Arkansas Highway 180 Explained

State:AR
Type:AR
Route:180
Alternate Name:Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard
Map Custom:yes
Map Notes:AR 180 highlighted in red; former AR 180 in gray
Length Mi:1.723
Length Ref:[1]
Established:2008
Direction A:West
Terminus A: in Fayetteville
Direction B:East
Terminus B:School Avenue in Fayetteville
Counties:Washington
Previous Type:AR
Previous Route:179
Next Type:AR
Next Route:181

Highway 180 (AR 180, Ark. 180, Hwy. 180, also officially Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard) is a state highway of 1.723miles in Fayetteville. The route begins at Interstate 49/US 62/US 71/Highway 16 and runs east through Fayetteville to School Avenue (former US 71 Business). Highway 180 is designated as part of the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail as well as Arkansas Heritage Trails System designations as the Butterfield Trail, Trail of Tears (Benge Route), and Civil War Trails (Herron's Approach).[2] [3] [4]

Route description

Highway 180 begins at US 62 just underneath the Interstate 49/US 62/US 71/AR 16 overpass in western Fayetteville. It continues east to a junction with Razorback Road (former Highway 112) on the Campus of the University of Arkansas. Highway 180 continues east past the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville High School, and the Fayetteville National Cemetery to terminate at School Avenue (former US 71B).[5] The roadway continues east as Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard, a city street. The route is entirely four lane, with a center left-turn lane.[6]

History

As early as 1930, the road was named Wall Street in the city limits of Fayetteville.[7] The road later became 6th Street. Between 1971 and 1989 this road was designated US 62 Business.

On January 15, 2009, Fayetteville renamed Sixth Street to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. The ceremony took place at the Razorback Road intersection at the entrance to the University of Arkansas.[8] Most Fayetteville businesses on the road still claim 6th Street, and many residents and university students continue to call the road 6th Street over two years after the change.

Former routes

State:AR
Type:AR
Route:180
Length Mi:1.5
Length Round:1
Location:Fayetteville, Arkansas
Formed:c. 1940
Deleted:1990s

Arkansas Highway 180 was a state highway of 1.5miles in Fayetteville. Its original location was along Assembly Road and Skyline Drive where it circled around Mount Sequoyah and returned to its single terminus of Highway 45. This segment was dropped from the state highway system in the early 1990s.[9]

State:AR
Type:AR
Route:180
Length Mi:1.8
Length Round:1
Formed:c. 1940
Deleted:2008
Location:Fayetteville, Arkansas

Arkansas Highway 180 was a state highway of 1.8miles in Fayetteville. The route began at U.S. Route 71 Business in Fayetteville and followed Township Road, Gregg Avenue and Drake Street before ending at AR 112. In the 1990s this segment was extended north along Gregg Avenue and ended at a spur of U.S. 71 Business on the north end of Fayetteville. This segment was dropped from the state highway system in 2008 following the widening of Gregg Avenue.

Notes and References

  1. Transportation Planning and Policy Division . Arkansas Department of Transportation . State Highway Route and Section Map, Washington County . GIS Section . Little Rock . September 17, 2021 . 1:62,500 . December 11, 2021 .
  2. Web site: Butterfield Overland Mail Trail in Arkansas . Butterfield Trail . . 2012 . April 22, 2012 .
  3. Web site: Benge Route . Trail of Tears . Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism . 2012 . April 22, 2012 .
  4. Web site: Prairie Grove Campaign . Civil War Trails . Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism . 2012 . April 22, 2012 .
  5. Transportation Planning and Policy Division . Arkansas Department of Transportation . General Highway Map, Washington County, Arkansas . Little Rock . October 21, 2010 . January 17, 2019 . Revised . 1:62,500 . 919734758 . December 6, 2021 .
  6. Web site: Arkansas Road Log Database . Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department . 2015 . Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department . MDB . March 27, 2016 .
  7. Arkansas State Highway Commission . Official Highway Service Map . March 1930 . April 29, 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110707163441/http://www.arkansashighways.com/planning_research/mapping_graphics/archived_tourist_maps/1930.tif . July 7, 2011 .
  8. "Fayetteville's 6th Street Renamed MLK Blvd." KHBS. Posted January 15, 2009, updated January 16, 2009. Article. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
  9. October 22, 1987 . July 1988 . Revised . Planning Division . General Highway Map, Washington County, Arkansas . Little Rock . 1:62,500 . Arkansas State Highway Department . February 25, 2018 .