Historic U.S. 80
U.S. 80 is one of the most historic routes travelling through Arizona. The
roots of the road date back to the late 1846 and the first
roads through Arizona Territory. Beginning in Yuma, the road
followed the Gila River to Buckeye and Phoenix, then travelled
east through the Valley to reach Florence Junction, then south
to Florence. From there, the road headed southeast to Tucson,
east to Benson, southeast to Bisbee and Douglas, and northeast
to Lordsburg, NM.
Cooke's Wagon Road was improved from the original U.S. Army
Gila Trail, deviating from the Gila River route through eastern
Arizona in search of gentler terrain. The road was named after
Captain Philip St. George Cooke, who constructed the route
for the Mormon Battalion's supply wagons. The general route
of Cooke's road became the East-West Territorial Road by 1909
(between Yuma and Phoenix), and the North-South Territorial
Road from Phoenix to Douglas via Tucson. In 1914, the Ocean
to Ocean Highway bridge was constructed in Yuma from Bureau
of Indian Affairs funds.
By 1922, the route of U.S. 80 was known as the Bankhead Highway,
and the Old Spanish Trail by 1923. In 1925, U.S. 80 was included
in the Federal 7% system of highways for Arizona, and denoted
as U.S. 80.
Between 1916 and 1924, U.S. 80 was realigned to more closely
follow the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks between Dome and
Buckeye. Prior to realignment, the road stayed on the north
side of the river, but was prone to washouts as it traversed
the mountains. The last piece of this project was the 1928
Gillespie Bridge, passing just south of Gillespie Dam over
the Gila River.
In 1920, the first sections of U.S. 80 in Phoenix were paved
in concrete, marking the first paved road in Arizona. By 1928,
the section through Telegraph Pass was constructed, and paved
by 1931.
In 1932, the Mule Pass section of U.S. 80 was reconstructed
and paved. The Mill Avenue Bridge (in Tempe) opened in 1931,
followed by Cienaga Creek east of Tucson in 1934 and the Stone
Avenue (Tucson) railroad underpass in 1936.
By 1939, the entire highway was paved, except for the section
between Florence and Oracle Junction. This became somewhat
controversial, and the entire highway was paved by 1945, after
reconstruction of some segments between the two cities.
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In 1948, Telegraph Pass was reconstructed
completely. In 1952, the new Mule Pass Tunnel opened, the
longest one in Arizona. In 1956, the Gillespie Bridge was
bypassed with a new high speed alignment east of the Gila
River, and the Cienaga Creek bridge was bypassed with a new
four lane expressway.
With the completion of Arizona 84 in 1930 and Arizona 86
in 1939, U.S. 80 became a secondary highway, as many thru
travellers took those state highways as shortcuts to eliminate
some of the extra distance traversed by U.S. 80.
With the advent of the Interstate system, Interstate 8 was
planned to overlay U.S. 80 from Yuma to Gila Bend. Interstate
10 was planned to overlay U.S. 80 from Tucson to Benson. U.S.
80 remained an extant highway until 1977, when it was decommissioned
from Yuma to Benson.
Between Wellton and Mohawk, U.S. 80 was never multiplexed
with Interstate 8. Arizona 85 replaced U.S. 80 between Gila
Bend and Phoenix.
In 1989, the remainder of U.S. 80 was decommissioned in Arizona.
This remaining section was renumbered to Arizona
80.
| Perspective from Old U.S. 80 between Gila
Bend and Buckeye
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| This owl points the way to old U.S. 80 just outside
Gila Bend. This marks the beginning of the 1924 alignment
that was bypassed in 1956. Photo taken July 15, 2007. |
| Old U.S. 80 meets Watermelon Road here. Photo taken
July 15, 2007. |
| This bridge over Rainbow Wash has seen better days.
Photo taken July 15, 2007.
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| The Rainbow Wash bridge was washed out many years ago.
Today, the road travels through the wash. Photo taken
July 15, 2007. |
| The Gillespie Bridge was completed in 1928. This two
lane steel truss bridge replaced the original 1921 crossing
of the Gila River (which crossed along Gillespie Dam).
Photo taken July 15, 2007. |
| Gillespie Dam was constructed in 1921 for flood control
and water storage, but washed out in 1993 in a large flood.
The dam has not been rebuilt. Photo taken July 15, 2007. |
| This is an overview of the Gillespie bridge from the
hillside above the bridge and dam. Photo taken July 15,
2007. |
| Historic U.S. 80 at Arlington School Road, in Arlington
north of the dam. Photo taken July 15, 2007. |
| This is a typical panorama along Historic U.S. 80 between
Arlington and Arizona 85. Photo taken July 15, 2007. |
| Historic U.S. 80 does not meet Arizona 85 directly anymore.
Travellers must follow Hazen Road to Arizona 85. Photo
taken July 15, 2007. |
| Directional signage to Arizona 85. Photo taken July
15, 2007. |
For additional photos of the Ocean to Ocean Highway Bridge, see Historic
U.S. 80 (California). For additional photos between Benson
and Douglas, see the Arizona 80
page.
Page Updated November 9, 2007.
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