Ontario Highway 39

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Highway 39

A map of Highway 39
  Highway 39   Connecting Links
  Highway 39B
Route information
Maintained by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario
Length33.8 km (21.0 mi)
Existed1934–June 1, 1970 (re-numbered as Highway 2)[1][2]
Major junctions
West endRiverside Drive, Windsor
East endFormer Highway 2 near Belle River
Location
CountryCanada
ProvinceOntario
CountiesEssex County
Major citiesWindsor
TownsTecumseh, Pike Creek, Puce, Belle River
Highway system
← Highway 37→ Highway 40
Former provincial highways
←  Highway 38

King's Highway 39, commonly referred to as Highway 39, was a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The 33.8-kilometer (21.0 mi)-long route connected Highway 3 in downtown Windsor with Highway 2 south of Belle River, travelling along the southern shoreline of Lake St. Clair. Highway 39 was established in 1934. By 1961, the Pike Creek Bypass was opened and Highway 39 was rerouted along it, with the former route briefly becoming Highway 39B. The route was renumbered as Highway 2 in 1970, retiring the designation from the provincial highway system. Highway 2 was itself decommissioned along the former route of Highway 39 on January 1, 1998, and transferred to Essex County and the City of Windsor. It was subsequently redesignated as Essex County Road 22.

Route description

Facing west towards downtown Windsor along Ouellette Avenue in 1951. The sign assembly at right features reassurance markers for Highway 2, Highway 3B, Highway 39, and Highway 98

Highway 39 began in downtown Windsor at the intersection of Ouellette Avenue and Riverside Drive. That intersection also served as the terminus for Highway 3B and Highway 98; Highway 2 continued through the intersection to the Detroit–Windsor tunnel. All four routes travelled concurrently southeast along Ouellette Avenue to Tecumseh Road, at which point Highway 3B branched west along that road while the others turned east. At Howard Avenue, Highway 39 continued east while Highway 2 and Highway 98 turned south.[3][4]

Highway 39 jogged south from Tecumseh Road to the Pike Creek Bypass at Banwell Road, gradually curving east onto it along what is now Mulberry Drive;[5] the Pike Creek Bypass was connected to the E. C. Row Expressway when it was extended east to Shawnee Road in May 1981.[6] It followed the bypass south of the community of Pike Creek, crossing over the creek of the same name and passing south of the J.P. Wiser's Whisky storage facility.[5][7] After paralleling along the south side of a Canadian National rail line, Highway 39 returned onto Tecumseh Road. Following the southern shoreline of Lake St. Clair, it crossed over the Puce River and through the communities of Puce and Emeryville. Becoming Notre Dame Street, the highway travelled through the town of Belle River and crossed the river of the same name. Exiting the town, the route crossed Duck Creek then curved south alongside it. After passing over a Canadian Pacific rail line, it ended at an intersection with Highway 2, which continued east to Tilbury.[3][8]

History

Assumption

Highway 39 was one of several provincial highways intended to funnel traffic from the border crossings in Windsor through Essex County.[9] The concept for a "Blue Water Highway" along the shores of the Detroit River, Lake St. Clair and thenceforth to Chatham alongside the Thames River was first made by the town of Belle River in 1927.[10][11] Noting that the route was already paved,[12] this premise was presented to the Department of Highways (DHO), predecessor to the modern Ministry of Transportation, multiple times over the next several years,[13] with the province opting instead to build and improve the Provincial Road (now Essex County Road 46),[14] and later the Base Line Road (now Essex County Road 42).[15] Despite this, the highway along Tecumseh Road and the lakefront continued to be lobbied for by local merchants and governments into the 1930s.[16][17][18]

The DHO finally agreed to take over the route, assuming control over 22.9 kilometers (14.2 mi) of roads through Maidstone, Rochester and Sandwich East townships on July 11, 1934. The new highway began at the Windsor–Ford City boundary at Drouillard Road, and proceeded east along Tecumseh Road; the sections through the towns of Tecumseh and Belle River were designated as Connecting Links.[19] Within Windsor, the highway was signed along local roads (Tecumseh Road and Ouellette Avenue) to the Detroit–Windsor tunnel.[20]

