Its main (northwest ...

. Traffic converges onto Midland Boulevard. US 64 crosses the Arkansas River again near the American Doughboy Monument as it enters

Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; nl, Maarten van Buren; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party, he ...

on Broadway. US 64 passes the Van Buren Post Office before turning east onto Main Street, then northeast again becoming the Alma Highway. US 64 passes a former alignment, now designated as Oak St. After Oak St, US 64 crosses I-540 and continues east to

Alma Alma or ALMA may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Alma'' (film), a 2009 Spanish short animated film * ''Alma'' (Oswald de Andrade novel), 1922 * ''Alma'' (Le Clézio novel), 2017 * ''Alma'' (play), a 1996 drama by Joshua Sobol about Alma ...

. US 64 closely follows Interstate 40 until Conway, while also closely following the

, the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

, and the southern edge of the Ozark National Forest. US 64 continues through mountainous Franklin County, intersecting the

Pig Trail Scenic Byway The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus ...

in Ozark. The route passes the Franklin County Courthouse, and the Ozark Courthouse Square Historic District in Ozark before exiting town continuing east. Route 64 passes a historically significant connector road in Wiederkehr Village before entering

Altus Altus or ALTUS may refer to: Music *Alto, a musical term meaning second highest musical or vocal type *Altus (voice type), a vocal type also known as countertenor Places * Altus, Arkansas, US **Altus AVA, a wine-growing region near Altus, Arkans ...

and entering Johnson County. US 64 runs through Coal Hill and

Hartman __NOTOC__ Hartman is surname of German language, German origin. Notable people with the surname include: A *Angélica María, Angélica María Hartman (born 1944), American-born Mexican actress and singer *Anton Hartman (1918–1982), South Afri ...

before curving northeast and crossing over I-40. The route continues to Clarksville, home of the University of the Ozarks. The route passes the Johnson County Courthouse, historic American Legion Hut, Clarksville Municipal Airport, and Lake Dardanelle before again crossing over I-40 and entering Pope County. US 64 then parallels Interstate 40, through Russellville and Morrilton. In

Faulkner County Faulkner County is located in the Central Arkansas region of the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2010 census, the population was 113,237, making it the fifth most populous of Arkansas's 75 counties. The county seat and largest city is Conwa ...

, it briefly converges with U.S. Route 65B through Conway heading south before diverging from US 65 Business and Interstate 40 by turning east onto Oak Street. The highway next approaches Vilonia, following a southerly bypass around the city that opened in October 2011 (replacing its former alignment along Vilonia's Main Street) and rejoining its prior alignment west of the White County line and continuing to

El Paso El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the s ...

, where it intersects Arkansas Highway 5. US 64 then travels east to Beebe, where it originally entered town via Center Street and joined with US 67 and US 167. This former route along Center Street has since been resigned U.S. Route 67B, as all three US highways have been relocated to a concurrent divided highway northwest of Beebe. US 64 runs along this divided highway past McRae,

Garner Garner may refer to: Places United States * Garner, Arkansas * Garner, Iowa * Garner, Missouri * Garner, North Carolina Other uses * Garner (surname), a surname * Granary, a grain store * ''Tennessee v. Garner'', a United States Supreme Court cas ...

, and Searcy, where its original route took it north along Main Street, then east along Race Avenue. This former route is now signed U.S Route 67B. Later, US 64, 67, and 167 were rerouted southeast of Searcy along Eastline Road, which is now signed

Arkansas Highway 367 Arkansas Highway 367 (AR 367 or Hwy. 367) is a designation for two north–south List of Arkansas state highways, state highways in Arkansas. A southern route of travels north from U.S. Route 167 in Arkansas, U.S. Route 167 (U ...

. Currently, all three highways continue to run northeast along a divided highway running parallel to Eastline Road. US 64 diverges from US 67 & 167 on the northeast side of

Bald Knob Bald Knob is the highest summit of Back Allegheny Mountain in Pocahontas County, West Virginia and is part of Cass Scenic Railroad State Park. At an altitude of above sea level, Bald Knob is the third-highest point in West Virginia and the Alle ...

, where its former route took it downtown along Highway Avenue, which is now signed Arkansas Highway 367. US 64 turns east toward the White River and Woodruff County, while the divided US 67 diverges northeast, and US 167 diverges north. Highway 64 out of altus

US 64 continues east through Augusta and McCrory, intersecting with US Route 49 at Fair Oaks and bypassing Wynne while in Cross County, and proceeding into Crittenden County through Earle and Crawfordsville, until joining with Interstate 55 at

Marion Marion may refer to: People *Marion (given name) *Marion (surname) *Marion Silva Fernandes, Brazilian footballer known simply as "Marion" *Marion (singer), Filipino singer-songwriter and pianist Marion Aunor (born 1992) Places Antarctica * Mari ...

. Its former route continued east along Military Road, turning south onto the

Great River Road The Great River Road is a collection of state and local roads that follow the course of the Mississippi River through ten states of the United States. They are Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Miss ...

, and converging with US Route 63, which has since also been rerouted along Interstate 55. The former route is signed Arkansas Highway 77. Arkansas US 64-67-167

US 64 continues south to West Memphis, where its former route entered the city from the north via Missouri Street, turning east (diverging from US 63 while converging with US 70 & 79) onto Broadway. Its current route turns east north of West Memphis as Interstates 55 and 40 briefly converge, before entering Tennessee (and downtown Memphis) along the Interstate 55 bridge. Each August, a large yard sale similar to the Highway 127 Corridor Sale takes place along of US 64 in Arkansas, in locations stretching from Fort Smith to Beebe.

