Sunken Highways

[707]

Anyone have pictures of sunken highways? I've got one right here of old US 99 at Emigrant Lake entering the water.

[Jardine]

In a dry year, some pavement can be seen on the bottom of Lake McBride, while you are conveniently driving by on Iowa I-380 just north of Iowa City.

[hbelkins]

When I did the Somerset, Ky. meet back a few years ago, we visited a section of Lake Cumberland that was completely dry because the lake level had been lowered for repairs to the dam. A number of old roadbeds were visible, and even a bridge.

I'm surprised that the pavement and structures were not removed when the lake was impounded. I know there are very few new lakes being built today, but I wonder if modern environmental requirements wouldn't necessitate the removal of asphalt from areas to be submerged now.

[707]

I'm surprised that the pavement and structures were not removed when the lake was impounded. I know there are very few new lakes being built today, but I wonder if modern environmental requirements wouldn't necessitate the removal of asphalt from areas to be submerged now.

In 1994, Lake Pleasant in Maricopa and Yavapai Counties in Arizona had it's water volume tripled. Several old service roads to the surrounding park were submerged without being removed. I hiked on one of them just the other day. Guess that answers your question.

[vdeane]

NY 37 before the St. Lawrence Seaway was finished:

[Mr. Matté]

By sunken highways, I thought the following item from current events would pop up:

[707]

Oh my goodness! What happened?

[Brian556]

In Texas, there are tons of man-made reservoirs that have submerged highways in them.
Lake Ray Hubbard, east of Dallas is very interesting. There is an old alignment of SH 66 (Former FM 7; Former US 67) that is exposed when the water is low, and there are some old concrete bridges still there.

https://maps.google.com/?ll=32.904187,-96.543978&spn=0.000018,0.012456&t=h&z=17&layer=c&cbll=32.904187,-96.543978&cbp=12,0,,0,0&photoid=po-64278986

Where the aforementioned road crossed the other finger of the lake, there used to be an old bridge that dove into the water. I visited it when I was younger, it has since been removed.

[707]

That's awesome! So old US 67 joins the crowd of underwater highways eh? If I remember right, a very old alignment of US 6 in Colorado has also found itself underwater. Now I'm wondering if any old pieces of US 66 have found a similar fate.

[707]

NY 37 before the St. Lawrence Seaway was finished:

Now that right there is a piece of history! Do you know if there were any towns along NY 37 under there?

[Brian556]

That's awesome! So old US 67 joins the crowd of underwater highways eh? If I remember right, a very old alignment of US 6 in Colorado has also found itself underwater. Now I'm wondering if any old pieces of US 66 have found a similar fate.

Here's some more less dramatic examples, just for fun:
Old FM 455 & old FM 372 are under Lake Ray Roberts:
https://maps.google.com/?ll=33.386446,-97.038631&spn=0.100907,0.199299&t=h&z=13

The Old US 287 is under Richland-Chambers Reservoir:
https://maps.google.com/?ll=31.991626,-96.151314&spn=0.102496,0.199299&t=h&z=13
Note the old bridge east of the dam.

The Old US 190 is under lake Livingston:
https://maps.google.com/?ll=30.782253,-95.09903&spn=0.208828,0.398598&t=h&z=12

[ARMOURERERIC]

There is an old National Road bridge submerges by a dammed up Yogheheny River it rums paralell
to and just north of the existing US 40 bridge.

[mwb1848]

Add US 90 at Lake Amistad, Texas, to the mix.

On the western shore, the road slowly goes below the water line:
https://www.google.com/maps/preview#!data=!1m4!1m3!1d8334!2d-101.0136506!3d29.5453383!2m1!1e3&fid=7

On the eastern shore, road cuts are clearly visible:
https://www.google.com/maps/preview#!data=!1m4!1m3!1d8340!2d-100.9811648!3d29.478275!2m1!1e3&fid=7

At mid-lake, an old intersection emerges:
https://www.google.com/maps/preview#!data=!1m4!1m3!1d8338!2d-101.0108209!3d29.4979529!2m1!1e3&fid=7

[707]

Very cool! They should name the island in which the intersection is on Grand Junction Island, the "Grand" part because it sounds good.

[bugo]

When I did the Somerset, Ky. meet back a few years ago, we visited a section of Lake Cumberland that was completely dry because the lake level had been lowered for repairs to the dam. A number of old roadbeds were visible, and even a bridge.

What kind of bridge?

[bugo]

Former US 64 at Keystone Lake in Oklahoma, taken during the Tulsa meet

[hbelkins]

When I did the Somerset, Ky. meet back a few years ago, we visited a section of Lake Cumberland that was completely dry because the lake level had been lowered for repairs to the dam. A number of old roadbeds were visible, and even a bridge.

What kind of bridge?

Just a plain old concrete one.

[bugo]

There is an old truss bridge under Table Rock Lake in Missouri just under the current MO 13 bridge.  There is a concrete bridge under Norfork Lake in north central Arkansas near the US 62 bridge.  There is supposedly a bridge of some sort underneath Lake Ouachita in Arkansas as well.

[cu2010]

NY 37 before the St. Lawrence Seaway was finished:

Now that right there is a piece of history! Do you know if there were any towns along NY 37 under there?

Not on this side of the river. There were ten on the Canadian side, known as the Lost Villages, that went under.

[sdmichael]

I'll add these photos of US 99 in Lake Shasta:

http://cxmichael.blogspot.com/2013/03/us-99-in-lake-shasta-october-2008.html

Bridges, tunnels, pavement, railing, and more.

[Billy F 1988]

By sunken highways, I thought the following item from current events would pop up:

Ooooooh, shit! I'm scratching that road off my list.

@707 - If you notice how deep the slide went down, you're looking at a landslide. Just like what took place last summer along US 89 near Page, AZ where they're having to use the local roadway owned by the Navajo tribe.

[707]

By sunken highways, I thought the following item from current events would pop up:

Ooooooh, shit! I'm scratching that road off my list.

@707 - If you notice how deep the slide went down, you're looking at a landslide. Just like what took place last summer along US 89 near Page, AZ where they're having to use the local roadway owned by the Navajo tribe.

I remember hearing about the US 89 incident in Page. I live in Tucson right near the old pre-1994 alignment of US 89 (now AZ 77, etc.). Some people who came to visit my parents in Phoenix had to learn about the slide the hard way.

[Scott5114]

There is an old truss bridge under Table Rock Lake in Missouri just under the current MO 13 bridge.

Supposedly this bridge was meant to be demolished, but flooding caused the reservoir to fill up much earlier than expected, so the bridge and some demolition equipment on it was inundated.

[amroad17]

Aren't there portions of (old) US 220 in central PA and (old) US 15 in Tioga County, PA under water?

[briantroutman]

Aren't there portions of (old) US 220 in central PA and (old) US 15 in Tioga County, PA under water?

Yes on both counts.

An old alignment of US 220 near Howard, PA was flooded in 1971 when the state dammed Bald Eagle Creek as part of a flood control project for the West Branch of the Susquehanna River.  From this map, you follow the old alignment pretty easily to the northeast, under water yet again, then back onto the current alignment. Interestingly, most of the road is labeled "Old Rte 220" , which is true, but the even the replacement alignment has long since ceased being US 220 (when it was moved to I-80 and the freeway around Mill Hall). So I guess that would make it Old Old Rte 220. The continuation to the southwest is a little harder to follow, but you can find it if you look.

The submerged US 15 alignment is under the Tioga Reservoir here, and that dam dates from 1973-79 in response to the flooding from Hurricane Agnes.