In 1939, several renumberings took place in Essex County. Following pressure by the Essex County Automobile Club to number all three highways between Windsor and Tilbury with the number 2,[21] Highway 39 was redesignated as Highway 2B in January.[22] Two months later, the province instituted a change to its "numbering" policy in which lettered suffixes would only be used for short feeder routes and not for long distance routes. Consequently, Highway 2B became Highway 39 again, effective March 18.[23]

Tecumseh Bypass

Traffic levels increased over the following decades, with two at-grade crossings of the Michigan Central Railroad becoming the site of frequent deadly accidents. In August 1951, the towns of Tecumseh and Belle River petitioned the DHO to construct a bypass along the south side of the tracks, avoiding both crossings.[24] The DHO opted to install automated signals and gates instead. The towns made a second request in March 1955,[25] to which the DHO agreed to conduct a survey into the need for a bypass that summer.[26] Plans were developed for the highway over the following years, including a proposal to connect the bypass with the proposed E. C. Row Avenue extension in 1957.[27]

The western end of Highway 39 was expanded from two to four lanes from Jefferson Avenue to Tecumseh in 1957 and 1958.[28] In April 1958, the DHO announced that it would proceed with constructing the bypass, as it was not possible to widen the existing highway through Tecumseh.[29][30] Concurrent with construction of the new bypass, which began in the fall of 1959, the highway was widened through Belle River.[31][32] The existing route through Tecumseh and Pike Creek was rehabilitated as part of the work.[32] The Highway 39 Bypass was opened the week of November 20, 1961.[33] The provincial portion of the former route through Tecumseh, east of Manning Road, became Highway 39B briefly before being decommissioned on August 10, 1962.[34][35]

As part of a larger reorganisation of highways in Essex County following the completion of Highway 401, Highway 2 west of the Highway 39 intersections near Belle River was transferred to Essex County on June 1, 1970.[1] Consequently, Highway 39 was renumbered as a continuation of Highway 2 into Windsor.[2]

Westward view of the recently widened Highway 39 at Riverside in 1958

Major intersections

The following table lists the former junctions along Highway 39, as noted by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario. The entire route was located in Essex County. 

