New York State Route 28N

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New York State Route 28N

NY 28N highlighted in red
Route information
Auxiliary route of NY 28
Maintained by NYSDOT
Length50.95 mi[1] (82.00 km)
Existed1930[2]–present
Major junctions
West end NY 28 / NY 30 in Indian Lake
East end NY 28 in Johnsburg
Location
CountryUnited States
StateNew York
CountiesHamilton, Essex, Warren
Highway system
← NY 28B→ NY 29

New York State Route 28N (NY 28N) is an east–west state highway in the North Country of New York in the United States. It extends for 50.95 miles (82.00 km) through the Adirondack Mountains from Blue Mountain Lake to North Creek. The route is a northerly alternate route to NY 28 between both locations; as such, it passes through several communities that NY 28 bypasses to the south. The westernmost 10 miles (16 km) of NY 28N overlap with NY 30 through the town of Long Lake. NY 28N and NY 30 split in the hamlet of Long Lake, from where NY 30 heads to the north and NY 28N proceeds eastward through mountainous regions of Adirondack Park.

The 40-mile (64 km) section of NY 28N not concurrent with NY 30 is designated as the Roosevelt–Marcy Trail, a scenic byway named for Theodore Roosevelt, who was then the Vice President of the United States. The byway marks the path Roosevelt took in 1901 to reach North Creek from Mount Marcy after learning that President William McKinley had been assassinated. The route has a rather scant history before its designations. The road originated as an old highway stretching from Warren County to Long Lake. It was used for transportation in the iron ore industry in Newcomb, and for the lumber industry in Minerva. New York State gained control of the road in 1909. The NY 28N designation was assigned as part of the 1930 renumbering of state highways in New York, incorporating part of pre-1930 NY 10.

Route description

A pair of highways intersect in front of a pair of cabins in a rural area. The highway in the foreground ends here, forcing drivers to turn left or right. A nearby sign assembly indicates that NY 28 west is to the left while NY 28N east and NY 30 north are to the right.
NY 28N's western terminus viewed from the intersection with NY 28 and NY 30 in Blue Mountain Lake

NY 28N begins at the intersection with NY 28 and NY 30 near the hamlet of Blue Mountain Lake within the town of Indian Lake.[3] The highway, concurrent with Route 30, heads north through the hamlet nestled at the base of Blue Mountain, one of the highest peaks in Adirondack Park standing, 3,795 feet (1,157 m) above sea level.[4][5] Routes 28N and 30 track north, gaining elevation after leaving Blue Mountain Lake. Nestled between Blue Mountain and Peaked Mountain, Routes 28N and 30 turn northeast. After intersecting Salmon Pond Road, the highways wind through the mountains and hills of the Adirondacks. Mud Pond and South Pond are on the west, and East Inlet Mountain is on the east. After paralleling Long Lake and the base of East Inlet Mountain, the highways enter the hamlet of Long Lake, where they split. Route 30 heads northwest, while NY 28N turns eastward towards Newcomb.[6][7]

A large lake is surrounded by land partially or wholly covered in forests. A road crosses the lake via bridge and intersects another that crosses a small bay by way of a narrow strip of land. At lower left is a community composed mostly of houses. The highway carried by the bridge across the lake serves the community and intersects another highway at upper left.
Long Lake from the air. NY 28N is visible near the patch of forests to the west.

Beyond Long Lake, NY 28N partially remains in a mountainous region; Pinnacle Mountain, a 2,159-foot (658 m) peak,[8] rises to the north, while lowlands lie to the south.[7] The highway progresses eastward, passing Windfall Mountain and proceeding through the center of the park. NY 28N crosses into Essex County, where it becomes the Roosevelt–Marcy Trail, one of 13 scenic byways in the Adirondack Park.[9][10] The highway, first turning southeast for a short distance, turns east again, passing south of Rich Lake. The two-lane highway passes Baldwin Mountain[11] to the north, and subsequently enters Newcomb, an isolated town between Long Lake and North Creek. The highway exits Newcomb as it approaches the shores of Harris Lake.[12] After crossing one of those creeks, the highway turns to the southeast and into Winebrook Hills.[13]

Signage for Route 28N and Route 30 heading northbound through a wooded community with a brown and white bicycle route sign
Route 28N heading northbound along Route 30 in Blue Mountain Lake

NY 28N passes through Winebrook Hills,[13] and intersects with its first signed roads since Long Lake, County Route 75 (CR 75, named Eaton Lane) and CR 84 (Blue Ridge Road).[14] The latter is a former alignment of NY 73.[15] Nearby is Vanderwhacker Mountain, a 3,386-foot-high (1,032 m) peak and part of the Vanderwhacker Mountain Wild Forest, which the highway passes through.[16] CR 84 eventually parallels the highway to the north of NY 28N, but this slowly begins to change as the main highway begins to progress southward. NY 28N heads south into the hamlet of Aiden Lair and continues south towards Warren County. The highway crosses Boreas Creek, which flows southwest in the park,[14] and eventually passes a series of lakes. NY 28N enters Minerva, where it intersects several county routes, including County Route 29, which heads towards the Warren County border and Interstate 87 (I-87).[17]

