Arizona State Route 564 and Navajo National Monument

Back in the winter of 2012 I took the entirety Arizona State Route 564 from US Route 160 north to Navajo National Monument.

AZ 564 is an approximately 9.1 mile north/south State Route from US 160/BIA 41 in the Navajo Nation of Navajo County. AZ 564 was created in 1970 when it connected to what was US Route 164. US 164 was the second US Route to carry said designation and existed from 1966 to 1970. US 164 was routed between Cortez, CO west to Flagstaff via multiplex of US 89. The history of the endpoints of US 164 can seen seen on USends.com.

USends.com on US 164 (ii)

At some point during 1970 US 164 was replaced by US 160 in Arizona. The irony of the previous US 164 designation was that the route east of US 89 originally was part of AZ 64 which essentially made AZ 564 the fifth spur route of said highway. Aside from AZ 264 the routing of AZ 564 is the only child route of AZ 64 that remains. AZ 564 can first be seen on this 1971 State Highway Map of Arizona.

1971 Arizona State Highway Map

AZ 564 doesn't have any significant junctions on it's routing north to Navajo National Monument but the road does become BIA 221 at the National Park Boundary. BIA 221 loops southwest from Navajo National Monument towards AZ 98.

Navajo National Monument is located on the Shonto Plateau sub-region of the Colorado Plateau and protects the well preserved Anasazi cliff-dwellings located there. The cliff dwellings generally are known as Keet Seel and are located near the bottom of Tsegi Canyon. Keet Seel was first occupied around 1250 the structures preserved today were built through the 1270s to 1280s. Keet Seel was rediscovered in 1895 and was designated as a National Monument in 1909.

Comments

Abandoned US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon

Within the Truckee River Canyon in the Sierra Nevada range numerous abandoned portions of US Route 40 can be found alongside modern Interstate 80. This segment of highway was opened during 1926 as a bypass of the Dog Valley Grade which carried the early North Lincoln Highway and Victory Highway. The corridor of the Truckee River Canyon State Highway would be assigned as US Route 40 when the US Route System was commissioned during November 1926. During 1958 the segment of Interstate 80 between Boca, California and the Nevada state line was complete. When Interstate 80 opened east of Boca numerous obsolete portions of US Route 40 were abandoned. Some of these abandoned segments have been incorporated into the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail. Part 1; the history of US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon The Truckee River Canyon for centuries has been an established corridor of travel known to native tribes crossing the Sierra Nevada range. The first documented wagon crossi...

Former US Route 50 and the Pioneer Route Lincoln Highway on Johnson's Pass Road

Johnson's Pass Road is one of the oldest highway corridors in California. Johnson's Pass was part of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road as it was completed during 1856 over the Sierra Nevada. The pass would later be incorporated into the Pioneer Branch of the Lincoln Highway in 1913 and US Route 50 in 1926. Johnson's Pass Road would be bypassed by a new alignment of US Route 50 over Echo Summit in 1938. A replacement of the Meyers Grade east of Johnson's Pass would be opened to traffic in 1947. Johnson's Pass Road remains accessible to traffic and is still signed by the Lincoln Highway Association. Pictured as the blog cover is the view from the top of Johnson's Pass Road overlooking modern US Route 50 and Lake Tahoe. Part 1; the history of Johnson's Pass Much of the history of what become the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road is discussed in the September 1950 California Highways & Public Works during its Centennial Edition. The or...

Former California State Route 41 past Bates Station

When California State Route 41 was commissioned during August 1934 it was aligned along the then existing Fresno-Yosemite Road north of the San Joaquin River. Within the Sierra Nevada foothills of Madera County, the original highway alignment ran past Bates Station via what is now Madera County Road 209, part of eastern Road 406 and Road 207. Bates Station was a stage station plotted during the early 1880s at what was the intersection of the Coarsegold Road and Stockton-Los Angeles Road. The modern alignment bypassing Bates Station to the east would be reopened to traffic during late 1939. Part 1; the history of California State Route 41 past Bates Station Bates Station was featured as one of the many 1875-1899 Madera County era towns in the May 21, 1968, Madera Tribune . Post Office Service at Bates Station is noted to have been established on November 23, 1883 and ran continuously until October 31, 1903. The postal name was sourced...

Gribblenation

Search This Blog