New York State Route 99
Encyclopedia
New York State Route 99 (NY 99) was a state highway
in Franklin County, New York
, in the United States. The western terminus of the route was at an intersection with NY 30
in Duane
. Its eastern terminus was at a junction with NY 3
near the Franklin
community of Merrillsville. NY 99 was known as the Port Kent – Hopkinton Turnpike and maintained by Franklin County, which co-designated the highway as County Route 26 (CR 26). The narrow, winding route passed through isolated and heavily wooded areas of Adirondack Park.
The routing of NY 99 was originally part of the Port Kent and Hopkinton Turnpike
, a 19th century toll road
that began in the town of Hopkinton
and passed through central Franklin County on its way to the hamlet of Port Kent
on the shores of Lake Champlain
. The portion of the turnpike between Duane Center and Merrillsville was designated as NY 99 as part of the 1930 renumbering of state highways in New York. It remained unchanged until September 26, 1994, when the NY 99 designation was removed from the highway.
west of the hamlet of Duane Center in the town of Duane
. The route headed eastward as the Port Kent – Hopkinton Turnpike, passing through the small community of Duane Center before entering an isolated, wooded area of Franklin County
and Adirondack Park. At the Franklin
town line, NY 99 curved southeastward, roughly paralleling Hatch Brook as it climbed up the northeastern portion of Baldface Mountain. Past the mountain's summit, the route continued onward, winding its way southward along Hatch Brook to a small lake known as Duck Pond.
Past Duck Pond, the route turned to the southeast, passing by a series of small ponds and crossing under an old railroad grade as it ran along the base of a series of peaks known as the Loon Lake Mountains. NY 99 continued to follow the range to the northwestern edge of Loon Lake, where it veered to the northeast and ran along the northern and eastern shores of the lake to the hamlet of Loon Lake at its southeastern tip. NY 99 passed generally northwest–southeast through the small lakeside community before reentering another sparsely developed area of the town of Franklin. The highway progressed southeastward, crossing over the northern branch of the Saranac River
and passing through the largely undeveloped community of Merrillsville before ending at an intersection with NY 3
.
, a toll road
that was to begin in the town of Hopkinton
and end at the hamlet of Port Kent
on the western shore of Lake Champlain. Construction began later that year and was completed in 1832. The 75 miles (121 km) highway opened in 1833. The turnpike operated for only five years before it was dissolved on March 30, 1838, at which time maintenance of the highway was transferred to the towns it ran within. The 19 miles (31 km) segment of the turnpike between then-NY 10
near the Duane
hamlet of Duane Center and NY 3
near the Franklin
hamlet of Merrillsville was designated as NY 99 as part of the 1930 renumbering of state highways in New York.
Although NY 99 was signed as a state highway, maintenance on the route was performed by Franklin County
, which designated the roadway as CR 26. All of NY 99 was initially a gravel road
; however, most of the road was paved in the early 1970s through the use of state funds procured by New York State Senator Ronald Stafford of Plattsburgh
. The western and eastern extents of the road were paved soon afterward; however, the road was left unpaved in the vicinity of Loon Lake—a lake near the midpoint of the route—even though the necessary gravel base was applied to the entire highway. The unpaved section deteriorated as a result, and the NY 99 designation was removed from the roadway on September 26, 1994.
CR 26 has continued to deteriorate in the years since, with one 9 miles (14 km), limited maintenance segment seeing the most wear. This section, situated midway between NY 30 and NY 3, has become both littered with potholes and extremely narrow due to the erosion of the highway's shoulders. In mid-2009, residents of Loon Lake petitioned the county to repair all of CR 26 and to continuously maintain the highway, citing the road's regional importance as a through route for commuters traveling to and from the village of Malone
.
State highway
State highway, state road or state route can refer to one of three related concepts, two of them related to a state or provincial government in a country that is divided into states or provinces :#A...
in Franklin County, New York
Franklin County, New York
Franklin County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 51,599. It is named in honor of American Founding Father Benjamin Franklin...
, in the United States. The western terminus of the route was at an intersection with NY 30
New York State Route 30
New York State Route 30 is a state highway in the central part of New York in the United States. It extends for from an interchange with NY 17 in the Southern Tier to the Canadian border in the state's North Country, where it continues into Quebec as Route 138. On a regional level,...
in Duane
Duane, New York
Duane is a town in Franklin County, New York, United States. The population was 159 at the 2000 census. The town is named after James Duane, a developer and grandson of New York City Mayor James Duane....
