US 6
The Past:
US Route 6 was once the longest highway in the United States of America. First designated as US 6 in 1925, the highway would quickly be expanded west. By 1937, US 6 guided travellers from Provincetown, Massachusetts to Long Beach, California. This transcontinental routing stretched 3,652 miles through 14 states.
The quality of US 6 varied greatly by segment in its earliest days. In the densely populated country east of the Mississippi River, the road was well-maintained and paved. Travellers wishing to follow US 6 into the West would run into issues well before they crossed the California state line. Between Delta, Utah, and Ely, Nevada, US 6 was known to be one of the worst federally-maintained roads in the country. Business Insider reported that “Much of this stretch of road was nothing but a wagon trail-rutted, filled with dust.” When the road was paved, locals held celebrations. It was believed that paving US 6 would bring prosperity to the communities that lay along it.
The Present:
Today, US 6 covers 3,198 miles from Cape Cod, Massachusetts to Bishop, California. Its status as the longest highway in the United States has been supplanted by the 3,365 mile US 20.
When American historian George R. Stewart considered writing a book on US 6, he decided instead to examine US 40. When asked why he decided against 6, he stated: "Route 6 runs uncertainly from nowhere to nowhere, scarcely to be followed from one end to the other, except by some devoted eccentric".
While US 6 does not serve a major transcontinental corridor, it does serve a fascinating transect of the United States. From cities as large as Cleveland and Denver to some of the least populated land in the contiguous US, a trip down US 6 exposes the traveller to almost every sort of place the country has to offer.