| Farm to Market Road 390 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Route information | |||||||
| Length: | 29.574 mi[1] (47.595 km) | ||||||
| Existed: | 1945[1] – present | ||||||
| Major junctions | |||||||
| West end: | US 290 in Burton | ||||||
| SH 36 near Gay Hill | |||||||
| East end: | SH 105 near Earlywine | ||||||
| Location | |||||||
| Counties: | Washington | ||||||
| Highway system | |||||||
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Highways in Texas
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Farm to Market Road 390, Farm Road 390, or FM 390, is a state highway in the U.S. state of Texas maintained by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). The road has official status as a scenic highway and is signed with distinctive brown shields unique among the state's system of Farm to Market Roads. The road, located in northern Washington County, begins at U.S. Route 290 in Burton and intersects SH 36 near Gay Hill before terminating at SH 105 northeast of Brenham. The road has a spur route at Independence connecting to the ruins of the 19th Century campus of Baylor University and the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. The road also passes through the former communities of Longpoint and William Penn.
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FM 390 generally follows along a portion of the much older La Bahía Road from western Louisiana into southeast Texas used before European settlement. The road was extended by the Spanish to Goliad and used by American pioneers settling in Texas.[2]
The first portion of the modern road to join the state's highway system was the section in Independence from Old Baylor Park to the present FM 50 which, along with FM 50 south of that juncture, was first designated as SH 211 sometime between 1933[3] and 1936.[4] By 1939 that highway was decommissioned but reinstated in 1940.[5] SH 211 was replaced by FM 50 and State Highway Spur 197 along the present FM 390 at Independence in 1943.[5][6]
Two years before in Burton, State Highway Loop 125 was designated along the present Spur 125 and the portion of the present FM 390 between Spur 125 and US 290.[7] FM 390 was initially designated in 1945 from Loop 125 in Burton to SH 36 near Gay Hill.[1] Later that year FM 390 was extended over Loop 125 to US 290,[1] and Loop 125 was shortened to its present spur.[7] In 1951, FM 390 was extended 4.0 miles (6.4 km) east of SH 36 and an additional 0.8 miles (1.3 km) the following year.[1] In 1954, the route was extended to FM 50 south of Independence and then from the junction of FM 50 and Spur 197 in Independence east to William Penn.[1] The route at Independence was realigned in 1958 creating the route's spur and eliminating the route's concurrency with FM 50 south of town and replacing Spur 197.[1][6] FM 390 was extended south of William Penn in 1971 to a portion of SH 90[1] that would be renumbered as SH 105 in 1973.[8][9]
In 1995, the Texas Legislature passed a law recognizing FM 390 as a scenic highway and directing TxDOT to erect route markers indicating the route number and the road's scenic status.[10] In response, TxDOT erected along the route a shields unique among the state's Farm to Market Roads with a distinctive brown background resembling the shields of the state's Recreational Roads.
FM 390 begins at US 290 in Burton and follows W. Washington St. northeastward to N. Main St. where it intersects Spur 125. FM 390 turns northwest along Main St. and then northeast along La Bahia Trail intersecting FM 1697 before leaving Burton. The route merges with FM 1948 moving southwest for less than half a mile before branching off to the northeast. The route intersects FM 2679 at Longpoint and then crosses the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway at Gay Hill before intersecting SH 36. At Independence, FM 390's short spur route branches off to Old Baylor Park before FM 390 crosses FM 50. From Independence, the route passes to the east intersecting FM 2621 before reaching William Penn. The route then intersects FM 1935 and then turns south toward its terminus at SH 105.[11][12]
| Farm to Market Spur 390 | |
|---|---|
| Location: | Independence |
| Length: | 0.128 mi[1] (0.206 km) |
| Existed: | 1958–present[1] |
Farm to Market Spur 390 is a short spur route of FM 390 at Independence that branches off of its parent route along Old Baylor Rd. to the west terminating at Old Baylor Park, the original location of Baylor University, chartered in 1845 by the Congress of the Republic of Texas and opened the following year,[13] and the University of Mary Hardin Baylor, formerly Baylor University's women's department. Both colleges relocated to their current campuses in Waco and Belton respectively in 1886.[14]
The spur was the northern terminus of SH 211 beginning between 1933[3] and 1936.[4] SH 211 was decommissioned by 1939, but was reinstated in 1940.[5] SH 211 was again decommissioned in 1942, and the spur became the western terminus of Spur 197.[6] SS 197 was incorporated into FM 390 in 1958.[1]
The entire route is in Washington County.
| Location | Mile[11] | Destinations | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burton | 0 | US 290 – Giddings, Brenham | Western terminus | |
| 0.7 | Spur 125 (N. Main St.) | |||
| 1.0 | FM 1697 | |||
| 3.5 | FM 1948 north – Quarry | Begin overlay of FM 1948 | ||
| 3.9 | FM 1948 south | End overlay of FM 1948 | ||
| Longpoint | 7.3 | FM 2679 | ||
| 11.7 | SH 36 – Caldwell, Brenham | |||
| Independence | 20.3 | FM Spur 390 (Old Baylor Rd.) | ||
| 20.6 | FM 50 – Clay | |||
| 22.5 | FM 2621 – Sandy Hill | |||
| 24.8 | FM 1935 | |||
| 29.7 | SH 105 – Brenham, Navasota | Eastern terminus | ||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | ||||
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