U.S. Route 301 in Virginia

Infobox road
state=VA
type=US
route=301
length_mi=
length_km=
established=1932 (1918 as SR 24, 1926 as US 17-1)
direction_a=South
direction_b=North
starting_terminus=
junction=
ending_terminus=
previous_type=
previous_route=300
next_type=
next_route=302In the U.S. state of Virginia, U.S. Route 301 exists in two independent sections, joined by a concurrency with U.S. Route 1 between Petersburg and Richmond. South of Petersburg, US 301 closely parallels Interstate 95 into North Carolina. North of Richmond, US 301 splits from the I-95 corridor, using State Route 2 north-northeast to Bowling Green and then former State Route 207 northeast to the Nice Bridge over the Potomac River into Maryland.

History

US 301 south of Petersburg was part of the U.S. Highway System from its beginning in 1926, though it was part of U.S. Route 17-1 until 1932. The extension north from Petersburg was added in late 1940, when the Potomac River Bridge opened.U.S. Highways: From US 1 to (US 830), [http://www.us-highways.com/us1.htm#US_301 North-South routes - US 1 to US 101] ]

Prior to 1933, the road from Petersburg south into North Carolina was State Route 24. The initial SR 24 was a short route from Emporia southwest to North Carolina along current State Route 627 (via Brink and Barley). [http://www.vahighways.com/route-log/va019-024.htm#va24 Virginia Highways Project: VA 24] ] It connected at the state line to North Carolina Highway 40. [ [http://www.members.cox.net/nchighways/1924_40.BMP 1924 map] ]

The "Halifax Road" from North Carolina via Emporia to the junction with State Route 35 (then State Route 5) south of Petersburg was not assigned as part of the initial state highway system in 1918. In March 1923, a delegation from Petersburg appeared before the State Highway Commission, requesting that this be added to the system. They claimed that the road was to be included in the system, but it was left out through an error. [PDFlink| [http://www.virginiadot.org/meetings/minutes_pdf/CTB-03-1923-02.pdf Minutes of the Tenth Meeting of the State Highway Commission Held in Richmond, VA, March 26th, 27th, and 28th, 1923] |321 KiB ]

SR 24 south of Emporia was realigned in April 1924 to the present US 301 alignment, [PDFlink| [http://www.virginiadot.org/meetings/minutes_pdf/CTB-04-1924-01.pdf Minutes of the Meeting of the State Highway Commission, Richmond, VA, April 10th, and 11th, 1924] |176 KiB ] and North Carolina Highway 40 was realigned at around the same time to match. [ [http://members.cox.net/ncroads/nc040044.html The Highways of North Carolina: N.C. 40] ] Over the next several years, the Halifax Road from Emporia to SR 35 was added to the state highway system as SR 24. [PDFlink| [http://www.virginiadot.org/meetings/minutes_pdf/CTB-04-1924-01.pdf Minutes of the Meeting of the State Highway Commission, Richmond, VA, April 10th, and 11th, 1924] |176 KiB
"Dinwiddie - From Railroad crossing at Carson to a point four miles south on the Halifax Road"
"Greensville - Emporia north to a point four miles on the Halifax Road and From that point to a point 3.5 miles north on the Halifax Road"] [PDFlink| [http://www.virginiadot.org/meetings/minutes_pdf/CTB-02-1925-01.pdf Minutes of the Meeting of the State Highway Commission Held in Richmond, VA, Feb. 25, 1925] |114 KiB
"Prince George - Extension Route 24 to a point Five Miles North towards Route 35"
Greensville - Extension Route 24 to a point Five Miles North towards Stony Creek"Expand list|date=August 2008] By 1927, Route 24 had replaced Route 35 north of their junction to Petersburg, and was completely concurrent with U.S. Route 17-1. The number was decommissioned in the 1933 renumbering, at which time the present State Route 24 was designated.

Historic sites

. No physical trace of either house or barn remain. A historical marker and sign on northbound 301 point to the site of the house, which is in the median between northbound and southbound 301. The site of the barn is said to have been taken out by the roadcut for southbound 301.

James Madison, the fourth President of the United States, was born on March 16, 1751, on Belle Grove plantation on U.S. 301 in Port Conway, in a house which is no longer in existence. Belle Grove plantation was the childhood home of his mother, Eleanor Rose "Nellie" Conway, the daughter of its owner, Francis Conway, for whom Port Conway was named. [ [http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM1XWK Waymarking historical marker] ] [ [http://www.dkrause.com/americana/presidents/madison-james/ James Madison data] ] [ [http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/VAGuide/tour16.html 1939 WPA Guide] ]

References