U.S. Route 64 in Arkansas

This article is about the section of U.S. Route 64 in Arkansas. For the entire route, see U.S. Route 64.

U.S. Route 64 is a U.S. highway running from Teec Nos Pos, Arizona east to Nags Head, North Carolina. In the U.S. state of Arkansas, the route runs 246.35 miles (396.46 km) from the Oklahoma border in Fort Smith east to the Tennessee border in Memphis.^[1] The route passes through several cities and towns, including Fort Smith, Clarksville, Russellville, Conway, Searcy, and West Memphis. US 64 runs parallel to Interstate 40 until Conway, when I-40 takes a more southerly route.

U.S. Highway 64
US 64 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by ArDOT
Length	246.35 mi^[1] (396.46 km)
Existed	1926–present
Major junctions
West end	US 64 at Oklahoma border near Fort Smith
Major intersections	I-540 / US 71 in Van Buren I-40 in Clarksville I-40 in Lamar Future I-57 / US 67 / US 167 / US 67B in Beebe US 49 in Fair Oaks I-55 / US 61 / US 63 in Marion I-40 in West Memphis US 70 / AR 131 in West Memphis
East end	I-55 / US 61 / US 64 / US 70 / US 79 at Tennessee border in Memphis
Location
Country	United States
State	Arkansas
Counties	Sebastian, Crawford, Franklin, Johnson, Pope, Conway, Faulkner, White, Woodruff, Cross, Crittenden
Highway system
United States Numbered Highway System List Special Divided Arkansas Highway System Interstate US State Business Spurs Suffixed Scenic Heritage
← US 63 → US 65

Route description

 

Bridge carrying US 64 over the Arkansas River in Van Buren

 

Historic Marker in Marion for the Trail of Tears at intersection of US 64 and AR 77

US 64 crosses Arkansas' western border over the Arkansas River, heading southeast into downtown Ft. Smith. Upon entry to Arkansas, the highway passes the Fort Smith National Historic Site, Ft. Smith Confederate Monument, Commercial Hotel and the West Garrison Avenue Historic District, all on the National Register of Historic Places. The highway turns northwest near the New Theatre, following the Arkansas and Missouri Railroad and concurring with US 71 Business onto 10th and 11th Streets.^[2] Westbound traffic runs on 10th St and eastbound traffic on 11th St past the Fort Smith Masonic Temple. Traffic converges onto Midland Boulevard.^[3] US 64 crosses the Arkansas River again near the American Doughboy Monument as it enters Van Buren on Broadway. US 64 passes the Van Buren Post Office before turning east onto Main Street, then northeast again becoming the Alma Highway. US 64 passes a former alignment, now designated as Oak St. After Oak St, US 64 crosses I-540 and continues east to Alma.^[4] US 64 closely follows Interstate 40 until Conway, while also closely following the Arkansas River, the Union Pacific Railroad, and the southern edge of the Ozark National Forest.

US 64 continues through mountainous Franklin County, intersecting the Pig Trail Scenic Byway in Ozark.^[5] The route passes the Franklin County Courthouse, and the Ozark Courthouse Square Historic District in Ozark before exiting town continuing east. Route 64 passes a historically significant connector road in Wiederkehr Village before entering Altus and entering Johnson County. US 64 runs through Coal Hill and Hartman before curving northeast and crossing over I-40. The route continues to Clarksville, home of the University of the Ozarks.^[6] The route passes the Johnson County Courthouse, historic American Legion Hut, Clarksville Municipal Airport, and Lake Dardanelle before again crossing over I-40 and entering Pope County.^[7]

US 64 then parallels Interstate 40, through Russellville and Morrilton. In Faulkner County, it briefly converges with U.S. Route 65B through Conway heading south before diverging from US 65 Business and Interstate 40 by turning east onto Oak Street. The highway next approaches Vilonia, following a southerly bypass around the city that opened in October 2011^[8] (replacing its former alignment along Vilonia's Main Street) and rejoining its prior alignment west of the White County line and continuing to El Paso, where it intersects Arkansas Highway 5. US 64 then travels east to Beebe, where it originally entered town via Center Street and joined with US 67 and US 167. This former route along Center Street has since been resigned U.S. Route 67B,^[9] as all three US highways have been relocated to a concurrent divided highway northwest of Beebe.

