U.S. Route 51 in Wisconsin

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U.S. Highway 51
Maintained by WisDOT
Length:	316.51 mi[1] (509.37 km)
Formed:	1926 (1917 as WIS 10)[citation needed]
South end:	US 51 at the Illinois border
Major junctions:	US 12 / US 18 in Madison US 151 in Madison I-39 / I-90 / I-94 near Madison I-39 near Portage US 10 in Stevens Point WIS 29 in Wausau US 8 near Tomahawk
North end:	US 2 near Hurley
Wisconsin highways < WIS 50 WIS 52 > < US 10 WIS 11 > County - Bannered - Rustic United States Numbered Highways List - Bannered - Divided - Replaced

In the U.S. state of Wisconsin, U.S. Route 51 (normally called U.S. Highway 51, Highway 51 or US 51) runs north-south down the central part of the state. It enters from Illinois at Beloit, and runs north to its northern terminus in Hurley where it junctions with US 2.

Contents 1 Route description 2 History 3 Exit list 3.1 Portage to U.S. Route 8 4 See also 5 References

[edit] Route description

From Beloit, US 51 passes through Janesville, and Stoughton, then passes east of Madison as a side route paralleling Interstate 39 and Interstate 90 on the west side. North of Madison, US 51 parallels the interstate on the east side passing through De Forest and Portage. The route joins I-39 north of Portage. They stay joined until I-39 ends at WIS 29. Along the way, the route bypasses the small communities of Endeavor, Packwaukee, Westfield, Coloma, Hancock, Plainfield, Plover, and Whiting prior to arriving at Stevens Point. Proceeding north from Stevens Point, the highway bypasses Knowlton, Mosinee, and Rothschild where I-39 terminates at WIS 29 East interchange. US 51 continues on with WIS 29 for 5 miles bypassing Schofield, then proceeding into Wausau where WIS 29 splits to the west. US 51 continues as a freeway to Merrill

The section of US 51 from Portage at its junction with I-39 to Merrill is built to Interstate highway standards save the section around Wausau, which is currently being upgraded to Interstate standards. US 51 exists as an expressway further north to CTH S south of Tomahawk with 6 grade-level intersections. CTH S begins another stretch of Freeway with 4 grade-separated interchanges before the highway becomes a two-lane road just north of US 8 at the Oneida County line.

The highway passes through Minocqua, Manitowish and Mercer on its northwest trek toward Hurley and its terminus - at its junction with US 2.

[edit] History

Prior to 1926, what is now US 51 was State Trunk Highway 10.^[2]

US 51 was upgraded to a full freeway over a period of 25 years from Merrill to Portage. The freeway continues around Portage to the West as I-39 (originally as WIS 78) to connect with I-90 and I-94 while US 51 continues along surface roads into and through Portage. In the 1990s, US 51 was designated as I-39 from its junction with WIS 29 eastbound in Wausau to where it left the freeway at Exit 92 in Portage. US 51 remained cosigned with I-39 along this entire stretch of road. Further expansion of the highway northward took place in 2000 when the highway was upgraded to an expressway up to US 8.^[2]

The Wisconsin mileage of US 51 is designated by the state as the Korean War Veterans Memorial Highway.^[3]

[edit] Exit list

[edit] Portage to U.S. Route 8

merges with and follows North
County	Location	Milepost[1]	#[4]	Destinations	Notes
Columbia	Portage	91.90	92	US 51 South – Portage	North follow North
Marquette	Endeavour	100.10	100	WIS 23 West / CTH P – Wis Dells, Endeavor	East follow North
	Packwaukee	104.31	104	CTH D – Packwaukee	Northbound exit; Southbound entrance only
	Montello	106.34	106	WIS 23 East / WIS 82 West – Oxford, Montello	West follow South
	Westfield	112.94	113	CTH E / CTH J – Westfield
Waushara	Coloma	123.89	124	WIS 21 – Coloma, Necedah
	Hancock	131.07	131	CTH V – Hancock
	Plainfield	136.62	136	WIS 73 – Plainfield, Wis Rapids
Portage	Almond	139.76	139	CTH D – Almond
	Bancroft	143.24	143	CTH W – Bancroft, Wis Rapids
	Plover	151.61	151	WIS 54 / US 51 Bus. – Wis Rapids, Plover	Waupaca use Exit 151
		153.25	153	CTH B – Wis Rapids, Plover	Amherst use Exit 153
	Whiting	156.18	156	CTH HH – Whiting
	Stevens Point	158.23	158A	US 10 East – Waupaca, Appleton	Northbound
		158.32	158B	US 10 West – Marshfield, Stevens Point
		158.40	158	US 10 – Stevens Point, Waupaca	Southbound Marshfield use exit 158
		159.64	159	WIS 66 – Stevens Point, Rosholt
		161.77	161	US 51 Bus. – Stevens Point
	Hull	163.52	163	Casimir Rd
		165.19	165	CTH X North
	Lake Dubay	171.01	171	CTH DB – Knowlton, Lake DuBay
Marathon	Knowlton	175.28	175	WIS 34 – Knowlton, Wis Rapids	Northbound omits Wis Rapids
	Mosinee	179.27	179	WIS 153 – Mosinee, Elderon
	Kronenwetter	181.13	181	Maple Ridge Rd
	Rothschild	179.21	185	US 51 Bus. – Rothschild, Wausau	Northbound: Schofield use Exit 185 Southbound signed Rothschild, Schofield
	Rib Mountain	187.36	187	WIS 29 East – Weston, Green Bay	West follow North Ends at Exit 187
		188.76	188	CTH N – Rib Mountain Dr
		190.39	190	CTH NN – North Mountain Rd	.
	Wausau	191.70	191	Sherman Street	Northbound exit; Southbound entrance only
		192.36	192	WIS 52 / WIS 29 West – Chippewa Falls	Undergoing upgrades as of 22 Dec 2006. East from exit is Stewart Ave.[5] follow South
		193.07	193	Bridge St
		194.23	194	CTH U (Merrill Ave) / US 51 Bus. / CTH K – Wausau
	Brokaw	196.96	197	CTH WW – Brokaw
Lincoln	Pine River	204.83	205	CTH Q – Merrill
	Merrill	207.97	208	WIS 64 / WIS 17 – Merrill, Antigo	Rhinelander, Eagle River use Exit 208
		210.77	211	CTH K – Merrill
	Merrill Twp	212.77		CTH C – North Star Dr	at-grade intersection
		214.85		Lincoln Dr	at-grade intersection
	Irma	220.22		CTH K – Nelson Dr	at-grade intersection
		221.24		CTH J – Irma	at-grade intersection
		222.24		CTH V	at-grade intersection
	Skanawan Twp	223.31		Tamarack Ln	at-grade intersection
		225.84	225	CTH S – Tomahawk
	Tomahawk	229.70	229	WIS 86 / CTH D – Tomahawk
		231.48	231	CTH A – Tomahawk
	Bradley	235.06	234	US 8 – Prentice, Rhinelander
End of Freeway - two-way traffic.

[edit] See also

• U.S. Route 151, diagonal route that runs from Amana Colonies in Iowa to Manitowoc
• Interstate 39, Cosigned from Wausau to Portage - also contains an Exit list which includes this portion.

[edit] References

U.S. Route 51
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