History

The Arkansas River Valley has served as an east-west pathway across Arkansas for centuries, with travelers taking advantage of the flat natural topography between the Ozark Mountains and the Ouachita Mountains. When the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

began constructing the Memphis to Little Rock Road on January 31, 1824, it followed a historic trail through the region.

National Register of Historic Places

Four original segments of US 64 remain intact and are listed on the

. The Menifee segment was listed in 2006, the Scotia segment was listed in 2007, and the Van Buren and Altus segments were listed in 2010. The Horsehead Creek Bridge near

was listed in 2014. The original segment listings are contained within the ''Arkansas Highway History and Architecture Multiple Property Submission'', which preserves history from Arkansas's highway building era between 1910 and 1965. The Horsehead Creek Bridge was listed within the ''Historic Bridges of Arkansas MPS''. Two other bridges were NRHP-listed until their demolition: the 1920 Galla Creek Bridge near

Pottsville Pottsville usually refers to the city of Pottsville, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Pottsville may also refer to: Other communities *Pottsville, New South Wales, Australia *Pottsville, Arkansas, United States *Pottsville, Kentucky, United ...

was removed in 2000, and the 1930 Augusta Bridge over the White River was removed in 2002.

Van Buren

The Old US 64-Van Buren Segment is a stretch of historic roadway in

. Now designated Oak Lane, this stretch of concrete road was built in 1928 by Shultz Construction Co. as part of the original alignment of US 64, whose current alignment (built in 1968) travels to the south. This stretch of road is about long and wide, carrying two lanes of traffic with no shoulder. It is made out of a tan-colored aggregate mixed with concrete. This segment was part of the first concrete-paved road in Crawford County.

Altus

The Johnson County Line-Ozark-Crawford County Line Road, Altus Segment is a historic roadbed in

. It consists of a section of stone-paved roadbed, located on the north side of US 64 between Robin Way and County Road 515. The roadbed is about wide, with gravel shoulders, and has a small concrete bridge spanning a ditch. Built sometime between c. 1918 and 1931, it is the only known example of stone pavement in rural Arkansas. US 64 was redirected onto a new terrain roadway in 1931, leaving this segment as a nameless connector road.

Horseshead Creek Bridge

The US 64 Horsehead Creek Bridge is a historic bridge, carrying US 64 across Horsehead Creek east of

. Its two main spans are Parker pony trusses, in length, with steel deck girder approach spans giving the bridge a total length of . The trusses are mounted on concrete piers, with the approaches on concrete piers and abutments. The bridge was built in 1933–1934 by Fred Luttjohann, and served as a major crossing point and transportation route until the construction of Interstate 40 (I-40) to the north.

Scotia

The Old US 64, Scotia Segment is a section of historic roadway in the

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

of Scotia. It extends eastward from Country Lane, south of the current alignment of US 64. It is about in length, following an arced route, and is covered in a bituminous that has in places deteriorated into gravel. It is believed to be the longest-surviving element of the c. 1920 alignment of US 64 in Arkansas, and was built on an alignment dating to the 1830s. It is believed this road formed part of the

Trail of Tears The Trail of Tears was an ethnic cleansing and forced displacement of approximately 60,000 people of the "Five Civilized Tribes" between 1830 and 1850 by the United States government. As part of the Indian removal, members of the Cherokee, ...

Menifee

Old U.S. Route 64 is a historic former alignment of US 64 in

Menifee Menifee (May 4, 1996 – June 13, 2019) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse that competed in the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing in 1999. His rivalry with Triple Crown contender Charismatic was compared at times with the rivalry betw ...

. Now a portion of Canal Road, it consists of a section of concrete pavement, extending southward from the current alignment of US 64 near the center of Menifee. Built in 1931 by the Zeigler Construction Company, it is the longest intact portion of the highway's original alignment in

Conway County Conway County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. Created as Arkansas's 11th county on October 20, 1825, Conway County has four incorporated municipalities, including Morrilton, the county seat and most populous city. The county ...

. It was bypassed by the present alignment in 1961.

Historic segment gallery

Old_U.S._Hwy_64_-Van_Buren_Segment_looking_East.JPG, Van Buren segment looking east Johnson County Line-Ozark-Crawford County Line Road, Altus Segment.JPG, Altus segment U.S. 64 Horsehead Creek Bridge.JPG, Horsehead Creek Bridge Old US 64, Scotia Segment.JPG, Scotia segment Old US 64, Menifee Segment.JPG, Menifee segment

Major intersections

References

{{National Register of Historic Places Arkansas 64 National Register of Historic Places in Crawford County, Arkansas National Register of Historic Places in Conway County, Arkansas National Register of Historic Places in Franklin County, Arkansas National Register of Historic Places in Johnson County, Arkansas National Register of Historic Places in Pope County, Arkansas Roads on the National Register of Historic Places in Arkansas Transportation in Sebastian County, Arkansas Transportation in Crawford County, Arkansas Transportation in Franklin County, Arkansas Transportation in Johnson County, Arkansas Transportation in Pope County, Arkansas Transportation in Conway County, Arkansas Transportation in Faulkner County, Arkansas Transportation in White County, Arkansas Transportation in Woodruff County, Arkansas Transportation in Cross County, Arkansas Transportation in Crittenden County, Arkansas