Provincetown History Snippets: How Long is Route 6?

March 23, 2018

History

Route 6 was once the longest highway in the US, running 3,652 miles to Long Beach until California renumbered its roads. Now with its terminus in Bishop, CA, and at 3,205 miles, US Route 6 is still the longest contiguous highway in the nation, jutting through fourteen states on its way to the Left Coast. Properly named the Grand Army of the Republic (Memorial) Highway, “Route 6 runs uncertainly from nowhere to nowhere, scarcely to be followed from one end to the other, except by some devoted eccentric.” (George R. Stewart, U.S. 40: Cross Section of the United States of America)

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