State Route 59 (SR-59) is a

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 the U.S. state of

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

. The highway connects

Hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its ...

to the

twin cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in stat ...

Hildale Hildale is a city in Washington County, Utah, United States. The population was 1,127 at the 2020 census. Hildale is located on the border of Utah and Arizona. History Hildale, formerly known as Short Creek Community, was founded in 1913 by ...

and

Colorado City, Arizona Colorado City is a town in Mohave County, Arizona, United States, and is located in a region known as the Arizona Strip. The population was 2,478 at the 2020 census. At least three Mormon fundamentalist sects are said to have been based ther ...

. The highway connects to US-89A through

Arizona State Route 389 State Route 389, also known as SR 389, is a state highway in far northern Arizona serving the Arizona Strip. SR 389 stretches from the Utah border at Colorado City, southeast to Pipe Spring National Monument, and ends at U.S. Route 89A in F ...

. The route was added to the state highway system in 1914, and has had several designations.

Route description

The route begins at the

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

border in

(whose Arizona counterpart is Colorado City). These two towns are largely known for the

Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (abbreviated to FLDS Church or FLDS) is a Mormon fundamentalist group whose members practice polygamy. It is variously defined as a cult, a sect or a new religious movement. The ...

(or the FLDS), a

Mormon fundamentalist Mormon fundamentalism (also called fundamentalist Mormonism) is a belief in the validity of selected fundamental aspects of Mormonism as taught and practiced in the nineteenth century, particularly during the administrations of Joseph Smith, Br ...

sect that broke away the mainstream

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian restorationist Christian denomination and the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. Founded durin ...

(or the LDS). The highway proceeds northwest past Hildale (where the street is known as State Street) for nearly 15 miles before beginning a 5-mile (8 km) descent into Hurricane. A

runaway truck ramp A runaway truck ramp, runaway truck lane, escape lane, safety ramp, emergency escape ramp, or truck arrester bed is a traffic device that enables vehicles which are having braking problems to stop safely. It is typically a long, sand- or gravel- ...

is located along this descent. The route enters Hurricane on 100 South and proceeds to turn north on Main Street. The route proceeds for a block before terminating at SR-9 (State Street). The northernmost of the route is included in the National Highway System.

History

The road from SR-15 (now SR-9 and SR-17) at La Verkin Junction south to

was added to the state highway system in 1912, and in 1914 it was extended southeast via Big Plain Junction to

Utah Department of Transportation The Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) is an agency of the state government of Utah, United States; it is usually referred to by its initials UDOT (pronounced "you-dot"). UDOT is responsible for approximately 5,900 miles (9,495 kilomet ...

Highway Resolutions
, updated September 2007, accessed May 2008

Highway Resolutions
, updated November 2007, accessed May 2008 In the 1920s, the entire route was numbered State Route 16. A connection from SR-15 (now SR-9) in Rockville south to SR-16 at Big Plain Junction became a state highway in 1925. In 1927, SR-16 was moved to the Rockville-Arizona route, and the roadway between La Verkin and Big Plain Junctions became part of the new SR-17, which also went southwest from Hurricane to SR-1 ( US-91, now

I-15 I15 may refer to: * Interstate 15, a north–south Interstate Highway in the United States of America * Polikarpov I-15, a Soviet fighter aircraft * I15 (band), a band * , of the Imperial Japanese Navy * Älvsborg Regiment The Älvsborg Regiment ...

). The Hurricane-Big Plain Junction branch was split from SR-17 in 1931, becoming a new State Route 59. The entirety of SR-16 was deleted in 1935, permanently removing the Rockville-Big Plain Junction road from the state highway system; the highway beyond Big Plain Junction to Arizona was also removed, but was re-added in 1941 as part of SR-59, forming the present extent of that route. SR-59 was almost completed relocated in 1962, including a new crossing of the state line; it had ended at the west end of Uzona Avenue, which extends west along the border from Colorado City/

, but now crosses within the city limits. The connecting State Route 389 in Arizona was not added to that state's state highway system until 1959.Arizona Highway Data: Search Right-of-Way Resolutions
accessed June 2008

Major intersections

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:State Route 059 059 059