Minnesota State Highway 47 (MN 47) is a

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-acces ...

in east–central

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, which runs from its intersection with ''Central Avenue'' ( State Highway 65) in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

and continues north to its northern terminus at its intersection with U.S. Highway 169 in Aitkin. For part of its route (8 miles), it runs together with U.S. Highway 10 in Coon Rapids and Anoka. The two routes are

concurrent Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to: Law * Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea'' * Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...

from ''Foley Boulevard'' in Coon Rapids to ''Ferry Street'' (

US 169 U.S. Route 169 (US 169) is a north-south U.S highway that currently runs for 966 miles (1,555 km) from the city of Virginia, Minnesota to Tulsa, Oklahoma at Memorial Drive. Route description Oklahoma US 169 is a major north–south ...

) in Anoka. Highway 47 also runs together with State Highway 18 for 9 miles in Mille Lacs and Aitkin counties around the northeast side of

Mille Lacs Lake Mille Lacs Lake (also called Lake Mille Lacs or Mille Lacs) is a large but shallow lake in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is located in the counties of Mille Lacs, Aitkin, and Crow Wing, roughly 75 miles north of the Minneapolis-St. Paul m ...

Route description

State Highway 47 serves as a north–south route between

Fridley Fridley is a city in Anoka County, Minnesota, United States. Its population was 29,590 at the 2020 census. Fridley was incorporated in 1949 as a village, and became a city in 1957. It is part of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area as ...

, Coon Rapids, Anoka,

Ramsey Ramsey may refer to: Geography British Isles * Ramsey, Cambridgeshire, a small market town in England * Ramsey, Essex, a village near Harwich, England ** Ramsey and Parkeston, a civil parish formerly called just "Ramsey" * Ramsey, Isle of Man, t ...

, St. Francis,

Ogilvie Ogilvie is a surname of Scottish origin. It may also refer to: People *Ogilvie (name) Places Australia * Ogilvie, Western Australia Canada * Ogilvie, Nova Scotia * Ogilvie Aerodrome, Yukon * Ogilvie Mountains, a mountain range in Yukon Scotlan ...

, Isle, and Aitkin in east–central Minnesota. State Highway 47 begins at the intersection of ''Central Avenue'' ( State Highway 65) and ''

University Avenue A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

'' in northeast

. Highway 47 is signed locally as ''University Avenue'' in northeast Minneapolis. The route remains ''University Avenue NE'' through Columbia Heights and

to its junction with Highways 10 and 610 at the Coon Rapids / Blaine boundary line. The route is built as a

divided highway A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...

north of its junction with ''32nd Avenue NE'' / ''St. Anthony Parkway'' in

. Highway 47 continues as a divided highway on its independent segment through Columbia Heights and

. The route has an interchange with

Interstate 694 Interstate 694 (I-694) is an east–west auxiliary Interstate Highway located in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area in the US state of Minnesota. The western terminus of the route is at its junction with I-94, I-494, and US H ...

and another interchange with Highways 10 and 610 at the Coon Rapids / Blaine boundary line. Highway 47 joins the Highway 10 freeway at this point. Highways 10 and 47 run

for 8 miles through Coon Rapids and Anoka. Highway 47 leaves Highway 10 at its junction with ''Ferry Street'' in the city of Anoka. Highway 47 continues independently again northbound through the cities of Anoka and

as ''St. Francis Boulevard''. The route continues north through the Anoka County communities of Nowthen and St. Francis. The route enters

Isanti County Isanti County ( ) is a county in the east-central part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 41,135. Its county seat is Cambridge. History The county was formed on February 13, 1857. Its name came from the I ...

and passes through Bradford, Pine Brook, and Dalbo. Highway 47 has a junction with State Highway 95 at Pine Brook. Highway 47 enters Kanabec County and continues north to

, where it has a junction with

State Highway 23 Route 23, or Highway 23, can refer to: International * European route E23 Australia * Federal Highway (Australia) * Monaro Highway * (South Australia) * Dorat Road (not signed everywhere) Austria * Autobahn Südosttangente Wien Canada * Albe ...

. Highway 47 enters Mille Lacs County and joins State Highway 27 briefly to Isle at the southeast corner of Mille Lacs Lake. Father Hennepin State Park is located one mile west of the junction of Highway 47 and Highway 27 at Isle. The park entrance is located on Highway 27.Minnesota DNR website for Father Hennepin State Park - Link
/ref> The route continues northbound around the east side of

. Highway 47 has a junction with State Highway 18 in northeast Mille Lacs County. The route runs together with Highway 18 for 9 miles around the northeast side of the lake; continuing north to Malmo at the northeast corner of the lake. Highway 47 continues independently for 21 miles between Malmo and the city of Aitkin. The route is also known as ''4th Street SE'' in Aitkin. The northern terminus of Highway 47 is at its intersection with U.S. Highway 169 (''Minnesota Avenue'') in the city of Aitkin. At the southern terminus of Highway 47 in northeast

, ''"University Avenue"'' further extends itself into

Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

(as ''Ramsey County Road 34''), ending at ''Lafayette Road''. This section of ''"University Avenue"'' passes by landmarks such as the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

and the

Minnesota State Capitol The Minnesota State Capitol is the seat of government for the U.S. state of Minnesota, in its capital city of Saint Paul. It houses the Minnesota Senate, Minnesota House of Representatives, the office of the Attorney General and the office o ...

History

State Highway 47 was established in 1963. Highway 47 was originally an extension of '' State Highway 56''; which ran from southern Minnesota to

Hampton Hampton may refer to: Places Australia *Hampton bioregion, an IBRA biogeographic region in Western Australia *Hampton, New South Wales *Hampton, Queensland, a town in the Toowoomba Region * Hampton, Victoria Canada * Hampton, New Brunswick *Ha ...

; and then was

with U.S. Highway 52 into downtown

; then along ''University Avenue'' in both Saint Paul and

. In 1963, ''State Highway 56'' was terminated in downtown St. Paul and the section from

north to Aitkin was renumbered ''State Highway 47''. Highway 47 was paved at the time it was created. Its predecessor was unpaved north of Anoka in 1940. By 1953, only the northerly section near Aitkin was still unpaved. It was completely paved by 1960. The section of Highway 47 in Columbia Heights and

was built as a

by 1970.

Major intersections

References

{{reflist 047 Transportation in Hennepin County, Minnesota Transportation in Anoka County, Minnesota Transportation in Isanti County, Minnesota Transportation in Kanabec County, Minnesota Transportation in Mille Lacs County, Minnesota Transportation in Aitkin County, Minnesota