Kentucky Route 259

Kentucky Route 259 (KY 259) is a 95.91-mile-long (154.35 km) state highway that traverses five counties in west-central Kentucky.

Kentucky Route 259
KY 259 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by KYTC
Length95.910 mi[1] (154.352 km)
Existed1930s–present
Major junctions
North end KY 144 near Rhodelia
 
South end US 68 / KY 80 at Hays
Location
CountiesMeade, Breckinridge, Grayson, Edmonson, Warren
Highway system
KY 258 KY 260

Route description

Warren/Edmonson County area

KY 259's southern terminus is at the intersection with the concurrently running U.S. Route 68 (US 68) and KY 80 in Hays, in far eastern Warren County. It crosses Interstate 65 (I-65) via an overpass shortly before crossing into Edmonson County and reaches the community of Rocky Hill, where it intersects KY 1339 (Apple Grove Road). It then crosses US 31W just north of Rocky Hill, and then turns northwest to intersect KY 422 and 2325 in the Pig community. When it meets KY 101 in Rhoda, KY 259 turns right and continues on to the Edmonson County seat of Brownsville, where it runs concurrently with Kentucky Route 70 throughout its course through that city, over the Green River to a point near the Riverhill Shopping Center.

After leaving Brownsville, KY 259 then traverses the communities of Lindseyville, Sweeden (where it intersects KY 728), and Bee Spring (where it intersects KY 238). KY 259 skirts the Nolin Lake area after passing through the community of Broadway.

Three different sections of KY 259 in Edmonson and Warren counties are marked as a Kentucky Scenic Byway.

Grayson County

KY 259 enters Grayson County and continues on through Anneta and Meredith. It intersects a very short KY 226, and then enters Leitchfield. It intersects the Wendell H. Ford Western Kentucky Parkway at its exit 107 interchange and meets US 62 in downtown Leitchfield. It also meets the eastern terminus of KY 54 (Owensboro Road) at the public square. After the second intersection of the Leitchfield By-Pass (the first one was after the WK Parkway interchange), KY 259 continues northward.

Breckinridge and Meade Counties

After reaching Breckinridge County, and the first junction with Kentucky Route 79, KY 259 and KY 79 run concurrently while bridging parts of the Rough River Lake. They reach the US 60 junction at Harned. KY 259 turns left to run concurrently with US 60 westbound, while KY 79 makes a right turn to join US 60 eastbound. KY 259 enters the city of Hardinsburg and then continues north to reach its northern terminus at KY 144 at Rhodelia, in western Meade County. Three different sections of KY 259 in Edmonson and Warren counties are marked as a Kentucky Scenic Byway.

History

Kentucky Route 65
LocationHays-Harned, Kentucky
Length67 mi (108 km)
Existed1929–1962?

In the beginning, KY 259 only ran from Hardinsburg to Rhodelia. The highway from Hays to Harned began its history as Kentucky Route 65 at the time of its inception.[2][3] KY 65 originally had a total length of an estimated 65.1 miles (104.8 km).

The then-KY 65 (during its concurrency with KY 70) in Edmonson County crossed the Green River by ferry until it was re-routed onto a bridge in the 1950s.[4][5][6]

At one point between 1959 and 1963, KY 65 was redesignated as the current KY 259, extending that route to its current longevity. This was done in order to avoid confusion between it and the then-planned-and-under-construction Interstate 65 in the Edmonson/Warren/Barren County area, and its entire course through west-central Kentucky, which was completed in 1967. To date, there was never another KY 65 designation ever since.[2][7] The re-numbering to the current KY 259 also complied with the state's policy that no duplication of highway numbers were allowed in the state except for US 79 and KY 79 in west-central Kentucky. That policy was also compliant of the former KY 64 in this region of the state after Interstate 64 was under construction in north-central and northeast Kentucky, and as of May 2017, I-169 and KY 169, which are in different regions of the state.[8]

In early 2001, construction began to create a straight by-pass two-lane corridor from Brownsville to Chalybeate, including the rerouting of KY 259 from Rhoda to Brownsville, along with the final stretch of KY 101 in the Rhoda area. Once it was completed in November 2001, the old alignments the two routes were reconstructed to include intersections with the new alignment. Once those were done in 2002, the KYTC assigned the old alignment then-new state route designations of KY 3019 and KY 3021.[9][10]

Points of interest along the route

  • Edmonson County Lion's Club Fairgrounds, near Rhoda. Home to the annual Edmonson County Fair (held in early September)
  • Bee Spring Park.
  • Moutardier Marina (via KY 2067), south of Anneta.
  • Grayson County Airport, near Meredith
  • Grayson Connty Fairgrounds, north of Leitchfield.

