Route 53 is a south–north
state highway
A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either Route number, numbered or maintained by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered ...
in southeastern
Massachusetts
Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
. Its southern terminus is at
Route 3A in
Kingston
Kingston may refer to:
Places
* List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated:
** Kingston, Jamaica
** Kingston upon Hull, England
** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia
** Kingston, Ontario, Canada
** Kingston upon Thames, ...
and its northern terminus is at Route 3A in
Quincy. Along the way it intersects
Route 3 in
Hanover
Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...
.
History
Route 53 follows the former routing of the Kingston to Quincy section of
Route 3 which was moved onto the Southeast Expressway and Pilgrim's Highway expressway when they were fully completed in 1963. The remaining former sections of Route 3 became extensions of
Route 3A.
For a period of time, from at least the early 1930s through 1967, a mile of what is now Route 53, between Derby Street and Main Street (Route 228), was also coextensive with
Route 128
The following highways are numbered 128:
Canada
* New Brunswick Route 128
* Ontario Highway 128 (former)
* Prince Edward Island Route 128
Costa Rica
* National Route 128 (Costa Rica), National Route 128
India
* National Highway 128 (India)
Ja ...
. In 1967 that route was cut back to the
Braintree Split
The Braintree Split is the major interchange of Interstate 93 (I-93), U.S. Route 1 (US 1), and Route 3 in Braintree, Massachusetts, one of the South Shore suburbs of Boston. Traveling northbound, the routes merge into a three-way concurren ...
, and again in 1997 it was officially cut back to the
I-95
Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...
/
I-93
Interstate 93 (I-93) is an Interstate Highway in the New England states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont in the United States. Spanning approximately along a north–south axis, it is one of three primary Interstate Highways ...
junction in
Canton.
Queen Anne's Corner
The intersection of Route 53 with Route 228 on the
Hingham–
Norwell town line is known as Queen Anne's Corner or historically Queen Ann's Corner and the nearby section of Route 53 has also been known as Queen Anne's (or Ann's) Turnpike. The name comes from Anne Whiton, a local tavern owner who in the mid-1700s, along with her daughters, had an "unsavory reputation" and was called ''
quean'' with the archaic meaning of the word as
prostitute
Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-pe ...
.
Route description
Route 53 begins in Kingston at
Route 3A, just a third of a mile west of where that route meets
Route 3 at Exit 10. It heads north, almost immediately entering the town of
Duxbury
Duxbury (alternative older spelling: "Duxborough") is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. A suburb located on the South Shore (Massachusetts), South Shore approximately to the southeast of Boston, the population was 16,090 ...
. It passes through the southwestern part of that town before meeting
Route 14 just over the line into
Pembroke. The two routes pass concurrently for over a mile and a half before splitting in the area of North Pembroke. Route 53 is alone for just over a mile and a quarter before becoming concurrent with
Route 139. The two routes pass over the
North River into
Hanover
Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...
together before splitting.
Route 53 heads northwards through the eastern part of Hanover until it passes the
Hanover Mall
Hanover Crossing (previously the Hanover Mall) is mixed-use development located in Hanover, Massachusetts. It operated from 1971 until 2020 as an indoor shopping mall, and reopened in 2022 after being converted into an outdoor lifestyle center ...
and meets Route 3 once more, at Exit 13. From Route 3 it bends northwestward, going through the western portion of
Norwell before meeting
Route 228 just over the town line into
Hingham. The route passes through the southwest corner of that town before entering
Weymouth. In Weymouth, the route bisects the town from southeast to northwest, passing Whitman's Pond and the northern end of
Route 18. Route 53 then enters
Braintree, crossing the
Monatiquot River before entering
Quincy, passing the site of the
Fore River Shipyard
Fore River Shipyard was a shipyard owned by General Dynamics Corporation located on Weymouth Fore River in Braintree, Massachusetts, Braintree and Quincy, Massachusetts. It began operations in 1883 in Braintree, and moved to its final location on ...
. After just a mile, Route 53 ends at Route 3A, with that route resuming the former route of Route 3.
Major intersections
References
{{Commons category, Massachusetts Route 53
053 53 may refer to:
* 53 (number)
* one of the years 53 BC, AD 53, 1953, 2053
* FiftyThree, an American privately held technology company that specializes in tools for mobile creation and visual thinking
* 53rd Regiment Alabama Cavalry
* 53rd Regiment ...
Streets in Braintree, Massachusetts
Duxbury, Massachusetts
Kingston, Massachusetts
Pembroke, Massachusetts
Hanover, Massachusetts
Norwell, Massachusetts
Hingham, Massachusetts
Weymouth, Massachusetts
Quincy, Massachusetts
Transportation in Norfolk County, Massachusetts
Transportation in Plymouth County, Massachusetts