Minnesota State Highway 56

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Trunk Highway 56

Length:

98 mi (158 km)

Formed:

1933^[1]

South end:

U.S. 63 near Chester

Major
junctions:

I-90 in Austin

MN 30 in Hayfield

U.S. 14 in Dodge Center

MN 60 in Kenyon

North end:

U.S. 52, MN 50 in Hampton

Counties:

Fillmore , Mower , Dodge , Goodhue , Dakota

Major cities:

Dodge Center

Minnesota State Highways
< TH 55		TH 57 >

Minnesota State Highway 56 is a highway in southeast Minnesota, which runs from its junction with U.S. Highway 52 and Minnesota Highway 50 in Hampton, and continues south to its southern terminus at its intersection with U.S. Highway 63 near the Minnesota border and Chester, Iowa.

1 Route Description
2 Communities along the route
3 History
4 Miscellaneous
5 Major Intersections
6 References

[edit] Route Description

Highway 56 starts near the Iowa border and heads west through the towns of Le Roy, Adams, Taopi and Rose Creek. Near Le Roy, Highway 56 passes near Lake Louise State Park. The road heads due north west of Rose Creek and intersects Interstate Highway 90 five miles east of Austin.

Highway 56 heads through northern Mower County and enters Dodge County north of Waltham. Minnesota Highway 30 intersects this road just west of Hayfield. Ten miles north of Hayfield, Highway 56 is concurrent with the U.S. Highway 14 bypass around Dodge Center. After passing through West Concord, the road crosses into Goodhue County.

In Kenyon, Highway 56 intersects Minnesota Highway 60 and Minnesota Highway 246 north of the city. The intersection of Highway 56 and Minnesota Highway 19 is located between Northfield and Cannon Falls. Highway 56 enters Dakota County near Randolph, and continues for ten more miles until it reaches its terminus near Hampton.

[edit] Communities along the route

[edit] History

Highway 56 was originally commissioned as a "Constitutional Route" in 1920. This segment is between Interstate Highway 90 and Kenyon. The route was extended south to U.S. Highway 63 and north through the Twin Cities to U.S. Highway 169 in Aitkin in 1933.

The road was then terminated to various locations in St. Paul from 1963 to 1974. (The portion of the road through and north of Minneapolis was renumbered Minnesota Highway 47 in 1963.)

Highway 56 had its northern terminus at Minnesota Highway 3 in downtown St. Paul from 1974 to 1994, and has ended at its current northern terminus at Hampton since 1994.

The former part of the road (Concord Street) from Interstate Highway 494 in South St. Paul to U.S. Highway 52 in St. Paul is now marked as Minnesota Highway 156.

[edit] Miscellaneous

Highway 56 from U.S. 63 north to the junction with I-90 is marked as the Shooting Star Scenic Byway. This byway is so named because of the endangered wildflowers that bloom in June and July.

[edit] Major Intersections

County	Location	Mile	Destinations	Notes
Fillmore	Chester, Iowa	0	US 63-Spring Valley, Minnesota, New Hampton, Iowa
Mower	Austin	31	Interstate 90-Austin, Dexter
Dodge	Hayfield	46	MN 30-Blooming Prairie, Hayfield
Dodge	Dodge Center	56	US 14-Owatonna, Rochester
Goodhue	Kenyon	75	MN 60-Faribault, Wanamingo
Goodhue	Kenyon	77	MN 246-Nerstrand
Goodhue	Stanton	89	MN 19-Northfield, Cannon Falls
Dakota	Hampton	98	US 52 and MN 50-Hampton, St. Paul, Red Wing, Cannon Falls	Highway 56 intersects one of the exit ramps of US 52