Missouri Route 73 is a short state highway in southwest
Missouri
Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...
. It runs from an intersection with
U.S. Route 65
U.S. Route 65 (US 65) is a north–south United States highway in the southern and midwestern United States. The southern terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 425 in Clayton, Louisiana. The northern terminus is at Interstate 35 just south of I ...
in the northern part of
Buffalo in
Dallas County to
U.S. Route 54
U.S. Route 54 (US 54) is an east–west United States Highway that runs northeast–southwest for from El Paso, Texas, to Griggsville, Illinois. The Union Pacific Railroad's Tucumcari Line (former Southern Pacific Railroad, Southern Pacific an ...
near
Macks Creek in
Camden County. The route is two lanes for its entire length.
Route description
Route 73 begins at
U.S. Route 65
U.S. Route 65 (US 65) is a north–south United States highway in the southern and midwestern United States. The southern terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 425 in Clayton, Louisiana. The northern terminus is at Interstate 35 just south of I ...
in the northern tip of the town of
Buffalo in
Dallas County. It runs east for a short time before turning to the northeast and intersecting Route DD. The highway heads farther northeast and meets
Route 64 in
Pumpkin Center. North of the Route 64 intersection, the highway runs through
Tunas. In Tunas, Route 73 intersects Routes D and E. Farther northeast, the route meets Route PP before crossing into
Camden County.
In Camden County, Route 73 heads through the Branch Towersite and the town of
Branch
A branch, also called a ramus in botany, is a stem that grows off from another stem, or when structures like veins in leaves are divided into smaller veins.
History and etymology
In Old English, there are numerous words for branch, includ ...
. It then ends at
U.S. Route 54
U.S. Route 54 (US 54) is an east–west United States Highway that runs northeast–southwest for from El Paso, Texas, to Griggsville, Illinois. The Union Pacific Railroad's Tucumcari Line (former Southern Pacific Railroad, Southern Pacific an ...
southwest of
Macks Creek.
No portion of Route 73 is a part of the
National Highway System, a system of highways important to the nation's defense, economy, and mobility.
History
Before the
U.S. Highway system
The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these h ...
was established, Route 73 was part of
Route 15.
In 1926, a significant part of Route 15 became
U.S. Route 54
U.S. Route 54 (US 54) is an east–west United States Highway that runs northeast–southwest for from El Paso, Texas, to Griggsville, Illinois. The Union Pacific Railroad's Tucumcari Line (former Southern Pacific Railroad, Southern Pacific an ...
, including the section that is today Route 73.
Sometime between 1932 and 1935, US 54 was realigned to the north (switching places with
Route 64), rejoining its old alignment west of
Macks Creek. The diagonal section cut off between
Buffalo and Macks Creek became Route 73.
Route 73 originally ended at
Missouri Route 32
Route 32 is a highway in Missouri. Its eastern terminus is at the Mississippi River near Ste. Genevieve; its western terminus is at U.S. Route 54 in El Dorado Springs. It is currently one of the longest highways in the state. Most of the hig ...
and US 65 before a connector was built north of Buffalo.
Junction list
References
{{reflist
073
Transportation in Dallas County, Missouri
Transportation in Camden County, Missouri