United States Highway 59 is a north-south United States highway (though it is signed east-west in parts of Texas). A latecomer to the US numbered route system, US 59 is now a border-to-border route. It parallels U.S. Highway 75 for nearly its entire route, never much more than 100 miles away, until it turns west in Houston, Texas.
Termini
As of 2004, the highway's northern terminus is 9 miles north of Lancaster, Minnesota at the Canadian border, where it continues as Provincial Highway 59. Its southern terminus is in Laredo, Texas at an intersection with Interstate 35 and U.S. Highway 83, just short of the Mexican border.
Historic termini
From 1934 to 1935, the US 59 designation referred to a 50-mile-long route across southeastern Minnesota, from Lake City, Minnesota to the Iowa border just short of Chester, Iowa. That entire route is now part of U.S. Highway 63, and nowhere close to the present US 59, established in 1935.
Alternate routes
Though it is not signed as an Alternate US Route, Arkansas State Highway 59 parallels US 59 between Siloam Springs and Fort Smith. US 59 and U.S. Highway 412 are co-signed in Oklahoma for 10 miles, then US 59 turns south right at the Arkansas border. One mile into Arkansas, AR 59 also turns south from US 412. US 59 bears east to Sallisaw, Oklahoma, while AR 59 hugs the border to Fort Smith. From there, the official US 59 is 10 miles west down U.S. Highway 271 (in Oklahoma), or 60 miles south down U.S. Highway 71 (at Mena, Arkansas).
States traversed
The highway passes through the following states:
Related US Routes
Sources and external links