West Virginia Route 9 (WV 9) is a major east–west

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 ...

located in the eastern extents of

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the ...

's Eastern Panhandle. The western terminus of the route is at the

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...

state line north of Paw Paw, where WV 9 becomes Maryland Route 51 (MD 51) upon crossing the

Potomac River The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Augu ...

. The eastern terminus is at the

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

state line at

Keyes Gap Keyes Gap or Keyes' Gap is a wind gap in the Blue Ridge Mountain on the border of Loudoun County, Virginia and Jefferson County, West Virginia. The gap is traversed by Virginia State Route 9/ West Virginia Route 9. The Appalachian Trail also ...

near

Mannings, West Virginia Mannings is an unincorporated community in Jefferson County, West Virginia, United States. Mannings lies along West Virginia Route 115 on the western flanks of the Blue Ridge Mountains near the Virginia state line. In both 2009 and 2013, a pe ...

, where WV 9 continues onward as

Virginia State Route 9 Virginia State Route 9 (SR 9) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. Known as Charles Town Pike, the state highway runs from the West Virginia state line near Mechanicsville, where the highway continues west as West Virgini ...

(SR 9). With no east–west

US 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 hi ...

in the region, WV 9 acts as the major east–west transportation artery between

Morgan Morgan may refer to: People and fictional characters * Morgan (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Morgan le Fay, a powerful witch in Arthurian legend * Morgan (surname), a surname of Welsh origin * Morgan (singer ...

, Berkeley, and Jefferson counties. WV 9 briefly enters Hampshire County where it intersects with WV 29 near Pin Oak.

History

Construction

WV 9 recently underwent a major upgrade. U.S. Senator

Robert C. Byrd Robert Carlyle Byrd (born Cornelius Calvin Sale Jr.; November 20, 1917 – June 28, 2010) was an American politician and musician who served as a United States senator from West Virginia for over 51 years, from 1959 until his death in 2010. A ...

began securing funding for the projects in the early 1990s. Shortly thereafter, a short portion of the road along the southern edge of Martinsburg was upgraded to four lanes, from Queen Street to Kelly Island Road. In the mid-2000s, a short stretch was also upgraded to four lanes from

Interstate 81 Interstate 81 (I-81) is a north–south (physically northeast–southwest) Interstate Highway in the eastern part of the United States. Its southern terminus is at I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee; its northern terminus is on Wellesley Isla ...

(I-81) west to Harlan Springs Road. The next significant improvement did not take place until September 2007, when a stretch of the upgraded road opened up from Charles Town, through Bardane to Leetown Road in Kearneysville. In early 2008, the future west-bound lanes of traffic were opened to two-way traffic from Kelly Island Road to, and over,

Opequon Creek Opequon Creek is an approximately 35 mile U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed August 15, 2011 tributary stream of the Potomac River. It flows into the Potomac northeast of Ma ...

. This allowed for the former road surface to be pulled up and the eastbound lanes to be built. It also allowed for the demolition of the old bridge over the Opequon, which had been the site of several fatal accidents. WV 9 1-mile from interchange

In April 2009, a short section of the new WV 9 was opened from the Eastern Regional Jail to the Opequon Creek bridge. A section of WV 9 from the Eastern Regional Jail to Short Road was completed at the end of 2009. Construction from Short Road to Leetown Road was completed in August 2010. The stretch from the

line to Charles Town was the most recent stage of construction. A pair of new bridges span U.S. Route 340 (US 340) south of Charles Town. The bypass carries WV 9 away from its previous winding route across the

Shenandoah River The Shenandoah River is the principal tributary of the Potomac River, long with two forks approximately long each,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed August 15, 2011 in t ...

and the Blue Ridge. Instead, it follows a straight path near Cattail Run Road, connecting with Virginia Route 9 at

. Despite opposition from some Virginia residents, who were concerned about increasing traffic along the narrow, winding stretch of SR 9 through the town of Hillsboro, this stretch of road opened to traffic on November 14, 2012.

Naming dedication

In April 2008, a section of the road, which passes by his

Gap View Farm Gap View Farm, near Charles Town, West Virginia, is a historic farm complex built in 1774. The farm was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 9, 1997. Origin of name The property gets its name from its view of the gap i ...

home, was named and dedicated in Frank Buckles's honor by then-West Virginia Governor

Joe Manchin Joseph Manchin III (born August 24, 1947) is an American politician and businessman serving as the senior United States senator from West Virginia, a seat he has held since 2010. A member of the Democratic Party, Manchin was the 34th governor o ...

Major intersections

References

External links