. Its eastern terminus was at a junction with NY 3
New York State Route 3
New York State Route 3 is a major east–west state highway in New York, United States, that connects central New York to the North Country region near the Canadian border via Adirondack Park. The route extends for between its western terminus at an intersection with NY 104A in the Cayuga...
near the Franklin
Franklin, Franklin County, New York
Franklin is a town located in Franklin County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 1,197.The Town of Franklin is in southeast part of the county, southeast of the Village of Malone . Franklin is in the Adirondack Region of New York State.- History...
community of Merrillsville. NY 99 was known as the Port Kent – Hopkinton Turnpike and maintained by Franklin County, which co-designated the highway as County Route 26 (CR 26). The narrow, winding route passed through isolated and heavily wooded areas of Adirondack Park.
The routing of NY 99 was originally part of the Port Kent and Hopkinton Turnpike
Port Kent and Hopkinton Turnpike
The Port Kent and Hopkinton Turnpike was a 19th century toll road in the North Country of New York, United States. It began in the town of Hopkinton and ended at the hamlet of Port Kent, located on the western shore of Lake Champlain. The turnpike was constructed in the early 1830s and was...
, a 19th century toll road
Toll road
A toll road is a privately or publicly built road for which a driver pays a toll for use. Structures for which tolls are charged include toll bridges and toll tunnels. Non-toll roads are financed using other sources of revenue, most typically fuel tax or general tax funds...
that began in the town of Hopkinton
Hopkinton, New York
Hopkinton is a town in St. Lawrence County, New York in the United States. The population was 1,020 at the 2000 census. The name is derived from early settlers with the name Hopkins....
and passed through central Franklin County on its way to the hamlet of Port Kent
Port Kent, New York
Port Kent, New York is a community in Essex County, New York, on Lake Champlain. Ferry service to Vermont is provided by the Lake Champlain Transportation Company; the community also has an Amtrak railroad stop....
on the shores of Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain is a natural, freshwater lake in North America, located mainly within the borders of the United States but partially situated across the Canada—United States border in the Canadian province of Quebec.The New York portion of the Champlain Valley includes the eastern portions of...
. The portion of the turnpike between Duane Center and Merrillsville was designated as NY 99 as part of the 1930 renumbering of state highways in New York. It remained unchanged until September 26, 1994, when the NY 99 designation was removed from the highway.
Route description
NY 99 began at an intersection with NY 30New York State Route 30
New York State Route 30 is a state highway in the central part of New York in the United States. It extends for from an interchange with NY 17 in the Southern Tier to the Canadian border in the state's North Country, where it continues into Quebec as Route 138. On a regional level,...
west of the hamlet of Duane Center in the town of Duane
Duane, New York
Duane is a town in Franklin County, New York, United States. The population was 159 at the 2000 census. The town is named after James Duane, a developer and grandson of New York City Mayor James Duane....
. The route headed eastward as the Port Kent – Hopkinton Turnpike, passing through the small community of Duane Center before entering an isolated, wooded area of Franklin County
Franklin County, New York
Franklin County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 51,599. It is named in honor of American Founding Father Benjamin Franklin...
and Adirondack Park. At the Franklin
Franklin, Franklin County, New York
Franklin is a town located in Franklin County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 1,197.The Town of Franklin is in southeast part of the county, southeast of the Village of Malone . Franklin is in the Adirondack Region of New York State.- History...
town line, NY 99 curved southeastward, roughly paralleling Hatch Brook as it climbed up the northeastern portion of Baldface Mountain. Past the mountain's summit, the route continued onward, winding its way southward along Hatch Brook to a small lake known as Duck Pond.
Past Duck Pond, the route turned to the southeast, passing by a series of small ponds and crossing under an old railroad grade as it ran along the base of a series of peaks known as the Loon Lake Mountains. NY 99 continued to follow the range to the northwestern edge of Loon Lake, where it veered to the northeast and ran along the northern and eastern shores of the lake to the hamlet of Loon Lake at its southeastern tip. NY 99 passed generally northwest–southeast through the small lakeside community before reentering another sparsely developed area of the town of Franklin. The highway progressed southeastward, crossing over the northern branch of the Saranac River
Saranac River
Saranac River is an river in the U.S. state of New York. In its upper reaches is a region of mostly flat water and lakes. The river has more than three dozen source lakes and ponds north of Upper Saranac Lake; the highest is Mountain Pond on Long Pond Mountain...
and passing through the largely undeveloped community of Merrillsville before ending at an intersection with NY 3
New York State Route 3
New York State Route 3 is a major east–west state highway in New York, United States, that connects central New York to the North Country region near the Canadian border via Adirondack Park. The route extends for between its western terminus at an intersection with NY 104A in the Cayuga...