US 64 runs along this divided highway past McRae, Garner, and Searcy, where its original route took it north along Main Street, then east along Race Avenue. This former route is now signed U.S Route 67B. Later, US 64, 67, and 167 were rerouted southeast of Searcy along Eastline Road, which is now signed Arkansas Highway 367. Currently, all three highways continue to run northeast along a divided highway running parallel to Eastline Road.

US 64 diverges from US 67 & 167 on the northeast side of Bald Knob, where its former route took it downtown along Highway Avenue, which is now signed Arkansas Highway 367. US 64 turns east toward the White River and Woodruff County, while the divided US 67 diverges northeast, and US 167 diverges north.

 

US 64 runs near Altus.

US 64 continues east through Augusta and McCrory, intersecting with US Route 49 at Fair Oaks and bypassing Wynne while in Cross County, and proceeding into Crittenden County through Earle and Crawfordsville, until joining with Interstate 55 at Marion. Its former route continued east along Military Road, turning south onto the Great River Road, and converging with US Route 63, which has since also been rerouted along Interstate 55. The former route is signed Arkansas Highway 77.

 

US 64 is concurrent with US 67 and US 167 between Beebe and Bald Knob.

US 64 continues south to West Memphis, where its former route entered the city from the north via Missouri Street, turning east (diverging from US 63 while converging with US 70 & 79) onto Broadway. Its current route turns east north of West Memphis as Interstates 55 and 40 briefly converge, before entering Tennessee (and downtown Memphis) along the Interstate 55 bridge.

Each August, a large yard sale similar to the Highway 127 Corridor Sale takes place along 160 mi (260 km) of US 64 in Arkansas, in locations stretching from Fort Smith to Beebe.^[10]

History

The Arkansas River Valley has served as an east-west pathway across Arkansas for centuries, with travelers taking advantage of the flat natural topography between the Ozark Mountains and the Ouachita Mountains. When the United States Army began constructing the Memphis to Little Rock Road on January 31, 1824, it followed a historic trail through the region.^[11]

National Register of Historic Places

Four original segments of US 64 remain intact and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Menifee segment was listed in 2006,^[12] the Scotia segment was listed in 2007,^[13] and the Van Buren and Altus segments were listed in 2010.^[14][15] The Horsehead Creek Bridge near Hartman was listed in 2014.^[16]

 

Augusta Bridge in 1988

The original segment listings are contained within the Arkansas Highway History and Architecture Multiple Property Submission, which preserves history from Arkansas's highway building era between 1910 and 1965.^[17] The Horsehead Creek Bridge was listed within the Historic Bridges of Arkansas MPS.^[18] Two other bridges were NRHP-listed until their demolition: the 1920 Galla Creek Bridge near Pottsville was removed in 2000, and the 1930 Augusta Bridge over the White River was removed in 2002.

Van Buren

The Old US 64-Van Buren Segment is a stretch of historic roadway in Van Buren. Now designated Oak Lane, this stretch of concrete road was built in 1928 by Shultz Construction Co. as part of the original alignment of US 64, whose current alignment (built in 1968) travels to the south. This stretch of road is about 0.65 miles (1.05 km) long and 18 feet (5.5 m) wide, carrying two lanes of traffic with no shoulder. It is made out of a tan-colored aggregate mixed with concrete. This segment was part of the first concrete-paved road in Crawford County.^[19]

Altus

The Johnson County Line-Ozark-Crawford County Line Road, Altus Segment is a historic roadbed in Altus. It consists of a 425-foot (130 m) section of stone-paved roadbed, located on the north side of US 64 between Robin Way and County Road 515. The roadbed is about 10 feet (3.0 m) wide, with gravel shoulders, and has a small concrete bridge spanning a ditch. Built sometime between c. 1918 and 1931, it is the only known example of stone pavement in rural Arkansas. US 64 was redirected onto a new terrain roadway in 1931, leaving this segment as a nameless connector road.^[20]

Horseshead Creek Bridge

The US 64 Horsehead Creek Bridge is a historic bridge, carrying US 64 across Horsehead Creek east of Hartman. Its two main spans are Parker pony trusses, 102 feet (31 m) in length, with steel deck girder approach spans giving the bridge a total length of 415 feet (126 m). The trusses are mounted on concrete piers, with the approaches on concrete piers and abutments. The bridge was built in 1933–1934 by Fred Luttjohann, and served as a major crossing point and transportation route until the construction of Interstate 40 (I-40) to the north.^[21]

