Nevada State Route 375

SR 375 originated as State Route 25A and later became the western segment of State Route 25.

SR 375 passing through Sand Spring Valley, October 1997

Map showing the location of Rachel, and State Route 375 as it passes north of Area 51

An unimproved road approximating the present alignment of State Route 375 came into existence by 1932. This route, christened State Route 25A, connected Crystal Springs to State Route 4 (now US 6) just east of Tonopah.[9] By 1933, SR 25A had been renumbered to become a new western segment of State Route 25.[10] The route underwent periodic realignments over the next few years, but the highway's terminal junctions remained mostly unchanged.

In 1942, SR 25 appeared to have a significant gap in its route. State maps from the time show a large area within Nye and Lincoln Counties where all roads had been removed.[11] The route existed in one piece again by 1946, although it had been realigned northward and shortened to 111 miles (179 km).[12] A sizable portion of SR 25 passing through the Tonopah U.S. Army Air Force Bombing Range (now the Nellis Air Force Range and Nevada Test Site) was restricted from public travel by 1950, the restricted section being approximately the same area that was removed in 1942.[11][13] To avoid the restricted area of the testing range, the west end of SR 25 was realigned by 1957. The highway connected to US 6 at Warm Springs about 37 miles (60 km) east of the previous terminus, heading north around the Reveille Range instead of climbing the Kawich Range within the bombing area.[14]

With the 1957 realignment, the routing of SR 25 attained its final form. The entire highway was paved by the following year.[15] SR 25 remained unchanged until the 1976 renumbering of Nevada's state highways, through which the western section of SR 25 became the new State Route 375.[16] The new route number was first seen on the 1978 edition of the official state highway map.[17]

Extraterrestrial Highway (State Route 375) sign, September 2012

In 1989, an engineer named Bob Lazar claimed to have worked on alien spaceships and to have viewed saucer test flights in Tikaboo Valley, telling his story to a Las Vegas television station which was subsequently broadcast as an exclusive report.[3] By the 1990s, stories of the top-secret U.S. government base at Area 51 had become mainstream, and many books and personal accounts had been published regarding extraterrestrial spacecraft and alien activity in the region surrounding Groom Lake. Rachel, being the closest settlement to the restricted facility, attracted people in search of UFOs and alien life.[18] To capitalize on the purported paranormal activity along the route, the Nevada Commission on Tourism sought to rename the highway. State officials drew inspiration from the alien legends and dubbed SR 375 the Extraterrestrial Highway in February 1996.[19] The tourism commission hoped that the renaming would "draw travelers to the austere and remote reaches of south-central Nevada, where old atomic bomb test sites, secret Defense Department airstrips and huge, sequestered tracts of military land create a marketable mystique".[6]

The Little A'Le'Inn in Rachel benefits from tourism brought by the renamed highway, October 1997

News of the highway's renaming reached Twentieth Century Fox. The studio used the opportunity to promote the release of the film Independence Day, whose plot involves an alien invasion of Earth and the secret facility at Area 51. A public dedication ceremony for the Extraterrestrial Highway was held in Rachel in April 1996.[20] State dignitaries at the ceremony were joined by studio executives and Independence Day stars Jeff Goldblum, Robert Loggia, Bill Pullman, and Brent Spiner.[20][21] Nevada Governor Bob Miller presided over the ceremony, speaking with humorous space references and unveiling special "Extraterrestrial Highway 375" and "Speed Limit Warp 7" signs for the highway.[21] The event concluded with several guests placing items related to Nevada and the film into a time capsule commemorating the occasion.[20][21]

Looking northwest near Rachel, visitors have left their marks on the Extraterrestrial Highway, March 2004

To promote the Extraterrestrial Highway after its renaming, the tourism commission launched "The ET Experience" in July 1996. Tourists could contact the Nevada Commission on Tourism to receive a traveler's kit containing information about the highway, nearby cultural attractions, and area services. Visitors that patronized businesses in Rachel and central Nevada and submitted an account of their journey received Extraterrestrial Highway memorabilia. Stories from travelers were also published in a newsletter available to those that had completed the experience.[19] Despite tourism generated by people searching for signs of alien life, only "an average of about 200 cars drive some portion of the Extraterrestrial Highway every day, making it one of the state’s least traveled routes."[6]

In keeping with the supposed alien links of the area, in 2006, KFC established what was said to be the first corporate logo visible from space, made from 87,500 square feet (8,130 m²) of tiles and sited just off the Extraterrestrial Highway in Rachel.[22][23] The logo has since been removed.[24]