 U.S. Route 250 | |||||||
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 US 250 highlighted in red | |||||||
| Route information | |||||||
| Auxiliary route ofUS 50 | |||||||
| Length | 514 mi (827 km) | ||||||
| Existed | 1928–present | ||||||
| Major junctions | |||||||
| West end |  US 6 inSandusky, OH | ||||||
| Major intersections |
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| East end |  US 360 inRichmond, VA | ||||||
| Location | |||||||
| Country | United States | ||||||
| States | Ohio,West Virginia,Virginia | ||||||
| Highway system | |||||||
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U.S. Route 250 (US 250) is a route of theUnited States Numbered Highway System, and is a spur ofU.S. Route 50. It currently runs for 514 miles (827 km) fromRichmond, Virginia, toSandusky, Ohio. It passes through the states ofVirginia,West Virginia, andOhio. It goes through the cities ofRichmond,Charlottesville,Staunton, andWaynesboro, Virginia; andWheeling, West Virginia. West ofPruntytown, West Virginia, US 250 intersects and forms a shortoverlap with its parentUS 50.
In Virginia and Ohio, the route is signed east–west. In West Virginia, the route is signed north–south.
In Ohio, U.S. 250 is an important cross-state corridor linking Sandusky (onLake Erie) to Bridgeport (on theOhio River). From a regional/traffic perspective, the route can roughly be divided into five sections linking major regions and routes of the state:
_at_Oak_Street_in_Hundred%2c_Wetzel_County%2c_West_Virginia.jpg)
U.S. 250's northern entrance into West Virginia is via theMilitary Order of the Purple Heart Bridge fromBridgeport, Ohio ontoWheeling Island. It is briefly co-signed withU.S. Route 40. The route additionally co-signs withInterstate 70 and crosses theOhio River on theFort Henry Bridge inWheeling, West Virginia. U.S. Route 250 then exits I-70 east of the Wheeling Tunnel and joinsWest Virginia Route 2 one mile (1.6 km) later. InMoundsville, West Virginia, the route leaves WV 2 and departs towardCameron,Mannington, andFairmont. It intersects with its parent route,U.S. Route 50, two miles west ofGrafton inPruntytown and continues southward, co-signed withU.S. Route 119 for 12 miles. The route moves throughPhilippi, and finally throughElkins. U.S. Route 250 intersects withU.S. Route 33 andU.S. Route 219 briefly in Elkins, which is the last major hub before U.S. Route 250 winds its way through theAppalachian Mountains to theVirginia border.
U.S. 250 in West Virginia includes thePhilippi Covered Bridge atPhilippi, the onlycovered bridge on theUnited States Numbered Highway System.
_at_U.S._Route_119_(Mansfield_Drive)_in_Philippi%2c_Barbour_County%2c_West_Virginia.jpg)
U.S. Route 250 Truck follows Blue and Gray Expressway around the south and west sides of downtownPhilippi, avoiding the covered bridge.
US 250 runs 166.74 miles (268.34 km) from theWest Virginia state line nearHightown east to its eastern terminus atUS 360 in Richmond. US 250 is the main east–west highway ofHighland County, which is known as Virginia's Little Switzerland; the highway follows the path of the 19th centuryStaunton and Parkersburg Turnpike. FromStaunton east to Richmond, the U.S. Highway serves as the local complement toInterstate 64 (I-64), roughly following the 18th centuryThree Notch'd Road throughWaynesboro andCharlottesville on its way through theShenandoah Valley, its crossing of theBlue Ridge Mountains atRockfish Gap, and thePiedmont. In theRichmond metropolitan area, US 250 is known asBroad Street, a major thoroughfare through the city'sWest End anddowntown areas.
BetweenShort Pump and Staunton, U.S. 250 largely follows the routing of theThree Notch'd Road (or the Three Chopt Road),[1] which had been established in theColony of Virginia between Richmond and the Shenandoah Valley by the 1740s.[2] Most likely, the road followed an ancientMonacan trail fromOrapax (east of Richmond) to the westernShenandoah Valley. This well-planned route required only one major river crossing, theRivanna atCharlottesville, with inns or taverns spaced about 10 miles (16 km) apart.
The route west of Staunton was built about 100 years later as atoll road, the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike. In the second quarter of the 19th century, it became a major gateway into Virginia's "Trans-Allegheny" region, which presented much greater challenges to transportation than did less rugged portions of the state. In that region, navigable waterways were unavailable and canals impractical. Wheeled vehicles in the form of wagons, and later, motor vehicles needed to pass through with passengers and freight. It became part of the main trade route for salt and other commodities in the early 19th century. As theAmerican Civil War broke out, the route became very important and was defended byStonewall Jackson's troops at theBattle of McDowell in 1862.
The portion of the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike west of Allegheny Mountain (almost all of it) became part of West Virginia in 1863. Virginia's pre-War debt became a major issue after the American Civil War, as millions of dollars of debt remained for infrastructure improvements, some of which were now located in the new state of West Virginia, including most of the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike. Political divisions in Virginia on this issue resulted in creation of a new major political group in the late 1870s, theReadjuster Party, a coalition ofDemocrats,Republicans, andAfrican-Americans seeking a reduction in Virginia's prewar debt by allocating an appropriate portion to the newState of West Virginia.
For several decades, Virginia and West Virginia disputed the new state's share of the Virginia government's debt. The issue was finally settled in 1915, when theUnited States Supreme Court ruled that West Virginia owed Virginia $12,393,929.50. The final installment of this sum was paid off in 1939.[3]
U.S. Route 250 was created in 1928 and was originally routed fromU.S. Route 50 inGrafton, West Virginia, north/west toU.S. Route 20 inNorwalk, Ohio. In 1932, the route was expanded north/west toSandusky, Ohio. In 1934, the route was expanded southward and eastward toRichmond, Virginia.[citation needed]
US 6 inSandusky
I-80 /I-90 north-northwest ofMilan
US 20 inNorwalk
US 42 inAshland. The highways travel concurrently through Ashland.
I-71 east of Ashland
US 30 west-southwest ofWooster. The highways travel concurrently to southeast of Wooster.
US 62 inWilmot. The highways travel concurrently through Wilmot.
I-77 south-southeast ofStrasburg. The highways travel concurrently toNew Philadelphia.
US 36 inUhrichsville
US 22 inCadiz. The highways travel concurrently through Cadiz.
US 40 inBridgeport. The highways travel concurrently toWheeling, West Virginia.
I-70 onWheeling Island. The highways travel concurrently to Wheeling.
I-470 in Wheeling
US 19 inFairmont. The highways travel concurrently through Fairmont.
I-79 inWhite Hall
US 50 west-southwest ofPrunytown. The highways travel concurrently to Prunytown.
US 119 north-northwest ofWebster. The highways travel concurrently toPhilippi.
US 33 north ofNorton. The highways travel concurrently toElkins.
US 219 north of Elkins. The highways travel concurrently toHuttonsville.
US 220 inMonterey
US 11 inStaunton. The highways travel concurrently through Staunton.
I-81 in Staunton
US 340 inWaynesboroUS 340 in Waynesboro. The highways travel concurrently through Waynesboro.
I-64 inRockfish GapI-64 inYancey Mills
US 29 west-northwest ofCharlottesville. The highways travel concurrently to Charlottesville.I-64 east-southeast of Charlottesville
US 15 inZion X-Roads
US 522 inGum SpringI-64 east-southeast ofShort PumpI-64 inDumbartonUS 33 inRichmond. The highways travel concurrently through the city.
US 1 /US 301 in Richmond
I-95 in RichmondUS 360 in Richmond
| Browse numbered routes | ||||
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