The road, after leaving Minerva, passes Moxham Mountain, a 2,200-foot (670 m) peak,[17] and eventually crosses the Hudson River. The route ends just after entering North Creek in Warren County, at the intersection with NY 28, its parent route.[18]

NY 28N is classified as a rural major collector road, with the exception of the section that is overlapped with Route 30, which is classified as a rural minor arterial road. As of 2006, the Route 30 overlap had an annual average daily traffic of 1,781 vehicles. Traffic volumes are reduced to 1,231 vehicles per day from the end of the Route 30 overlap to the intersection with Blue Ridge Road (CR 84). South of this intersection, traffic is reduced further to 350 until the hamlet of Minerva, rising to 751 south of Minerva until near the Warren county line. Traffic increases back up to 1,248 vehicles per day from there to Route 28 in North Creek.[19]

History

Early history: Newcomb and Minerva

Four signs are mounted on a pole. From top to bottom, they are: the word "east", a NY 28N shield, a yellow-on-brown sign with an outline of Theodore Roosevelt's face and the text "Roosevelt-Marcy Trail", and a reference marker for NY 28N.
Sign for Route 28N with secondary sign for Roosevelt–Marcy Trail

Many of the earliest roads in the area crossed through Minerva. The first known road that reached the settlement was established in 1804, when land along a highway from St. Lawrence County to the town of Chester in Warren County was populated by the West family. Minerva was mainly limited to the vicinity of the old highway, but as more people settled along the road, the town began to grow. For a time, the town boasted several water-powered sawmills, and the highway was used to transport lumber.[20] However, the lumber industry began to fail,[21] and by 1840, the logging and lumber system had been replaced by crops. The town initiated river drives, which continued until 1950.[21]

On March 15, 1828, part of Minerva and nearby Moriah was split into the town of Newcomb. Settlers began to arrive in this area in 1816. Settlement began along the shores of Lake Harris and Newcomb Lake, mainly along the old highway from Warren County to nearby Long Lake. Eventually, highways helped the town grow, and it reached a population of 300 by the 1880 census. The iron ore industry contributed to population growth via 30-mile (48 km) to 40-mile (64 km) roads to Lake Champlain that were meant for hauling ore.[20] The highway from Warren County to Long Lake became part of the state system as early as 1909.[22] After 1845, Newcomb's iron ore industry began to decline and the town evolved into somewhat of a sportsmen's resort. As a result, a road was built connecting Newcomb with nearby Minerva and Long Lake.[23]

The 40-mile (64 km) section of 28N between Long Lake and North Creek is a scenic byway named the Roosevelt–Marcy Trail.[24] This was the route traveled on September 10, 1901 by Theodore Roosevelt, then Vice President of the United States. The vice president had hiked to the summit of nearby Mount Marcy earlier, while there, learned that President William McKinley, having been shot four days earlier by anarchist Leon Czolgosz in Buffalo, was near death. Roosevelt took an overnight wagon ride to North Creek. From the train station there, he traveled to Buffalo, where, after McKinley died, he was sworn in as president on September 14.[25]

Designation and bridge rehabilitation

Two unmaintained highways intersect near a large, dilapidated cabin. A second cabin is in the background, reachable by one of the roads. The area is completely surrounded by trees, and large mountains are visible off in the distance.
The area now of Tahawus, New York in 1994. This was a location for an intersection with NY 73

The routing of NY 28N was originally designated, but not signed,[A 1] as part of legislative Route 25 in 1908.[26] In 1924, the portion of Route 25 from Long Lake to North Creek was designated as part of the signed NY 10.[27] The segment of former Route 25 between Blue Mountain Lake and Long Lake became part of NY 10A in the late 1920s.[2][28] In the 1930 renumbering, the NY 10A designation was eliminated, and NY 10 was rerouted south of Long Lake to follow the modern routing of NY 30 south to Speculator. The former routing of NY 10 between Long Lake and North Creek was then administratively redesignated as NY 28N,[2] which continued southward from Long Lake to Blue Mountain Lake by way of an overlap with NY 10.[29]

The New York State Department of Transportation has scheduled for NY 28N to undergo construction in spring 2013, to rehabilitate the bridge over the Upper Hudson River Railroad. The $5.9 million project is projected to be complete in fall of 2015, and is to be supported by state and federal funds.[30] New York State Department of Transportation has also planned for NY 28N's bridge over Stillwater Brook in Minerva to be replaced with a stronger structure. The development of the project is expected to take place 2014, with bids and construction starting in 2016. The project has been set to end in 2017, and is predicted to cost $1.1 million of federal and state funds.[31]

Major intersections

CountyLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
HamiltonTown of Indian Lake0.000.00
 NY 28 / NY 30 south – Raquette Lake, Old Forge, Indian Lake		Western terminus; southern terminus of NY 28N / NY 30 overlap; hamlet of Blue Mountain Lake
Town of Long Lake10.6117.08
 NY 30 north – Tupper Lake, Malone		Northern terminus of NY 28N / NY 30 overlap; hamlet of Long Lake
EssexNewcomb29.5247.51
 CR 84 (Blue Ridge Road) to I-87 – Tahawus, North Hudson		Formerly part of NY 73
Minerva43.3969.83 CR 30 (Morse Memorial Highway) – Olmstedville
WarrenJohnsburg50.7981.74 CR 77 (Main Street) – North Creek Business DistrictFormer routing of NY 28; hamlet of North Creek
50.9582.00 NY 28 – Wevertown, Indian Lake, Gore Mountain ski resortEastern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Notes

  1. ^ The road was given a designation, though no actual signs were erected.

