Here are a few things I have noticed so far, mostly in the Mid South region
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-Arkansas and Louisiana really wanted a US route from Pine Bluff to Clayton, mostly along today's US 425. They sent in an application for this route to be US 265, and it was disapproved. They then sent in one for it to be US 65W, but AASHO quickly shut that one down.
-When US 167 was rerouted between Thornton and El Dorado to go through Hampton instead of Camden, the locals in Camden threw a temper tantrum and tried to get it reversed. Their excuse was that while it was 10 miles shorter, the new 167 route through Hampton was mostly gravel and had a *gasp* toll bridge over the Ouachita River. When they were laughed out of the building for that proposal, they tried to get the old US 167 route through Camden to be renumbered US 167W and the new route through Hampton to be renumbered US 167E. This was also the source of much laughter, and Camden threw another hissy fit. Having US 167 taken away from them caused massive amounts of butthurt to Camden's leaders. AASHO reminded Camden that they had just approved US 79 to run through their town (part of it even ran along old US 167) and that the town was still on the US route system, but Camden still whined about it. They claimed US 67 having E and W routes set a precedent, despite AASHO policy had changed since the E/W splits were approved. They finally gave up, I presume.
-The Broadway of America Association wanted what was then US 70 and AR 7 (today, it is AR 5 and AR 7) to be signed as US 67W. It was never taken seriously.
-The original plans for US 270 had it running through Mena and Norman, following today's US 270 from the Oklahoma line east to Acorn, then US 71 south to Mena, then AR 8 east to Glenwood, then US 70 east to Hot Springs. Why it would overlap with US 70 and end in Hot Springs is a mystery. It would have been better to have ended it in Glenwood. It's a moot point, because it was discovered that today's AR 8 in Polk and Montgomery Counties was not up to standards and was still unimproved in some areas. So they routed it north on 71 through Foran Gap and then east on what was then AR 6 to Hot Springs.
-The reason that US 63 ended in Memphis for years was because the original plan was to extend US 63 to Biloxi. They extended 63 to Memphis. but they declined the section from Memphis to Biloxi, because it would have apparently followed US 49 and/or US 51 through most of the state. These documents make it clear that US 63 had a segment in Tennessee and didn't just end at the state line. I assume it ended at the foot of the Memphis-Arkansas Bridge.
US 70 east of De Queen was in poor shape for years, so a Temporary US 70 was commissioned to follow US 71 from the US 70 split south to Lockesburg, then AR 24 (now US 371) east (south) to Nashville, then AR 27 to Kirby where it ended at US 70. This temporary routing was AASHO-approved, and was officially a US highway.
Much more to come...