State Highway 16 (Oklahoma)
Encyclopedia
State Highway 16 is a state highway
in Oklahoma
. It runs in an irregular 99.2-mile west-to-east pattern through the northeastern part of the state, running from SH-33
at Drumright
to SH-51
at Wagoner
. There are no letter-suffixed spur highways branching from SH-16.
SH-16 was established in 1936 as a gravel highway running between Bristow
at its western end and Beggs
at its eastern end. Since then, the highway has been gradually extended to both the east and the west, finally reaching its present-day extent in 1965.
. From there, it travels six miles (10 km) south to the town of Shamrock
, then 13 miles (20.9 km) roughly southeasterly to the city of Bristow
.
SH-16 briefly overlaps SH-48
and SH-66
through Bristow. On the south side of Bristow, SH-16 heads east, then south, 10 miles (16.1 km) to the town of Slick
, then continues another 12 miles (19.3 km) east to Beggs
, where it junctions with U.S. Route 75 Alternate.
Four miles (6.4 km) east of Beggs, SH-16 intersects U.S. Route 75, a four-lane expressway connecting Tulsa
and Okmulgee
. From there it runs due east, intersecting SH-52
near the community of Bald Hill.
Twelve miles (19.3 km) after SH-52, SH-16 joins up with U.S. Route 62/64, six miles (10 km) south of Haskell
. Five miles (8 km) later, SH-162 branches off to the north, connecting with the town of Taft
, and in another eight miles (13 km) enters the city of Muskogee
along Okmulgee Street.
In Muskogee, SH-16 meets U.S. Route 69 at 32nd Street, and turning north, forms a brief three-way concurrency (US-62/69/SH-16). At Shawnee Bypass, U.S. Route 62 and SH-16 turn east, and overlap three miles (5 km) to York Avenue, where SH-16 turns north on its own again.
SH-16 crosses the Arkansas
and Verdigris
Rivers, and passes under the Muskogee Turnpike
, intersecting with SH-251A
in Okay
. Eight miles (12.9 km) farther to the north and west, SH-16 ends at SH-51
, on the south side of Wagoner
.
SH-16 was not extended beyond Beggs until 1954, when it was extended east to US-62 and US-64. This section of gravel highway had a slight jog to the north, causing it to meet the U.S. highways at Jamesville, north of the present-day junction. The following year, SH-16 was extended even further east, passing through Muskogee via US-62, US-64, and US-69, and proceeding along its present day alignment to Okay. In Okay, the highway turned east, following present-day SH-251A across Fort Gibson Dam
and coming to an end at SH-80. This extension was entirely paved.
In 1958, the jog between Beggs and Jamesville was removed, moving the US-62/64 junction to its present day location; this portion of highway remained unpaved. The 1961 map shows the entirety of the Beggs—US-62/64 segment as paved, however, the following year's map shows the portion east of the Okmulgee–Muskogee County line as gravel. By 1963 this portion of gravel highway in Muskogee County had apparently been paved.
The highway was extended again in 1961, this time to the west. At that time, SH-16 absorbed the wholly paved SH-27 between Bristow and Drumright, setting its western terminus at its present-day location. SH-16's final extension occurred in 1965, when SH-251A was established and SH-16 was realigned to instead continue north past Okay and terminate at SH-51 in Wagoner. No further changes have been made to the highway since then.
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 Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
. It runs in an irregular 99.2-mile west-to-east pattern through the northeastern part of the state, running from SH-33
State Highway 33 (Oklahoma)
Oklahoma's State Highway 33 is a major highway that traverses most of the state, and at one time traversed the entire state. Its general orientation is west to east. All mileages listed herein are from the western terminus of the highway at the Texas state line.-Roger Mills County:SH-33 begins...
at Drumright
Drumright, Oklahoma
Drumright is a city in Creek and Payne counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The population was 2,905 at the 2000 census.-History:The town sprang up nearly overnight in 1912 after wildcatter Tom Slick struck oil on the farm of Frank Wheeler, causing a rush of speculators, oilfield workers, and...
to SH-51
State Highway 51 (Oklahoma)
State Highway 51, abbreviated to SH-51 or OK-51, is a major state highway in Oklahoma. It runs for 333 miles east–west across the state, running from the Texas state line to Arkansas. It is the third-longest state highway in the system.-Texas to I-35:SH-51 begins at the Texas line concurrent...
at Wagoner
Wagoner, Oklahoma
Wagoner is a city in Wagoner County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 7,669 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Wagoner County.-Geography:Wagoner is located at ....
