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US 271 original southern terminus in Polk County, Arkansas (again)

Started by bugo, April 16, 2018, 01:33:25 AM

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bugo

I have updated my US 271 blog with a map I found some 20 years ago in the UCA Archives in Conway. It indicates that US 271 followed today's AR 8 and ended in Mena. If you read the blog you will see that the maps I have found have been horribly inconsistent and provide contradictory evidence. One of the maps even shows US 71 going through Oklahoma while another shows a US 371 along today's US 59 alignment. Check out the blog and if you have any information, please share what you know. This has become an obsession of mine and I will either get to the bottom of it or I will die trying.

http://bugo348.blogspot.com/2010/06/us-271.html


US71

Quote from: bugo on April 16, 2018, 01:33:25 AM
I have updated my US 271 blog with a map I found some 20 years ago in the UCA Archives in Conway. It indicates that US 271 followed today's AR 8 and ended in Mena. If you read the blog you will see that the maps I have found have been horribly inconsistent and provide contradictory evidence. One of the maps even shows US 71 going through Oklahoma while another shows a US 371 along today's US 59 alignment. Check out the blog and if you have any information, please share what you know. This has become an obsession of mine and I will either get to the bottom of it or I will die trying.

http://bugo348.blogspot.com/2010/06/us-271.html

Based the maps I have, 271 may have followed modern day US 59 at one time. 59 didn't appear until around 1934 , so routes may have shifted. The Kiamichi River bridge wasn't built until 1934. So it may have been built when 271 was rerouted.

I can find nothing on US 71, unless it was a Temp ala Temp 59 in Arkansas. That might take local research, such as the Podunk Poteau library.
Like Alice I Try To Believe Three Impossible Things Before Breakfast

Mapmikey

The 1929-30 annual report for Oklahoma shows the initial 1926 US routings and shows US 271 from Ft Smith to Hugo.

http://digitalprairie.ok.gov/cdm/compoundobject/collection/okresources/id/14457/rec/1

See page 78 (which is #40 on the scroll down thing to the right).

The following annual report also had 271 shown that way...


US71

Quote from: Mapmikey on April 16, 2018, 04:29:30 PM
The 1929-30 annual report for Oklahoma shows the initial 1926 US routings and shows US 271 from Ft Smith to Hugo.

http://digitalprairie.ok.gov/cdm/compoundobject/collection/okresources/id/14457/rec/1

See page 78 (which is #40 on the scroll down thing to the right).

The following annual report also had 271 shown that way...



Effects of Ditch Checks is what I get on that page. I don't understand how they have this layed out.
Like Alice I Try To Believe Three Impossible Things Before Breakfast

Mapmikey

Quote from: US71 on April 16, 2018, 08:00:58 PM
Quote from: Mapmikey on April 16, 2018, 04:29:30 PM
The 1929-30 annual report for Oklahoma shows the initial 1926 US routings and shows US 271 from Ft Smith to Hugo.

http://digitalprairie.ok.gov/cdm/compoundobject/collection/okresources/id/14457/rec/1

See page 78 (which is #40 on the scroll down thing to the right).

The following annual report also had 271 shown that way...



Effects of Ditch Checks is what I get on that page. I don't understand how they have this layed out.

That is the right page.  The paragraph under ditch checks is "New US Highways" and the following page is a map plus a description of routes and their US route overlays

US71

Quote from: Mapmikey on April 16, 2018, 08:43:41 PM
Quote from: US71 on April 16, 2018, 08:00:58 PM
Quote from: Mapmikey on April 16, 2018, 04:29:30 PM
The 1929-30 annual report for Oklahoma shows the initial 1926 US routings and shows US 271 from Ft Smith to Hugo.

http://digitalprairie.ok.gov/cdm/compoundobject/collection/okresources/id/14457/rec/1

See page 78 (which is #40 on the scroll down thing to the right).

The following annual report also had 271 shown that way...



Effects of Ditch Checks is what I get on that page. I don't understand how they have this layed out.

That is the right page.  The paragraph under ditch checks is "New US Highways" and the following page is a map plus a description of routes and their US route overlays

Finally got it to work. Kind of screwy how it's set up.
Like Alice I Try To Believe Three Impossible Things Before Breakfast

bugo

Some maps show it following modern US 270 and some show it following modern OK 63/AR 8, somehow crossing Winding Stair/Rich Mountain in between. The blog post gets into better detail about it.

bugo

Quote from: Mapmikey on April 16, 2018, 04:29:30 PM
The 1929-30 annual report for Oklahoma shows the initial 1926 US routings and shows US 271 from Ft Smith to Hugo.
http://digitalprairie.ok.gov/cdm/compoundobject/collection/okresources/id/14457/rec/1
See page 78 (which is #40 on the scroll down thing to the right).
The following annual report also had 271 shown that way...

That map is no older than 1929. US 271 wasn't rerouted to go into Texas until 1929. It definitely originally ended in Polk County, Arkansas. The question is not if it did but what its routing was.

Mapmikey

Quote from: bugo on April 17, 2018, 02:27:57 AM
Quote from: Mapmikey on April 16, 2018, 04:29:30 PM
The 1929-30 annual report for Oklahoma shows the initial 1926 US routings and shows US 271 from Ft Smith to Hugo.
http://digitalprairie.ok.gov/cdm/compoundobject/collection/okresources/id/14457/rec/1
See page 78 (which is #40 on the scroll down thing to the right).
The following annual report also had 271 shown that way...

That map is no older than 1929. US 271 wasn't rerouted to go into Texas until 1929. It definitely originally ended in Polk County, Arkansas. The question is not if it did but what its routing was.

I see...

The 1925-26 Annual Report has a route log and shows OK 23 as 36 miles long which is consistent with it following current US 59 into Arkansas.  The entry is on "Report 95" in the scroll menu (page 176 in the report)
http://digitalprairie.ok.gov/cdm/compoundobject/collection/okresources/id/14188/rec/5

The 1927-28 Oklahoma report did not seem to have any relevant information.

The 1925-26 Arkansas Annual Report lists its US routes and 271 is not on the list.
See pdf page 115 at http://www.arkansashighways.com/historic_bridge/Beinnial%20Reports/7th%20Biennial%20Report%20(1925-26).pdf

The map on the 1927 report shows only AR 8.  All the early reports can be found here:  http://www.arkansashighways.com/historic_bridge/early_beinnial.aspx

These suggest that 271's posted end was the state line...?



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