Minnesota State Highway 16

Trunk Highway 16
Route information
Maintained by Mn/DOT
Length:	87.671 mi[2] (141.093 km)
Existed:	1980[1] – present
Major junctions
West end:	I-90 at Dexter
	U.S. 63 at Spring Valley MN 80 near Wykoff U.S. 52 at Preston MN 250 at Lanesboro MN 43 at Rushford MN 76 at Houston MN 44 at Hokah MN 26 at La Crescent Township
East end:	U.S. 14 / U.S. 61 at La Crescent
Location
Counties:	Mower, Fillmore, Houston
Highway system
Minnesota Trunk Highways Interstate • U.S. • State Inter-County • County roads • Legislative routes ← MN 15 MN 18 →

Minnesota State Highway 16 is a two-lane highway in southeast Minnesota, which runs from its interchange with Interstate Highway 90 in Dexter and continues east to its eastern terminus at its intersection with U.S. Highways 14 and 61 in La Crescent.^[2]

The route was designated as a National Scenic Byway in 2003 as the Historic Bluff Country Scenic Byway. The roadway follows the route of old U.S. Highway 16.^[3]

Highway 16 is 88 miles (142 km) in length.

Route description

State Highway 16 serves as an east–west route in southeast Minnesota between Dexter, Spring Valley, Preston, Rushford, Houston, and La Crescent. Highway 16 parallels Interstate 90 throughout its route in southeast Minnesota.

The route passes through the Richard J. Dorer Memorial Hardwood State Forest in Fillmore and Houston counties.

Forestville Mystery Cave State Park is located near Highway 16 in Fillmore County. The park is located between Spring Valley and Preston.

The eastern terminus for Highway 16 is its junction with U.S. Highways 14 and 61 in La Crescent.

The western terminus for the route is its interchange with Interstate 90 in Dexter.

This interchange once had a loop from Westbound Highway 16 to Westbound I-90, that looked like this:

History

U.S. Highway 16

State Highway 16 was designated in 1980. The route was originally part of old U.S. Highway 16 from 1926 to 1980.

U.S. 16 was mostly replaced by Interstate Highway 90 within Minnesota.

State Highway 16 from Dexter to La Crescent is the only remaining section of this former U.S. route that exists as a trunk highway separate from Interstate 90.

Until 2008, the highway was concurrent with U.S. 14 / 61 for one mile through La Crescent. After crossing the Mississippi River Bridge and the Wisconsin state line, old U.S. 16 continues on as Wisconsin Highway 16.^[1]

The only section of U.S. Highway 16 that remains in the present day is the east–west route between Rapid City, South Dakota and Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

Major intersections

Mileposts are retained from old U.S. 16.

County	Location	Mile[2]	Destinations	Notes
Mower	Dexter	199.005	I-90
		199.178	CR 7
	Grand Meadow	205.661	CR 8
	Frankford Township	208.722	CR 14
		210.246	US 63	West end of US 63 concurrency
Fillmore	Spring Valley	215.436	US 63 south, CR 1 north	East end of US 63 concurrency
	Fillmore Township	221.833	MN 80 north, CR 5 south
	Fountain Township	231.020	US 52	West end of US 52 concurrency
	Preston Township	234.226	US 52	East end of US 52 concurrency
	Lanesboro	239.212	CR 21
		239.619	MN 250
	Peterson	253.657	CR 25
	Rushford	257.876	MN 43	North end of MN 43 concurrency
	Rushford Village	258.429	MN 43	South end of MN 43 concurrency
Houston	Houston	269.622	MN 76	West end of MN 76 concurrency
	Houston Township	270.509	MN 76	East end of MN 76 concurrency
	Hokah	282.689	MN 44
	La Crescent Township	285.910	MN 26
	La Crescent	288.407	US 14 / US 61
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi      Concurrency terminus •      Closed/Former •      Incomplete access •      Unopened

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Riner, Steve. "Details of Routes 1-25". The Unofficial Minnesota Highways Page. http://www.steve-riner.com/mnhighways/r1-25.htm#16. Retrieved 2006-03-12. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} "Trunk Highway Log Point Listing - Construction District 6" (PDF). Minnesota Department of Transportation. August 23, 2010. http://www.dot.state.mn.us/roadway/data/reports/logpoint/d6.pdf. Retrieved September 27, 2010. 
3. ^ Highways and Gas Stations - MN State Highway 16 page