LocationkmmiDestinationsNotes
Windsor0.00.0 Highway 2 / Highway 18 west (Riverside Drive)Beginning of concurrency with Highway 2, Highway 3B and Highway 98
2.94.7 Highway 3B west (Tecumseh Boulevard)End of Highway 3B concurrency; Highway 2, Highway 39 and Highway 98 turned east onto Tecumseh Boulevard
3.65.8 Highway 2 / Highway 98 south (Howard Avenue)End of Highway 2 and Highway 98 concurrency
5.58.9Walker Road
10.316.6Lauzon Parkway
13.421.6Banwell RoadHighway 39 turned south
14.323.0Pike Creek BypassIn 1970, a gentle curve connected Banwell Road and the Pike Creek Bypass
Windsor–Sandwich line16.326.2 County Road 19 (Manning Road)
Puce23.537.8 County Road 2 west (Old Tecumseh Road)Route of Highway 39 before 1961
23.838.3 County Road 25 south (East Puce Road)
Belle River29.447.3 County Road 27 (South Street)
​33.854.4 Highway 2 east – LondonNow Essex County Road 42
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Council to Fight Road Takeover". The Windsor Star. May 20, 1970. p. 16. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by Photogrammetry Office. Ontario Department of Highways. 1971. §§ O16–17. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Archives of Ontario.
  3. ^ a b Google (January 31, 2021). "Highway 39 – Approximate Length and Route" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
  4. ^ Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by Photogrammetry Office. Ontario Department of Highways. 1970. §§ Y16–17. Retrieved January 29, 2021 – via Archives of Ontario.
  5. ^ a b Pike Creek, Ontario. Map Sheet 040J07C, ed. 2 (Map). 1:25,000. Cartography by Surveys and Mapping Branch. Department of Energy, Mines and Resources. 1975. Retrieved January 29, 2021 – via Scholars GeoPortal.
  6. ^ Van Nie, Rob (May 12, 1981). "Drivers Warned of 'Death Trap'". The Windsor Star. p. 5. Retrieved January 29, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Cross, Brian (January 23, 2018). "Windsor Home to Canadian Whisky of the Year, Distillery of the Year". The Windsor Star. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  8. ^ Belle River, Ontario. Map Sheet 040J07B, ed. 1 (Map). 1:25,000. Cartography by Surveys and Mapping Branch. Department of Energy, Mines and Resources. 1968. Retrieved January 29, 2021 – via Scholars GeoPortal.
  9. ^ "New Through Roads Talked". The Border Cities Star. November 30, 1927. p. 3. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Lake Highway is Considered". The Border Cities Star. June 25, 1927. p. 5. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "New Highway Being Sought". The Border Cities Star. November 2, 1927. p. 3. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by D. Barclay. Ontario Department of Public Highways. 1926. § C6. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Archives of Ontario.
  13. ^ "Roads Group to See Henry". The Border Cities Star. February 15, 1929. p. 12. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Protest Road Route Change". The Border Cities Star. April 30, 1928. p. 5. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Road Plans are Set Out". The Border Cities Star. June 2, 1930. p. 2. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Thames Way Advocated". The Border Cities Star. July 28, 1931. p. 5. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Blue Water Highway Merchants to Meet in Belle River Friday". The Border Cities Star. April 19, 1932. p. 7. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "Would Make Road Highway". The Border Cities Star. October 24, 1933. p. 3. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ "Appendix No. 4 – Schedule of Assumptions and Reversions of Sections". Ontario Sessional Papers, 1935, No.26-70 (Report). January 31, 1935. p. 119. Retrieved January 30, 2021 – via Internet Archive.
  20. ^ "Re-paint Signs: Traffic Markers Over County Being Given Spring Cleaning". The Windsor Star. April 29, 1935. p. 7. Retrieved January 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ "Wants Road Re-numbered". The Windsor Star. December 7, 1938. p. 3. Retrieved January 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ^ "Highway 39 Will Be 2-B". The Windsor Star. January 17, 1939. p. 5. Retrieved January 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ^ Staff (March 18, 1939). "Changes Made on Highways: Get New Numbers – No. 2-A Becomes 98 Under New System". The Windsor Star. p. 6. Retrieved January 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ^ "Seek Change In Highway: Tecumseh Presses For 39 Re-routing". The Windsor Star. August 15, 1951. p. 3. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ "Seek Road Extension". The Windsor Star. March 21, 1955. p. 3. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ "Will Check Bypass Need". The Windsor Daily Star. June 29, 1955. p. 7. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. ^ "Plan Longer Row Route". The Windsor Star. January 21, 1957. p. 3. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  28. ^ "Few District Projects Due For Roads". The Windsor Daily Star. March 20, 1958. p. 16. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  29. ^ "Highway Bypass". The Windsor Daily Star. April 30, 1958. p. 2. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  30. ^ "Highway to Skirt Tecumseh: Puce Linkup in New Plan". The Windsor Star. April 30, 1958. p. 22. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  31. ^ "Highway 39 Route in Belle River Unchanged: Reeve Says No Change Intended". The Windsor Star. January 10, 1959. p. 7. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  32. ^ a b "Highway 39 Work Set: Resurfacing Job to Start in Fall". The Windsor Star. August 12, 1959. p. 3. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  33. ^ "Open Bypass This Week". The Windsor Star. November 21, 1961. p. 3. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  34. ^ "Resistance Spells Jail". The Windsor Star. July 9, 1963. p. 4. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  35. ^ Department of Highways (1963). Annual Report (Report). Government of Ontario. p. 245. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Google Books.
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