.
History
On April 18, 1829, the New York State Legislature passed an act that allowed construction to begin on the Port Kent and Hopkinton TurnpikePort Kent and Hopkinton Turnpike
The Port Kent and Hopkinton Turnpike was a 19th century toll road in the North Country of New York, United States. It began in the town of Hopkinton and ended at the hamlet of Port Kent, located on the western shore of Lake Champlain. The turnpike was constructed in the early 1830s and was...
, a toll road
Toll road
A toll road is a privately or publicly built road for which a driver pays a toll for use. Structures for which tolls are charged include toll bridges and toll tunnels. Non-toll roads are financed using other sources of revenue, most typically fuel tax or general tax funds...
that was to begin in the town of Hopkinton
Hopkinton, New York
Hopkinton is a town in St. Lawrence County, New York in the United States. The population was 1,020 at the 2000 census. The name is derived from early settlers with the name Hopkins....
and end at the hamlet of Port Kent
Port Kent, New York
Port Kent, New York is a community in Essex County, New York, on Lake Champlain. Ferry service to Vermont is provided by the Lake Champlain Transportation Company; the community also has an Amtrak railroad stop....
on the western shore of Lake Champlain. Construction began later that year and was completed in 1832. The 75 miles (121 km) highway opened in 1833. The turnpike operated for only five years before it was dissolved on March 30, 1838, at which time maintenance of the highway was transferred to the towns it ran within. The 19 miles (31 km) segment of the turnpike between then-NY 10
New York State Route 10
New York State Route 10 is a north–south state highway in the Central New York and North Country regions of New York in the United States. It extends for from the Quickway in Deposit, Delaware County to NY 8 at Higgins Bay, a hamlet in the Hamilton County town of Arietta...
near the Duane
Duane, New York
Duane is a town in Franklin County, New York, United States. The population was 159 at the 2000 census. The town is named after James Duane, a developer and grandson of New York City Mayor James Duane....
hamlet of Duane Center and NY 3
New York State Route 3
New York State Route 3 is a major east–west state highway in New York, United States, that connects central New York to the North Country region near the Canadian border via Adirondack Park. The route extends for between its western terminus at an intersection with NY 104A in the Cayuga...
near the Franklin
Franklin, Franklin County, New York
Franklin is a town located in Franklin County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 1,197.The Town of Franklin is in southeast part of the county, southeast of the Village of Malone . Franklin is in the Adirondack Region of New York State.- History...
hamlet of Merrillsville was designated as NY 99 as part of the 1930 renumbering of state highways in New York.
Although NY 99 was signed as a state highway, maintenance on the route was performed by Franklin County
Franklin County, New York
Franklin County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 51,599. It is named in honor of American Founding Father Benjamin Franklin...
, which designated the roadway as CR 26. All of NY 99 was initially a gravel road
Gravel road
A gravel road is a type of unpaved road surfaced with gravel that has been brought to the site from a quarry or stream bed. They are common in less-developed nations, and also in the rural areas of developed nations such as Canada and the United States. In New Zealand, they are known as 'metal roads'...
; however, most of the road was paved in the early 1970s through the use of state funds procured by New York State Senator Ronald Stafford of Plattsburgh
Plattsburgh (city), New York
Plattsburgh is a city in and county seat of Clinton County, New York, United States. The population was 19,989 at the 2010 census. The population of the unincorporated areas within the Town of Plattsburgh was 11,870 as of the 2010 census; making the population for the immediate, urban Plattsburgh,...
. The western and eastern extents of the road were paved soon afterward; however, the road was left unpaved in the vicinity of Loon Lake—a lake near the midpoint of the route—even though the necessary gravel base was applied to the entire highway. The unpaved section deteriorated as a result, and the NY 99 designation was removed from the roadway on September 26, 1994.
CR 26 has continued to deteriorate in the years since, with one 9 miles (14 km), limited maintenance segment seeing the most wear. This section, situated midway between NY 30 and NY 3, has become both littered with potholes and extremely narrow due to the erosion of the highway's shoulders. In mid-2009, residents of Loon Lake petitioned the county to repair all of CR 26 and to continuously maintain the highway, citing the road's regional importance as a through route for commuters traveling to and from the village of Malone
Malone (village), New York
-Notable natives:Notable natives include:*William Almon Wheeler served as Vice President of the United States under Rutherford Hayes. Is buried at Morningside Cemetery in Malone....
.