Scotia

The Old US 64, Scotia Segment is a section of historic roadway in the unincorporated community of Scotia. It extends eastward from Country Lane, south of the current alignment of US 64. It is about 0.5 miles (0.80 km) in length, following an arced route, and is covered in a bituminous that has in places deteriorated into gravel. It is believed to be the longest-surviving element of the c. 1920 alignment of US 64 in Arkansas, and was built on an alignment dating to the 1830s. It is believed this road formed part of the Trail of Tears.^[22]

Menifee

Old U.S. Route 64 is a historic former alignment of US 64 in Menifee. Now a portion of Canal Road, it consists of a 0.5-mile (0.80 km) section of concrete pavement, extending southward from the current alignment of US 64 near the center of Menifee. Built in 1931 by the Zeigler Construction Company, it is the longest intact portion of the highway's original alignment in Conway County. It was bypassed by the present alignment in 1961.^[23]

Historic segment gallery

•  

  Van Buren segment looking east

•  

  Altus segment

•  

  Horsehead Creek Bridge

•  

  Scotia segment

•  

  Menifee segment

Major intersections

County	Location	mi^[1]	km	Destinations	Notes
Arkansas River		0.00	0.00	US 64 west	Continuation into Oklahoma
				J. Fred Patton Garrison Avenue Bridge Arkansas–Oklahoma line
Sebastian	Fort Smith	0.3	0.48	AR 255 (5th Street / truck route)
		0.7	1.1	AR 22 east (Garrison Avenue) / US 71B south (Towson Avenue) to US 271 south	West end of US 71B overlap
		4.8	7.7	AR 255 south (Riverfront Drive)
Arkansas River		5.5	8.9	Bridge
Crawford	Van Buren	5.9	9.5	AR 59 south (South 4th Street)	West end of AR 59 overlap
		6.3	10.1	AR 59 north (North 11th Street) – Historic District	East end of AR 59 overlap
		6.9	11.1	AR 162 east (Kibler Road) – Kibler
		8.2	13.2	I-540 (US 71) to I-40 – Oklahoma City, Little Rock, Fort Smith	I-540 exit 2
		8.8	14.2	AR 282 east – Rudy
	​	10.3	16.6	AR 60 west
	Alma	14.0	22.5	US 71B north / AR 162 west to I-40 – Fayetteville, Downtown Alma, Kibler	East end of US 71B overlap
		15.3	24.6	US 64B west – Business District
	Mulberry			To Georgia Ridge Drive / I-40
		24.8	39.9	AR 215 north / AR 917-1 (Main Street) to I-40 – Vine Prairie Park
Franklin	​	28.5	45.9	AR 352 (Fairview Road)
	Ozark	36.5	58.7	AR 219 south
		37.8	60.8	AR 23 north (North 18th Street) to I-40 – Huntsville, Arkansas Tech University - Ozark	West end of AR 23 overlap
		38.5	62.0	AR 23 south (7th Street) – Mount Magazine State Park	East end of AR 23 overlap
		38.8	62.4	AR 219 north (3rd Street) to I-40
	Altus	43.7	70.3	AR 179 south (Carbon Plant Road)
		44.0	70.8	AR 186 (St. Mary's Mountain Road) – Wiederkehr Village, Denning
Johnson	Coal Hill	51.2	82.4	AR 164 east – Hunt
	Clarksville	60.7	97.7	AR 109 south – Scranton, Subiaco Academy, Mount Magazine State Park
		61.6	99.1	I-40 – Fort Smith, Little Rock	I-40 exit 55
		62.4	100.4	AR 352 west
		65.0	104.6	AR 103 north (College Avenue) – University of the Ozarks	West end of AR 103 overlap
		65.4	105.3	AR 103 south (Rogers Street)	East end of AR 103 overlap
		66.4	106.9	AR 21 north – Ozone
	Lamar	67.9	109.3	AR 123 south (Eureka Road)	West end of AR 123 overlap
		69.8	112.3	AR 123 north – Hagarville	East end of AR 123 overlap
		70.1	112.8	AR 359 north
		72.0	115.9	I-40 – Little Rock, Fort Smith	I-40 exit 64
	Knoxville	74.5	119.9	AR 315 north to I-40
	Piney			AR 359 north – Piney Bay Recreation Area
Pope	London	82.3	132.4	AR 333 to I-40
		84.8	136.5	AR 333 – Arkansas Nuclear One
				To I-40	I-40 exit 78
	Russellville	87.6	141.0	AR 326 east (Lake Front Drive) to I-40	West end of AR 326 overlap
		87.8	141.3	AR 326 west (Marina Road) – Lake Dardanelle State Park	East end of AR 326 overlap
		90.6	145.8	AR 7 (Arkansas Avenue) to I-40 – Arkansas Tech University
		91.4	147.1	AR 7T south (Knoxville Avenue)
		92.2	148.4	AR 124 east (Weir Road)	Former AR 326
		92.4	148.7	AR 331 south (Elmira Avenue) – Airport	West end of AR 331 overlap
		92.9	149.5	AR 331 north to I-40	East end of AR 331 overlap