. There are no letter-suffixed spur highways branching from SH-16.
SH-16 was established in 1936 as a gravel highway running between Bristow
Bristow, Oklahoma
Bristow is a city in Creek County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 4,325 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Bristow is located at ....
at its western end and Beggs
Beggs, Oklahoma
Beggs is a city in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,364 at the 2000 census. Beggs was named for C.H. Beggs, vice president of the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway.-Geography:...
at its eastern end. Since then, the highway has been gradually extended to both the east and the west, finally reaching its present-day extent in 1965.
Route description
SH-16 begins at SH-33 on the east side of Drumright, in western Creek CountyCreek County, Oklahoma
Creek County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of 2010, the population was 69,967. Its county seat is Sapulpa.-Geography:According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and is water....
. From there, it travels six miles (10 km) south to the town of Shamrock
Shamrock, Oklahoma
Shamrock is a town in Creek County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 125 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Shamrock is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of it land....
, then 13 miles (20.9 km) roughly southeasterly to the city of Bristow
Bristow, Oklahoma
Bristow is a city in Creek County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 4,325 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Bristow is located at ....
.
SH-16 briefly overlaps SH-48
State Highway 48 (Oklahoma)
State Highway 48 is a state highway in eastern Oklahoma that runs nearly from Bryan County to Pawnee County. SH-48 has one lettered spur in Johnston County.-Route description:...
and SH-66
State Highway 66 (Oklahoma)
State Highway 66 is a 196-mile state highway in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, beginning at U.S. Highway 81 in El Reno and ending at U.S. Highway 60 near White Oak. The highway was designated in 1985 as a replacement for the decommissioned US-66...
through Bristow. On the south side of Bristow, SH-16 heads east, then south, 10 miles (16.1 km) to the town of Slick
Slick, Oklahoma
Slick is a town in Creek County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 148 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Slick is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:...
, then continues another 12 miles (19.3 km) east to Beggs
Beggs, Oklahoma
Beggs is a city in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,364 at the 2000 census. Beggs was named for C.H. Beggs, vice president of the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway.-Geography:...
, where it junctions with U.S. Route 75 Alternate.
Four miles (6.4 km) east of Beggs, SH-16 intersects U.S. Route 75, a four-lane expressway connecting Tulsa
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...
and Okmulgee
Okmulgee, Oklahoma
Okmulgee is a city in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma, United States. The population at the 2010 census was 12,321 a loss of 5.4 percent since the 2000 census figure of 13,022. It has been the capital of the Muscogee Nation since the United States Civil War. Okmulgee means "boiling waters" in the Creek...
. From there it runs due east, intersecting SH-52
State Highway 52 (Oklahoma)
State Highway 52 is a name for two once-connected highways in Oklahoma. There are no lettered spur routes from either of them.-Southern section:...
near the community of Bald Hill.
Twelve miles (19.3 km) after SH-52, SH-16 joins up with U.S. Route 62/64, six miles (10 km) south of Haskell
Haskell, Oklahoma
Haskell is a town in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,765 at the 2000 census. The town was named for Charles N. Haskell, the first state governor of Oklahoma but others speculate the town's name is related to the Haskell Indian Nations University, an Indian tribal...
. Five miles (8 km) later, SH-162 branches off to the north, connecting with the town of Taft
Taft, Oklahoma
Taft is a town in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 349 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Taft is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of it land....
