LRN 135 Original Alignment

[Max Rockatansky]

Put together this little stub for myself after taking a detour backtracking to Fresno for watching NCAA Tournament games (sucks Michigan lost yesterday on a wide open shot ).  Figured that I would hit up part of the original alignment of LRN 135 before it was shifted to the east:

https://flic.kr/s/aHskSYVcsy

Basically the original alignment of LRN 135 from SSR 65 in Ducor to SSR 198 in Hanford was as follows:

1.  West on Avenue 56/CR J22 past CA 99 (what was US 99) to modern CA 43/Cental Valley Highway.

2.  Northwest on CA 43 to Santa Fe Avenue in Corcoran.

3.  Northwest on Santa Fe Avenue in Corcoran to Whitley Avenue (part of this road no longer exists).

4.  West on Whitley Avenue out of Corcoran to 10th Avenue.

5.  North on 10th Avenue as it dogs slightly west to become 10th 1/2 Avenue up to Kansas Avenue.

6.  East on Kansas Avenue passing the town site of Guernsey to 10th Avenue.

7.  North on 10th Avenue to Lacey Blvd which would have been SSR 198.

   In 1953 LRN 135 was realigned on a bypass around Corocan following the modern alignment of CA 43 north to meet SSR 198 at Lacey Blvd via 7th Avenue.   By 1954 the segment of LRN 135 on 56 Avenue was deleted and the highway was routed along the modern alignment south to US 466/LRN 139 in Wasco which created a continously maintained north/south highway south to US 399.  LRN 135 appears to have existed as a gap highway with a new segment south from US 99 in Selma to the Kings County line shown in 1960.   LRN 135 was eventually extended on a bypass of Hanford to north to US 99 in Selma by 1962 via the alignment of modern CA 43.  Both LRN 135 and 139 appear as part of CA 43 on the 1963 state highway map and the alignment has largely been the same ever since.

Of course this wouldn't be a worthwhile thread without reference materials and maps:

1952 State Highway Map

http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~239561~5511874:Road-Map-of-the-State-of-California?sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No&qvq=q:caltrans;sort:Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No;lc:RUMSEY~8~1&mi=51&trs=86

1953 State Highway Map

http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~239558~5511872:Road-Map-of-the-State-of-California?sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No&qvq=q:caltrans;sort:Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No;lc:RUMSEY~8~1&mi=49&trs=86

1961 State Highway Map

http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~239534~5511856:State-Highway-Map,-California,-1961?sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No&qvq=q:caltrans;sort:Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No;lc:RUMSEY~8~1&mi=33&trs=86

1962 State Highway Map

http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~239531~5511854:State-Highway-Map,-California,-1962?sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No&qvq=q:caltrans;sort:Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No;lc:RUMSEY~8~1&mi=31&trs=86

1935 Kings County Map

http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~247293~5515357:Kings-County-?sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No&qvq=q:california%2Bdivision%2Bof%2Bhighways;sort:Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No;lc:RUMSEY~8~1&mi=35&trs=160


So with all that in mind I drove the segment from 10th 1/2 Avenue up to Lacey Blvd/Old SSR 198.  So we'll start at 10th 1/2 Avenue and Kansas where LRN 135 turned right for half a mile:

IMG_5492 by Max Rockatansky, on Flickr

LRN 135 crossed these tracks ahead before reaching Guernsey and 10th Avenue where you'd have to take a left to head north again:

IMG_5493 by Max Rockatansky, on Flickr

IMG_5494 by Max Rockatansky, on Flickr

Speaking of Guernsey, all it seems to be nowadays is just a couple abandoned homes and a bar.  Oddly this place still showed up on State Highway Maps until 1966, seems kind of typical of a small community in San Joaquin Valley that has for all intents and purposes has disappeared from existence:

IMG_5495 by Max Rockatansky, on Flickr

About 6/7 miles north of Kansas Avenue and Guernsey LRN 135 would have entered Hanford:

IMG_5499 by Max Rockatansky, on Flickr

Crossed over what is now the CA 198 freeway which didn't exist until the 1960s (WTF is up with the CA 198 shield?) before terminating at what was SSR 198 at Lacey Blvd:

IMG_5500 by Max Rockatansky, on Flickr

IMG_5501 by Max Rockatansky, on Flickr

I'm not sure why but lately I've been hitting a lot of historic alignments of LRNs in San Joaquin Valley, I guess winter storms will do that.  I really honestly don't think that I would ever find another occasion to plot of LRN 135 via pictures, the segment on 56 Ave/J22 has some neat older buildings.  At this rate I might actually try for the old alignments of SSR 65 at this rate.