Minnesota State Highway 135

Minnesota State Highway 135 (MN 135) is a 36.160-mile-long (58.194 km) highway in northeast Minnesota, which runs from its interchange with U.S. Highway 53 in the city of Virginia and continues northeast to its northern terminus at its intersection with State Highway 1 in Tower.

Trunk Highway 135
MN 135 highlighted in red
Route information
Defined by MS § 161.114()
Maintained by MnDOT
Length36.160 mi[1] (58.194 km)
ExistedNovember 2, 1920[2]–present
Major junctions
South end US 53 at Virginia
  MN 37 at Gilbert
CR 20 at McKinley
CR 4 at Biwabik
CR 100 at Aurora
CR 21 at Embarrass Twp.
North end MN 1 / MN 169 at Tower
Location
CountiesSt. Louis
Highway system
  • Minnesota Trunk Highways
← MN 127→ MN 139

The route is also known as the historic Vermilion Trail from Biwabik to Tower. Highway 135 is also known as Main Street within the city of Biwabik.

Highway 135 was originally designated 35 until it was re-numbered to avoid confusion with Interstate Highway 35.

Between Virginia and Gilbert, the highway twice crosses the Laurentian Divide.

Route description

Highway 135 serves as an east–west and north–south route between the cities of Virginia, Gilbert, Biwabik, Aurora, and Tower in northeast Minnesota.

The route changes direction to north–south as it approaches Aurora and continues as north–south to its northern terminus in Tower.

The highway is officially marked as a north–south route by its highway shields from beginning to end.

The route is legally defined as Constitutional Route 35 in the Minnesota Statutes.[2]

History

The highway was authorized as State Highway 35 on November 2, 1920.[2] Originally, it began at Highway 18 on the northwestern shore of Mille Lacs Lake near Nichols. It ran north to Grand Rapids and turned east-northeast through the Iron Range to Ely.[2][3] By 1923, the only paved portion was from Grand Rapids to Chisholm, and the highway was still unimproved for several miles north of Hill City.[3] This segment was graveled that year, and the portion from Chisholm to Aurora was paved as well.[3][4] The highway was paved from Tower to Ely in the late 1920s.[5][6]

When U.S. Route 169 was marked within Minnesota in 1930, it was routed along Highway 35 from its southern terminus to its junction with State Highway 11 near Virginia.[6][7] It was paved from Aitkin to its first crossing with the Mississippi River and bituminous surfaced along the remaining portion of the roadway from Garrison to Grand Rapids in 1931,[7][8] and rerouted south of its former alignment between Keewatin and Hibbing in 1932.[9]

Highway 35 was truncated to its current extent in 1934, replaced by U.S. 169 west and south of Virginia and by the newly-marked State Highway 1 east of Tower.[10]

The highway was realigned near Embarrass in the 1950s. In 1951, the segment south of present-day County Road 21 was realigned west of its original alignment, shortening the road by nearly two miles; this section was paved in 1952.[11][12] Also that year, the portion north of County 21 was realigned, shortening the roadway by one mile. This segment was paved in 1954,[11]making the route paved in its entirety.[13]

The highway was re-numbered as 135 in 1958[14][15] to avoid duplication with Interstate Highway 35 that was being built in Minnesota during that time.

In 1964, the highway underwent a significant realignment; instead of entering downtown Aurora, it was rerouted to turn northward at the city limit and travel several miles before making a sharp curve eastward to rejoin its existing route. This change lengthened the highway by nearly 2½ miles.[11][16][17] Billed as a scenic route, it opened to traffic that autumn.[18]

Also that year, the highway was extended through the city of Virginia as a business route to U.S. 53 after construction of the U.S. 53 bypass around the city.[16][17] This business route had followed both 2nd Avenue and 9th Street North in Virginia until it was removed in 1996.[19]

The highway was rerouted between Gilbert and Biwabik in 1972. Where the original route had turned northeastward at its junction with Highway 37, it now traveled southeast and crossed to the south side of the Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range Railway for several miles before turning to the north, crossing the railway again, and rejoining its original alignment in Biwabik.[20][21] The Minncor mine now exists in place of parts of the original routing.

The northern terminus of the highway was rerouted in 2010 and shifted 0.08 miles westward, following Pine Street to its junction with Highway 1 instead of crossing the East Two River on Enterprise Drive.[11][22][23] A new roadway was later constructed even further west, bypassing Tower city streets altogether.[24]

Major intersections

The entire route is in St. Louis County.

Locationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
Virginia3.546–
3.794		5.707–
6.106		 US 53 – Duluth, VirginiaInterchange
Gilbert6.0409.720 CR 105 (Indiana Avenue)
6.64110.688 MN 37 west (Nokomis Street) / FFH 11 (Superior National Forest Scenic Byway) – EvelethWest end of Forest Highway 11 overlap
Biwabik Township9.54615.363 CR 20
Biwabik14.44323.244 CR 4 (Vermilion Trail)
15.30324.628 CR 138
Aurora17.90428.814 CR 100 east / FFH 11 (Superior National Forest Scenic Byway) / CR 110 southEast end of Forest Highway 11 overlap
Embarrass Township28.57845.992 CR 21
Kugler Township34.37155.315 CR 26
Tower39.47563.529 MN 1 / MN 169 – Ely, Cook
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References
  1. "Trunk Highway Log Point Listing - Construction District 1" (PDF). Minnesota Department of Transportation. August 20, 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 4, 2008. Retrieved November 21, 2010.
  2. Minnesota State Legislature (2010). "§ 161.114, Constitutional Trunk Highways". Minnesota Statutes. Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Retrieved November 21, 2010.
  3. Map of Trunk Highway System, State of Minnesota (Map). Cartography by McGill-Warner Co. Minnesota Highway Department. May 1, 1923. § K-13 through P-6. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  4. Map of Trunk Highway System, State of Minnesota (Map). Cartography by McGill-Warner Co. Minnesota Highway Department. May 1, 1924. § K-13 through P-6. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  5. Construction Project Log Record: Control Section 6904 (PDF), Minnesota Department of Transportation, retrieved October 9, 2018
  6. 1930 Map of Trunk Highway System, State of Minnesota (Map). Cartography by McGill-Warner Co. Minnesota Highway Department. April 1, 1930. § K-13 through N-8. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  7. 1931 Map of Trunk Highway System, State of Minnesota (Map). Cartography by McGill-Warner Co. Minnesota Highway Department. April 1, 1931. § K-13 through N-8. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  8. 1932 Map of Trunk Highway System, State of Minnesota (Map). Cartography by McGill-Warner Co. Minnesota Highway Department. April 1, 1932. § K-13 to L-9. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  9. 1933 Map of Trunk Highway System, State of Minnesota (Map). Cartography by McGill-Warner Co. Minnesota Highway Department. April 1, 1933. § M-8. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  10. 1934 Map of Trunk Highway System, State of Minnesota (Map). Cartography by McGill-Warner Co. Minnesota Highway Department. May 1, 1934. § K-13 through P-6. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  11. Construction Project Log Record: Control Section 6913 (PDF), Minnesota Department of Transportation, retrieved October 6, 2018
  12. 1952 Official Road Map of Minnesota (Map). Cartography by The H.M. Gousha Co. Minnesota Department of Highways. 1952. § M-6, M-7. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  13. 1955 Official Road Map of Minnesota (Map). Cartography by The H.M. Gousha Co. Minnesota Department of Highways. 1955. § M-6, M-7. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  14. 1958 Official Road Map, Minnesota (Map). Cartography by The H.M. Gousha Co. Minnesota Department of Highways. 1958. § M-6, M-7. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  15. 1959 Official Road Map, Minnesota (Map). Cartography by The H.M. Gousha Co. Minnesota Department of Highways. 1959. § M-6, M-7. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  16. 1964 Official Road Map - Minnesota (Map). Minnesota Department of Highways. 1964. § M-7. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  17. 1965 Official Road Map - Minnesota (Map). Cartography by Minnesota Department of Highways. Minnesota Department of Highways. 1965. § L-8. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  18. Schumann, Lois; Biondich, Mary (December 1964). Buxton, Tom (ed.). "News from Central Offices and Districts - Maintenance Area 1-B". Minnesota Highways. Vol. 14 no. 2. Minnesota Department of Highways. p. 13. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  19. Construction Project Log Record: Control Section 6952 (PDF), Minnesota Department of Transportation, retrieved October 5, 2018
  20. 1972 Official Highway Map - Minnesota (Map). Cartography by Minnesota Department of Highways. Minnesota Department of Highways. 1972. § L-8. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  21. 1973 Official Highway Map - Minnesota (Map). Cartography by Minnesota Department of Highways. Minnesota Department of Highways. 1973. § L-8. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  22. Municipalities of St. Louis Co. - Sheet 2 of 14 (PDF) (Map). Minnesota Department of Transportation. 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 9, 2008. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  23. Municipalities of St. Louis Co. - Sheet 2 of 14 (PDF) (Map). Minnesota Department of Transportation. 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 15, 2013. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  24. Municipalities of St. Louis Co. - Sheet 2 of 14 (PDF) (Map). Minnesota Department of Transportation. 2015. Retrieved October 9, 2018.

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Highway 135 at The Unofficial Minnesota Highways Page

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