Utah State Route 56
Encyclopedia
State Route 56 is a highway completely within Iron County
in southwestern Utah
going from the Utah/Nevada
border to Cedar City
.
, the route heads northeast until reaching Modena, where it turns southeast. It continues this direction until Newcastle
, where it begins heading east and then southeast. After a junction with Pinto Road, the route heads northeast until entering Cedar City, where it runs east until its eastern terminus.
became a state highway in 1918, and in 1927 the legislature extended it west to the Nevada
state line (at SR 25) and numbered it as part of SR-18. A connection from SR-18 at Beryl Junction east to SR-1 (US-91, now SR-130) in Cedar City was added in 1931 as State Route 56, and in 1935 that route absorbed the segment of SR-18 to the state line.
SR-56 originally crossed the mountains between Cedar City and Beryl Junction via Desert Mound, following the present Desert Mound Road. Two branch from SR-56 to Iron Mountain were added in 1935: State Route 120 directly south from about the midpoint (never built), and State Route 198 from near the Cedar City end southwest via Iron Mountain to the Dixie National Forest
in the direction of Pinto
. Both routes were deleted in 1945, and SR-56 was realigned via Iron Mountain, with the portion of SR-198 east of that settlement becoming part of the new route. A 1953 law restored part of the old alignment to the state highway system as State Route 253, from the junction west of Cedar City to Desert Mound, and also created State Route 254 as a branch to Iron Springs. Both were given back to the county in 1969.
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Iron County, Utah
As of the census of 2000, there were 33,779 people, 10,627 households, and 8,076 families residing in the county. The population density was 10 people per square mile . There were 13,618 housing units at an average density of 4 per square mile...
in southwestern Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
going from the Utah/Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
border to Cedar City
Cedar City, Utah
As of the census of 2000, there were 20,527 people, 6,486 households, and 4,682 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,021.8 people per square mile . There were 7,109 housing units at an average density of 353.9 per square mile...
.
Route description
From its western terminus on the Nevada border near ModenaModena, Utah
Modena is an unincorporated community in far western Iron County, Utah, United States, near the Nevada border. It lies along State Route 56 west of the city of Parowan, the county seat of Iron County. Its elevation is 5,476 feet...
, the route heads northeast until reaching Modena, where it turns southeast. It continues this direction until Newcastle
Newcastle, Utah
Newcastle is a census-designated place in southwestern Iron County, Utah, United States. It lies along State Route 56 southwest of the city of Parowan, the county seat of Iron County. Its elevation is 5,312 feet . Although Newcastle is unincorporated, it has a post office, with the ZIP code...
, where it begins heading east and then southeast. After a junction with Pinto Road, the route heads northeast until entering Cedar City, where it runs east until its eastern terminus.
History
The road from Beryl Junction west to ModenaModena, Utah
Modena is an unincorporated community in far western Iron County, Utah, United States, near the Nevada border. It lies along State Route 56 west of the city of Parowan, the county seat of Iron County. Its elevation is 5,476 feet...
became a state highway in 1918, and in 1927 the legislature extended it west to the Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
state line (at SR 25) and numbered it as part of SR-18. A connection from SR-18 at Beryl Junction east to SR-1 (US-91, now SR-130) in Cedar City was added in 1931 as State Route 56, and in 1935 that route absorbed the segment of SR-18 to the state line.
SR-56 originally crossed the mountains between Cedar City and Beryl Junction via Desert Mound, following the present Desert Mound Road. Two branch from SR-56 to Iron Mountain were added in 1935: State Route 120 directly south from about the midpoint (never built), and State Route 198 from near the Cedar City end southwest via Iron Mountain to the Dixie National Forest
Dixie National Forest
Dixie National Forest is a United States National Forest in Utah with headquarters in Cedar City. It occupies almost two million acres and stretches for about 170 miles across southern Utah. The largest national forest in Utah, it straddles the divide between the Great Basin and the Colorado River...
in the direction of Pinto
Pinto, Utah
Pinto was a town in Iron County, Utah. It was established in 1856 by Rufus C. Allen and other leaders of the LDS Southern Indian Mission so they could move away from Fort Harmony, Utah and John D. Lee's attempts to usurp their authority.-Sources:...
. Both routes were deleted in 1945, and SR-56 was realigned via Iron Mountain, with the portion of SR-198 east of that settlement becoming part of the new route. A 1953 law restored part of the old alignment to the state highway system as State Route 253, from the junction west of Cedar City to Desert Mound, and also created State Route 254 as a branch to Iron Springs. Both were given back to the county in 1969.
Major intersections
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