Historic U.S. 61: Old Hwy 61 and Thompson Hill Road
Old Hwy 61 and Thompson Hill Road
Located In: Midway Township and City of Proctor, St. Louis County.
Bypassed: 1948
Length: 3.1 miles (surviving, not continuous).
Also Marked As:
Until 1934
U.S. 61: Historic Alignments in Minnesota
North << Next Alignment >> South
View Map Key
History
A total of four sections of the original paved highway between the Twin Cities and Duluth survive along either side of I-35 just west of the Duluth area on top of Thompson Hill. All four have been incorporated into the current service drives, labeled as "Old Hwy 61" on the north side, and as "Thompson Hill Road" on the south side of I-35.
The original paved highway on top of Thompson Hill was completed in 1923 and paved with 18 feet of concrete. It remained in use until 1948, when a new four-lane divided highway was constructed to replace it. Four sections of the original highway survived the 1948 construction project, and were retained as local roads or service drives. All four were accessible directly from the highway. In the mid 1970's, work began to reconstruct the divided highway to interstate standards to incorporate it with the rest of I-35. Direct access to the old highway was cut off, and the surviving sections were connected via new service drives.
Current Status
Although a continuous drive of the old highway is no longer possible, all four surviving segments can be driven by by following either of the service drives, or by doing some creative back-tracking. In any case, the roads have been repaved and widened, but still retain a bit of their historic feel. You can generally tell you're on the old highway when the road suddenly veers away from I-35 (with the exception of the eastern-most segment on the south side, which parallels I-35).
The north service drive, aka "Old Hwy 61", is now marked as parts of St. Louis County Roads 73 and 45 and contains the majority of the old alignment. The south service drive is now marked as County Road 14 and contains the two shortest segments. The service drives are accessible just off of the County Road 61, Midway Road, and Boundary Avenue/Skyline Parkway exits.
Photo Tour - photos taken in November, 2009.
The following tour follows the old highway northbound towards Duluth.
Segment 1: County Road 73 - County Road 61 to Midway Road.
Looking northeast from I-35 towards the beginning of the western-most segment of the old highway.
On County Road 73 at the actual beginning of the old highway. Just ahead there was once a railroad overpass bridge, long since removed after the tracks were abandoned. To drive along this segment, click on the arrows until you get to Midway Road.
Looking east at Midway Road. The end of the first segment is just ahead past the intersection where County Road 73 curves to follow I-35. This intersection is still shown on maps as "Eldes Corner".
Looking west from I-35 at the Midway Road exit. The east end of the first segment is visible on the right.
Segment 2: County Road 14 - Midway Road to Halie Road
Driving eastbound on County Road 14, just east of Midway Road. The beginning of the second segment is just ahead where the road is separated from I-35 by a grove of trees.
Looking west on I-35. The east end of the second segment is on the left (note the minivan about to enter the old highway).
Segment 3: County Roads 73 and 45 - Lindahl Road to Ugstad Road
Looking east
on I-35. The west end of the third segment is visible to the left of the freeway.
Looking east on County Road 73 at the beginning of the
third segment (click on the arrow on the right to continue driving down the third segment until you get to Ugstad Road). This segment retains the most historic feel.
The east end of the third segment at Ugstad Road, looking east.
The east end of the third segment, as seen from I-35, looking west.
Segment 4: County Road 14 - Ugstad Road to Skyline Parkway
Driving east on County Road 14. The beginning of segment four is just ahead at the grove of trees. This segment ends a short distance past the crest of the hill ahead where the road suddenly curves to the right towards Skyline Parkway.