, and in another eight miles (13 km) enters the city of Muskogee
Muskogee, Oklahoma
Muskogee is a city in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, United States. It is the county seat of Muskogee County, and home to Bacone College. The population was 38,310 at the 2000 census, making it the eleventh-largest city in Oklahoma....
along Okmulgee Street.
In Muskogee, SH-16 meets U.S. Route 69 at 32nd Street, and turning north, forms a brief three-way concurrency (US-62/69/SH-16). At Shawnee Bypass, U.S. Route 62 and SH-16 turn east, and overlap three miles (5 km) to York Avenue, where SH-16 turns north on its own again.
SH-16 crosses the Arkansas
Arkansas River
The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. The Arkansas generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's initial basin starts in the Western United States in Colorado, specifically the Arkansas...
and Verdigris
Verdigris River
The Verdigris River is a tributary of the Arkansas River in southeastern Kansas and northeastern Oklahoma in the United States. It is about long...
Rivers, and passes under the Muskogee Turnpike
Muskogee Turnpike
-Route description:Opened in 1969, the 53-mile route begins at the Broken Arrow Expressway southeast of Tulsa, near an intersection with the Creek Turnpike. The Turnpike ends at Interstate 40 west of Webbers Falls. There are two toll collection plazas located along the length of the Muskogee...
, intersecting with SH-251A
State Highway 251A (Oklahoma)
State Highway 251A, also known as SH-251A or OK-251A, is a highway maintained by the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The highway has a length of in Wagoner County and in Cherokee County, for a total length of . The highway runs from State Highway 16 in Okay, Oklahoma to State Highway 80 north of Ft. Gibson...
in Okay
Okay, Oklahoma
Okay is a town along the Verdigris River in Wagoner County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 597 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Okay is located at ....
. Eight miles (12.9 km) farther to the north and west, SH-16 ends at SH-51
State Highway 51 (Oklahoma)
State Highway 51, abbreviated to SH-51 or OK-51, is a major state highway in Oklahoma. It runs for 333 miles east–west across the state, running from the Texas state line to Arkansas. It is the third-longest state highway in the system.-Texas to I-35:SH-51 begins at the Texas line concurrent...
, on the south side of Wagoner
Wagoner, Oklahoma
Wagoner is a city in Wagoner County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 7,669 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Wagoner County.-Geography:Wagoner is located at ....
.
History
The present incarnation of SH-16 first appeared on Oklahoma's state highway map in 1937 as a gravel highway connecting Bristow to Beggs. This would be SH-16's extent for nearly two decades. This section of the highway was first paved in 1950.SH-16 was not extended beyond Beggs until 1954, when it was extended east to US-62 and US-64. This section of gravel highway had a slight jog to the north, causing it to meet the U.S. highways at Jamesville, north of the present-day junction. The following year, SH-16 was extended even further east, passing through Muskogee via US-62, US-64, and US-69, and proceeding along its present day alignment to Okay. In Okay, the highway turned east, following present-day SH-251A across Fort Gibson Dam
Fort Gibson Dam
The Fort Gibson Dam is a gravity dam on the Grand River in Oklahoma, north of Fort Gibson. The purpose of the dam is flood control and hydroelectric power production. It was authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1941 and construction began the next year. During World War II construction was...
and coming to an end at SH-80. This extension was entirely paved.
In 1958, the jog between Beggs and Jamesville was removed, moving the US-62/64 junction to its present day location; this portion of highway remained unpaved. The 1961 map shows the entirety of the Beggs—US-62/64 segment as paved, however, the following year's map shows the portion east of the Okmulgee–Muskogee County line as gravel. By 1963 this portion of gravel highway in Muskogee County had apparently been paved.
The highway was extended again in 1961, this time to the west. At that time, SH-16 absorbed the wholly paved SH-27 between Bristow and Drumright, setting its western terminus at its present-day location. SH-16's final extension occurred in 1965, when SH-251A was established and SH-16 was realigned to instead continue north past Okay and terminate at SH-51 in Wagoner. No further changes have been made to the highway since then.