Minnesota State Highway 72

Trunk Highway 72 marker

Trunk Highway 72
Route information
Maintained by Mn/DOT
Length: 76.810 mi[1] (123.614 km)
Existed: 1923[2] – present
Major junctions
South end: US 71 at Blackduck
  MN 1 at Shooks
MN 11 at Baudette
North end: Highway 11 at Rainy River, ON
Location
Counties: Beltrami, Lake of the Woods
Highway system
  • Minnesota Trunk Highways
US 71MN 73

Minnesota State Highway 72 (MN 72) is a highway in northwest Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with U.S. 71 in Blackduck and continues north to its northern terminus at the Canadian border in Baudette. The road continues as Ontario Highway 11 upon entering the town of Rainy River, Ontario at the Baudette-Rainy River International Bridge.

Highway 72 is 77 miles (124 km) in length.

Route description

State Highway 72 serves as a northsouth route between the communities of Blackduck, Shooks, Kelliher, and Baudette.

The roadway passes through the Red Lake State Forest in northeast Beltrami County between Kelliher and Waskish. Big Bog State Recreation Area is located on Highway 72, immediately north of Waskish.

Highway 72 crosses the Rainy River at Baudette.

History

State Highway 72 was authorized as one of the first two Minnesota legislative routes in 1923. This portion of the route was located between Blackduck and Baudette.

The route was paved by 1942.

At one time, Highway 72 had continued farther north, extending over what is now State Highway 172 in Lake of the Woods County. The section of present day Minnesota 172 between State Highway 11 (at Baudette) and Wheeler's Point (at Lake of the Woods) was originally designated Minnesota 72 as well between 1934 and 1963.

Major intersections

CountyLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
BeltramiBlackduck0.0000.000 US 71
Hines Township1.8292.943CR 32
Hornet Township6.89511.096CR 41
Shooks Township9.91015.949 MN 1, CR 36 northWest end of MN 1 overlap
Shooks14.97024.092 MN 1East end of MN 1 overlap
Kelliher19.58631.521CR 36 west
19.69631.698CR 36 east
Shotley Brook29.75247.881CR 23
Lake of the WoodsSwiftwater Township59.88996.382 CR 1
Township 158-3062.375100.383CR 16 (Hay Creek Road)
Boone Township62.873101.184CR 16 (51st Street SE)
Rapid River Township65.878106.020CR 7 (39th Street SE)
Gudrid Township71.875115.672CR 19 (15th Street SE)
Baudette73.880118.898CR 35
74.680120.186 MN 11East end of MN 11 overlap
76.377122.917 MN 11West end of MN 11 overlap
76.518123.144CR 26 (2nd Street NE)
Rainy River 76.864 Highway 11
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

Route map: Bing

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Trunk Highway Log Point Listing - Construction District 2" (PDF). Minnesota Department of Transportation. August 23, 2010. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
  2. Riner, Steve. "Details of Routes 51-75". The Unofficial Minnesota Highways Page. Retrieved 2006-12-16.