		93.1	149.8	AR 324
	Pottsville	96.1	154.7	AR 331
		96.9	155.9	AR 247 south / AR 363 north to I-40 – Dardanelle
	Atkins	102.6	165.1	AR 105 north (North Church Street) to I-40
		102.7	165.3	AR 105 south (Avenue Two Southeast) – Lake Atkins
Conway	​			To Fish Lake Road / I-40
	​	109.2	175.7	AR 113 south
	Morrilton	115.9	186.5	AR 95 north / AR 113 (Division Street) – Morrilton Depot Museum
		116.2	187.0	AR 9B north (St. Joseph Street) – U of A Community College Morrilton
		117.4	188.9	AR 9 to I-40 – Solgohachia, Perryville	interchange
	Plumerville	121.9	196.2	AR 92 north (Springfield Street) to I-40 – Springfield
	Menifee	126.9	204.2	To I-40
Faulkner	Conway	130.5	210.0	AR 319 south – Cadron Settlement Park
		134.2	216.0	I-40 (via US 64S) / Salem Road – Fort Smith, Little Rock
		134.9	217.1	AR 25 north – Wooster
		135.6	218.2	US 65B north to I-40 – Little Rock, Harrison	West end of US 65B overlap
		136.3	219.4	Siebenmorgen Road (AR 266) / Markham Street	roundabout
		136.8	220.2	US 65B south (Harkrider Street) / Oak Street – Central Baptist College, Conway Business District	East end of US 65B overlap
		137.6	221.4	I-40 – Fort Smith, Little Rock	I-40 exit 127
	Hamlet	144.4	232.4	AR 36 north – Mount Vernon
				US 64B east
	Funston	150.6	242.4	AR 107
	​			US 64B west
White	​	157.1	252.8	AR 5 – El Paso, Jacksonville
	Beebe	168.7	271.5	Future I-57 / US 67 south / US 167 south / US 67B north – Beebe, Little Rock	interchange; West end of US 67 / US 167 overlap; US 64 west follows exit 28
	see US 67
	Bald Knob	196.1	315.6	Future I-57 / US 67 north / US 167 north to AR 367 – Newport, St. Louis, Batesville, Lyon College, U of A Community College - Batesville	interchange; East end of US 67 / US 167 overlap; US 64 east follows exit 55
		196.4	316.1	AR 367 south – Judsonia
Woodruff	Augusta	208.5	335.5	US 64B east / AR 33B south (North 5th Street) – Business District
		208.8	336.0	AR 33 north – Newport
		209.6	337.3	US 64B west – Augusta Business District
	​	210.0	338.0	AR 33 south – Des Arc, Cache River NWR
	Patterson	216.4	348.3	US 64B east / AR 17 south – Patterson, Brinkley	West end of AR 17 overlap
	McCrory	218.4	351.5	AR 17 north / AR 145 south – Newport, McCrory	East end of AR 17 overlap
	​	221.7	356.8	US 64B west – McCrory
	​	224.3	361.0	AR 269 north to AR 37	West end of AR 269 overlap
	Morton	224.8	361.8	AR 269 south	East end of AR 269 overlap
Cross	Fair Oaks			US 49 south – Brinkley	West end of US 49 overlap
				US 49 north – Jonesboro	East end of US 49 overlap
	Central	234.0	376.6	AR 193 south to AR 284
	​	234.9	378.0	AR 193 north to AR 42
	​	239.6	385.6	AR 350 south to AR 284
	Wynne	242.0	389.5	US 64S south / AR 1 north – Jonesboro, Harrisburg	West end of AR 1 overlap
		242.6	390.4	AR 1 south (Falls Boulevard) – Wynne, Forrest City	East end of AR 1 overlap
	​	246.1	396.1	US 64B west / Crowley's Ridge Pkwy. – Village Creek State Park
	Levesque	246.7	397.0	AR 163 south
		246.8	397.2	AR 163 north / Crowley's Ridge Pkwy. – Birdeye, Lake Poinsett State Park
	​	254.9	410.2	AR 75 north – Marked Tree	West end of AR 75 overlap
	Parkin	256.1	412.2	AR 75 south – Parkin Business District	East end of AR 75 overlap
		256.2	412.3	AR 184 east – Parkin Archaeological State Park
		257.3	414.1	US 64B west – Parkin Business District
Crittenden	​	259.7	417.9	US 64B east – Earle
	Earle	261.1	420.2	AR 184 west
		261.4	420.7	AR 149 (Barton Street) – Marked Tree, Earle
		262.4	422.3	US 64B west / AR 118 east to AR 42
	​	270.4	435.2	US 64B east / AR 50 – Crawfordsville
	​	271.4	436.8	US 64B west – Crawfordsville
	​	273.0	439.4	AR 147 south – Lehi
	Marion	277.6	446.8	AR 118 south (College Boulevard) to I-40
		278.3	447.9	I-55 north (US 61 north / US 63 north) / US 64 east – Marion, Sunset, Blytheville	West end of I-55 / US 61 / US 63 overlap; US 64 west follows exit 10
	see I-55
Mississippi River		289.4	465.7	Memphis & Arkansas Bridge Arkansas–Tennessee line
				I-55 south / US 61 south / US 64 east / US 70 east / US 79 north – Memphis	Continuation into Tennessee
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

