Minnesota State Highway 4 (MN 4) is a

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...

in southwest and west-central

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the List of U.S. states and territories by population, 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minne ...

, which runs from

Iowa Highway 4 Iowa Highway 4 (Iowa 4) is a state highway which runs from north to south across the state of Iowa. It is long, beginning at an intersection with Iowa Highway 44 in Panora and ending at the Minnesota state line north of Estherville. It cont ...

at the

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

state line (near Dunnell, MN and

Estherville, IA Estherville is a city in Emmet County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,904 in the 2020 census, a decline from 6,656 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Emmet County. History Emmet County was initially created by an act of th ...

), and continues north to its northern terminus at its

interchange Interchange may refer to: Transport * Interchange (road), a collection of ramps, exits, and entrances between two or more highways * Interchange (freight rail), the transfer of freight cars between railroad companies * Interchange station, a rai ...

with Interstate Highway 94 near Sauk Centre and

Melrose Melrose may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Melrose, Scottish Borders, a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland ** Melrose Abbey, ruined monastery ** Melrose RFC, rugby club Australia * Melrose, Queensland, a locality in the South Burnet ...

Route description

State Highway 4 serves as a north–south route between Sherburn,

Saint James Saint James or St. James may refer to: People Saints *James, brother of Jesus (died 62 or 69), also known as James the Just *James the Great (died 44), Apostle, also known as James, son of Zebedee, or Saint James the Greater **Saint James Matamoro ...

, Sleepy Eye,

Fairfax Fairfax may refer to: Places United States * Fairfax, California * Fairfax Avenue, a major thoroughfare in Los Angeles, California * Fairfax District, Los Angeles, California, centered on Fairfax Avenue * Fairfax, Georgia * Fairfax, Indiana * Fa ...

Hector In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...

, Paynesville, and Meire Grove in southwest and west-central Minnesota. Highway 4 parallels

U.S. Highway 71 U.S. Route 71 or U.S. Highway 71 (US 71) is a major north–south United States highway that extends for over 1500 miles (2500 km) in the central United States. This original 1926 route has remained largely unchanged by encroaching Interstat ...

and State Highway 15 throughout its route.

Fort Ridgely State Park Fort Ridgely State Park is a state park of Minnesota, USA, on the Minnesota River south of Fairfax. It preserves Fort Ridgely, site of the Battle of Fort Ridgely during the Dakota War of 1862. It was the only Minnesota state park with a 9-hole ...

is located on Highway 4 in

Nicollet County Nicollet County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 34,454. Its county seat is St. Peter. Nicollet County is part of the Mankato–North Mankato, MN Metropolitan Statistical Area. History In 1 ...

on the

Minnesota River The Minnesota River ( dak, Mnísota Wakpá) is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa. It ris ...

. The park is located south of

and northwest of New Ulm.Minnesota DNR website for Fort Ridgely State Park - Link
/ref>

History

The segment of Highway 4 between Paynesville and Interstate 94 is part of Minnesota Constitutional Route 4, established in 1920; the remainder of Highway 4 was authorized in 1933. Between Saint James and the Iowa border, Highway 4 followed very closely the former Minneapolis & St Louis Railway the remains of which are clearly visible on the west side of the highway between Minnesota Highway 60 and Sherburn, Minnesota. Grain elevators in Echols, Ormsby, Trimont, and Sherburn are aligned with the former M&StL route through each of these towns. The route was completely paved by 1961.

Major intersections

References

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004 004, 0O4, O04, OO4 may refer to: * 004, fictional British 00 Agent * 0O4, Corning Municipal Airport (California) * O04, the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation * Abdul Haq Wasiq, Guantanamo detainee 004 * Junkers Jumo 004 turbojet engine * Lauda ...

Transportation in Stearns County, Minnesota Transportation in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota Transportation in Meeker County, Minnesota Transportation in Renville County, Minnesota Transportation in Brown County, Minnesota Transportation in Watonwan County, Minnesota Transportation in Martin County, Minnesota Transportation in Nicollet County, Minnesota