References

  1. ^ a b "2008 Traffic Data Report for New York State" (PDF). New York State Department of Transportation. June 16, 2009. pp. 166–167. Retrieved July 18, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c Dickinson, Leon A. (January 12, 1930). "New Signs for State Highways". The New York Times. p. 136.
  3. ^ Blue Mountain Digital Raster Quadrangle (Map). 1:24,000. New York State Department of Transportation. 1969. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
  4. ^ Blue Mountain Lake, NY quadrangle (Map). United States Geological Survey. 1989. Retrieved September 19, 2008.
  5. ^ Blue Mountain NY quadrangle (NW quadrant) (Map). Cartography by United States Geological Survey. United States Geological Survey. 1954. Retrieved September 19, 2008.
  6. ^ Deerland, NY quadrangle (Map). Cartography by United States Geological Survey. United States Geological Survey. 1989. Retrieved September 17, 2008.
  7. ^ a b Deerland Digital Raster Quadrangle (Map). 1:24,000. New York State Department of Transportation. 1969. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
  8. ^ "Pinnacle Mountain, hamilton County, NY". United States Geological Survey. 2008. Retrieved September 19, 2008.
  9. ^ "The 13 Scenic Byways of the Adirondack North Country". Adirondack North Country Association. 2008. Archived from the original on May 29, 2008. Retrieved August 27, 2008.
  10. ^ "The 13 Scenic Byways of the Adirondack North Country". Adirondack North Country Association. 2008. Retrieved August 27, 2008.
  11. ^ "Baldwin Mountain, Warren–Essex County, NY". United States Geological Survey. 2008. Retrieved September 19, 2008.
  12. ^ Newcomb Digital Raster Quadrangle (Map). 1:24,000. New York State Department of Transportation. 1969. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
  13. ^ a b Newcomb – New York (Map). 1:25,000. 7.5 x 15 Minute Series (Topographic). United States Geological Survey. 1989. Retrieved February 22, 2012.
  14. ^ a b Vanderwacker Mountain Digital Raster Quadrangle (Map). 1:24,000. New York State Department of Transportation. 1969. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
  15. ^ Automobile Legal Association (ALA) (1931). Automobile Green Book, 1931/32 edition. Scarborough Motor Guide Co.
  16. ^ "Vanderwhacker Mountain Wild Forest". New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. 2008. Retrieved September 19, 2008.
  17. ^ a b Dutton Mountain Digital Raster Quadrangle (Map). 1:24,000. New York State Department of Transportation. 1989. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
  18. ^ North Creek Digital Raster Quadrangle (Map). 1:24,000. New York State Department of Transportation. 1992. Retrieved January 20, 2010.
  19. ^ "Traffic Data Viewer Application". New York State Department of Transportation. 2006. Archived from the original on September 22, 2012. Retrieved October 28, 2008.
  20. ^ a b Smith, H.P. (1885). The History of Essex County. D. Mason and Company.
  21. ^ a b "Minerva, New York". Essex County Historical Society. 2008. Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved September 16, 2008.
  22. ^ Report of the State Commissioner of Highways Report of the State Commissioner of Highways (Map). New York State Department of Highways. p. 509.
  23. ^ "Newcomb, New York". Essex County Historical Society. 2008. Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved September 16, 2008.
  24. ^ "Roosevelt–Marcy Trail". United States Department of Transportation. 2007. Archived from the original on June 2, 2008. Retrieved September 14, 2008.
  25. ^ "Roosevelt received the news that President McKinley had been shot in Buffalo". Theodore Roosevelt Centennial Site. 2008. Archived from the original on July 4, 2008. Retrieved August 27, 2008.
  26. ^ State of New York Department of Highways (1909). The Highway Law. Albany, New York: J. B. Lyon Company. p. 62. Retrieved February 4, 2010.
  27. ^ "New York's Main Highways Designated by Numbers". The New York Times. December 21, 1924. p. XX9.
  28. ^ Rand McNally Auto Road Atlas (eastern New York) (Map). Rand McNally. 1926. Retrieved May 5, 2008.
  29. ^ Road Map of New York (Map). Cartography by General Drafting. Standard Oil Company of New York. 1930.
  30. ^ "Route 28N over the Upper Hudson River Railroad". New York State Department of Transportation. 2008. Retrieved September 16, 2008.
  31. ^ "Route 28N over the Stillwater Brook". New York State Department of Transportation. 2008. Retrieved September 18, 2008.

External links

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