Major intersections

CountyLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
WarrenHays0.0000.000 US 68 / KY 80 Bowling Green, GlasgowSouthern terminus
EdmonsonRocky Hill3.3025.314 KY 1339 east (Apple Grove Road)Western terminus of KY-1339
5.178.32 US 31W (Louisville Road) to I-65 Bowling Green, Park City, Cave City
8.48913.662 KY 422 south (Pig Road)Northern terminus of KY 422
9.46215.228 KY 2325 north (Silent Grove Church Road)Southern terminus of KY 2325
Rhoda11.92619.193 KY 101 south (Veterans Memorial Highway) / KY 259 north (Brownsville Road)Northern terminus of KY-101; KY 259 right turns onto VMH
12.7120.45 KY 3019 south (Brownsville Road) – Edmonson County FairgroundsNorthern terminus of KY-3019
13.35721.496 KY 3021 northSouthern terminus of KY 3021
Brownsville14.49723.331 KY 3021 southNorthern terminus of KY-3021
14.76323.759 KY 70 east (Mammoth Cave Road) Mammoth Cave National Park, Cave CityBegin concurrency with KY 70
14.99324.129Wildcat Way -- to Edmonson County High School
15.05524.229Houchin's Ferry RoadAlternate route to Edmonson County High School
15.40324.789 KY 2184 north (Washington Street) – Camp Joy, Brownsville City Park, Green River AmphitheaterSouthern terminus of KY-2184
16.142–
16.384
25.978–
26.367
Bridge over CR-1203, the Green River, and Lock Road (KY 183)
16.53226.606 KY 183 east (Lock Road)Western terminus of KY-183
17.21227.700 KY 70 west (Morgantown Road) Roundhill, MorgantownEnd concurrency with KY-70
Sweeden22.65236.455 KY 728 east (Nolin Dam Road) Nolin Lake State ParkWestern terminus of KY-728
Bee Spring24.08238.756 KY 238 west (Sunfish-Bee Spring Road) SunfishEastern terminus of KY-238
Broadway26.23642.223 KY 2336 east (Jock Road)Western terminus of KY-2336
Grayson28.25845.477 KY 2067 south (Moutardier Road)Northern terminus of KY 2067
Meredith33.84954.475 KY 226 east to KY 88 PeoniaWestern terminus of KY 226; KY-259 left turns to the west
Leitchfield39.91364.234 Western Kentucky Parkway east ElizabethtownExit 107 from WK Parkway east, and ramps to WK Parkway east
39.93564.269 Western Kentucky Parkway west Beaver Dam, PaducahExit 107 from WK Parkway west; and ramps to WK Parkway west
40.30864.869 KY 3155 north (Leitchfield Bypass)Southern terminus of KY-3155
40.71265.520 US 62 west (West Main Street) Beaver Dam, CaneyvilleBegin concurrency with US 62
40.89865.819 KY 54 west (Owensboro Road) Fordsville, OwensboroEastern terminus of KY-54; traffic circle around the Grayson County Courthouse
41.22166.339 US 62 east Clarkson, ElizabethtownEnd concurrency with US-62
41.62666.991 KY 737 northSouthern terminus of KY-737
42.73268.770 KY 3155 south (Leitchfield Bypass)Northern terminus of KY-3155
BreckinridgeMadrid51.21582.423 KY 401 northSouthern terminus of KY-401
53.76786.530 KY 737 south LeitchfieldNorthern terminus of KY-737
McDaniels57.62792.742 KY 79 south Rough River Dam State Resort Park, CaneyvilleBegin concurrency with KY 79
57.627–
67.323
92.742–
108.346
see KY 79
Harned67.323108.346 US 60 east / KY 79 north Irvington, Brandenburg, Fort Knox, LouisvilleEnd concurrency with KY 79
68.858110.816 KY 1616 west (Fairgrounds Road) HardinsburgEastern terminus of KY-1616
Hardinsburg70.028112.699Old U.S. 60  – Hardinsburg Business District
70.781113.911 US 60 west / KY 261 south Hawesville, Owensboro, McQuady, Fordsville, Rough River Dam State Resort ParkEnd concurrency with US 60; Begin concurrency with KY-261
72.152116.117 KY 992 west (Second Street)Eastern terminus of KY-992; also part of Old U.S. 60 west of town
72.244116.265 KY 261 east (First Street)End concurrency with KY 261
75.956122.239 KY 2279 northSouthern terminus of KY-2279
Union Star84.820136.505 KY 144 Stephensport, Cloverport, Brandenburg
MeadeRhodelia95.91154.35 KY 144 Brandenburg, Union StarNorthern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
  • Kentucky Route 3019
  • Kentucky Route 3021

References

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