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Wikipedia / U.S. Route 21

U.S. Route21 or U.S. Highway21 (US21) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway, spanning from Hunting Island State Park, South Carolina, to Wytheville, Virginia. The route traverses three states, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. It connects southeastern cities, including Columbia, South Carolina, and Charlotte, North Carolina.

US 21 starts at Hunting Island State Park, bypasses Beaufort, South Carolina, and then heads north across the low country, paralleling Interstate 77 (I-77) through urban and rural areas before entering North Carolina. In North Carolina, US 21 frequently merges with and splits from I-77. The route enters Virginia, passing through hilly terrain before ending at the intersection of Interstate 81 (I-81) / U.S. Route 52 (US 52) in Wytheville.

Despite the "1" indicating that it is a major north–south highway, US 21 only travels through three states and is no longer a cross-country route, as many sections have been replaced by I-77 in Ohio and West Virginia. Historically, US 21 was longer before the Interstate Highway System was established. US 21 originally ran from Cleveland, Ohio, to Yemassee, South Carolina, it was later extended to Beaufort and Hunting Island State Park. Over time, its length was reduced, making it the second-shortest major north–south route after U.S. Route 91 (US 91).

US 21 serves as an alternative to the more heavily trafficked interstates in the area, particularly I-77, I-26, and I-95.

Route description

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South Carolina

US21 travels through the state. Beginning at Hunting Island State Park, US21 travels west toward Beaufort, where it widens to four lanes. The route bypasses Beaufort to the south, going through Port Royal, Shell Point, and Burton. In the Beaufort area, US21 passes by the entrances to Parris Island and Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, the major Marine Corps installations in the area. North of Beaufort, US21 continues as a four-lane divided highway and intersects with US 17. The route travels in a wrong-way concurrency with US17 south for before turning north toward Yemassee, where it becomes a rural two-lane road and intersects with US 17 Alternate. North of Yemassee, US21 splits off and crosses I-95 at exit42.

The two-lane route continues through rural portions of the state. US21 goes through Smoaks and Branchville and bypasses Orangeburg. North of Orangeburg, US21 runs roughly parallel to I-26 until Gaston where it conjoins US 321 and becomes an urban highway. US21 passes through Cayce, West Columbia, and Columbia.

North of Columbia, US21 splits from US176 and US321, before crossing I-20 at exit71. Beyond I-20, US21 reverts to a rural two-lane road parallel to I-77. In York County, US21 enters urban areas again, connecting Rock Hill and Fort Mill. Near the North Carolina state line, US21 merges with I-77 near Carowinds, then enters North Carolina.

North Carolina

US21 begins as a concurrency with I-77 in Charlotte, which it repeats three times within the state. Its first break with I-77 is along Statesville Avenue, then proceeding through Huntersville and Cornelius, however, because of its close proximity to I-77 and North Carolina Highway 115 (NC115), it has no interchange with I-485 by itself. The second break with I-77 occurs at Mooresville, where US21 travels through the city and then northwest into Statesville. After Statesville, US21 travels northeast to Harmony and Brooks Crossroads, before merging back with I-77 near Jonesville. However, Jonesville and Elkin connect with US 21 Bus. through centers of both towns, as an alternate route paralleling I-77. North of Elkin, US21 splits with I-77 for the last time and goes north to Sparta, passing the Blue Ridge Parkway after a major, curvy section. North of Sparta, at Twin Oaks, US 221 overlaps with US21 before entering Virginia. US21 travels through the western Piedmont of North Carolina, either combined with I-77 or as a two-lane rural road; from the South Carolina state line to Elkin, travelers can easily skip a majority of US21 via I-77.

Virginia

After a few miles crossing the state line, US21 reaches the town of Independence, where it splits with US221 and continues north. The route goes through the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area before entering the city of Wytheville. After a short concurrency with US 11 in downtown Wytheville, it goes north and ends at the intersection of I-81/US 52. US21 travels through western Virginia, mostly as a two-lane rural mountain road.

History

US21 in the pre-Interstate era was a north–south highway connecting the area around Lake Erie and the coastal South. One of the few true north–south routes to cross the middle Appalachian Mountains, it became an important corridor for motor traffic between northeastern Ohio, western Pennsylvania, (with US 19) and western New York with central North Carolina, central and southeastern South Carolina, and (by connecting with other highways) coastal Georgia and most of Florida. Many referred to the stretch of US21 from the Great Lakes Region to Florida as "The Lakes-to-Florida Highway".US21 originally (in 1926) connected Cleveland, Ohio, and Yemassee, South Carolina. In 1935 it was extended to Beaufort, South Carolina, and again in 1953 to its current southern terminus at the Atlantic Coast at Hunting Island State Park, between the city of Beaufort and Fripp Island.

In the Interstate Highway era, much of US21 became an obvious corridor for a long-distance expressway. The West Virginia Turnpike between Charleston, West Virginia, and Princeton, West Virginia, was the first segment of a planned series of toll highways along or near US21 from Cleveland to Charlotte, North Carolina. All the other toll highways were shelved in favor of freeways built with Interstate funding; these freeways and the West Virginia Turnpike became I-77, which completely supplanted old US21 as a long-distance through route. I-77 was later extended to Columbia, South Carolina, also within a few miles of US21. Between Cleveland and Charleston, all but a relatively short segment of US21 was completely deleted in favor of I-77, the relics being as follows:

  • State Route 21 (SR21) between Cuyahoga Heights and Strasburg;

  • SR 821 between I-77 near Byesville and SR60 near Marietta, Ohio;

  • County Road 35 (CR35, Oakwood Road, Byesville Road, Old Twenty-One Road) between Byesville and the Guernsey–Tuscarawas county line;

  • CR3 (Salt Fork Road) between the Guernsey–Tuscarawas county line to SR258

  • CR21 between Newcomerstown and New Philadelphia

  • County Route21 (CR21) between Mineral Wells and Charleston.

Between Charleston and its current northern terminus at Wytheville, Virginia, almost all of US21 ran concurrently with either US 60, US 19, or US 52, which remained as US21 was deleted. The short segment of US21 in southern West Virginia not coinciding with another U.S. Highway became an extension of West Virginia Route 16.

In North Carolina, US21 originally entered the state along today's NC 51 into Pineville, then followed Old Pineville Road into Charlotte. In the mid-1930s, US21 moved over to South Boulevard from Old Pineville Road. In 1969, US21 was rerouted following today's I-77 alignment, the old route was replaced by an extension of US521. From 1975–1987, US21 moved north in segments onto I-77 to its current alignment ending at exit16A (Sunset Road). Further north, US21 originally followed Old Statesville Road, replaced in 1956 by NC 115. In 1966, US21 was bypassed around Jonesville and Elkin, replaced with US21 Bus.

US21 in Beaufort, South Carolina, was rerouted around the city over former SC 280 as well as a portion of SC 802. The new routing went into effect on February 26, 2012.

Major intersections

Special routes and auxiliary routes

There are currently four business loops, four connectors, and one truck route along its route.

Auxiliary routes of US21:

See also

References