• List of bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Arkansas
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Crawford County, Arkansas
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Conway County, Arkansas
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Franklin County, Arkansas
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Johnson County, Arkansas
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Pope County, Arkansas
• Special routes of U.S. Route 64, six special routes of US 64 exist in Arkansas

References

Route map:

Template:Attached KML/U.S. Route 64 in Arkansas

KML is from Wikidata

1. "[Arkansas] State Highways 2009 (Database)." April 2010. AHTD: Planning and Research Division. Database. 2011-07-07 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved April 11, 2011.
2. Map of Fort Smith, Sebastian County, Arkansas (Map) (January 2006 ed.). Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
3. General Highway Map - Sebastian County, Arkansas (PDF) (Map) (5/10/10 ed.). Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
4. General Highway Map - Crawford County, Arkansas (PDF) (Map) (5/10/10 ed.). Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
5. General Highway Map - Franklin County, Arkansas (PDF) (Map) (1/3/11 ed.). Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
6. Map of Clarksville, Johnson County, Arkansas (PDF) (Map) (May 2006 ed.). Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
7. General Highway Map - Johnson County, Arkansas (PDF) (Map) (2/8/11 ed.). Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
8. "Vilonia bypass to open Monday". Log Cabin Democrat. Retrieved 2019-03-11.
9. "Mapping - Tourist Maps". www.arkansashighways.com. Retrieved 2019-03-11.
10. . Archived from the original on 2011-05-12. Retrieved 2011-04-12.
11. Christ, Mark K. (June 5, 2015). "Memphis to Little Rock Road". Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture. Little Rock: Butler Center for Arkansas Studies at the Central Arkansas Library System. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
12. "National Register Information System – Old US 64, Menifee Segment (#06000071)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
13. "National Register Information System – Old US 64, Scotia Segment (#07000959)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
14. "National Register Information System – Old U.S. 64-Van Buren Segment (#09001242)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
15. "National Register Information System – Johnson County Line-Ozark-Crawford County Line Road, Altus Segment (#10000033)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
16. "National Register Information System – U.S. 64 Horsehead Creek Bridge (#14000792)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
17. "National Register Information System – Arkansas Highway History and Architecture Multiple Property Submission (#64500014)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
18. "National Register Information System – Historic Bridges of Arkansas Multiple Property Submission (#64500021)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
19. "NRHP nomination for Old US 64-Van Buren Segment" (PDF). Arkansas Preservation. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
20. "NRHP nomination for Johnson County Line-Ozark-Crawford County Line Road, Altus Segment" (PDF). Arkansas Preservation. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
21. "NRHP nomination for US 64 Horsehead Creek Bridge" (PDF). Arkansas Preservation. Retrieved May 26, 2016.
22. "NRHP nomination for Old US 64, Scotia Segment" (PDF). Arkansas Preservation. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
23. "NRHP nomination for Old US 64, Menifee Segment" (PDF). Arkansas Preservation. Retrieved April 12, 2016.

U.S. Route 64
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