Maryland Route 65
Encyclopedia
Maryland Route 65 is a state highway
in the U.S. state
of Maryland
. Known for most of its length as Sharpsburg Pike, the state highway runs 11.75 miles (18.9 km) from MD 34
in Sharpsburg
north to the southern end of Hagerstown
, where the highway continues north as Potomac Street toward the downtown area. MD 65 connects central and southern Washington County
and serves as the primary access point to Antietam National Battlefield
. The state highway, which was originally laid out as a turnpike, was constructed in its modern form in the mid 1920s. MD 65 was rebuilt in the early 1950s and relocated through Antietam National Battlefield by the early 1980s.
across Antietam Creek
. MD 65 leaves Sharpsburg and heads north as two-lane Sharpsburg Pike through Antietam National Battlefield, where the highway curves to the northwest and back north while the old alignment of MD 65, Dunker Church Road, continues straight to serve as the main entrance to the battlefield park. MD 65 continues north through farmland and scattered residences to the village of Fairplay
, where the state highway intersects MD 63
(Spielman Road). North of the intersection of MD 68
(Lappans Road) in Lappans, the state highway passes Maryland Correctional Institution - Hagerstown. MD 65 passes between residential subdivisions in the community of St. James
before reaching a partial cloverleaf interchange with Interstate 70
(Eisenhower Memorial Highway). The state highway temporarily expands to a four-lane divided highway through the interchange, south of which the state highway intersects Colonel Henry K. Douglas Drive, which is unsigned
MD 65A. North of I-70, MD 65 passes Prime Outlets Hagerstown. The state highway enters the city of Hagerstown just north of Oak Ridge Drive. MD 65 passes South Hagerstown High School
before reaching its northern terminus at an arbitrary point adjacent to the high school's baseball field. The roadway continues north as Potomac Street, passing Rose Hill Cemetery, the Houses At 16-22 East Lee Street
, and the Elliot-Bester House
on its way toward downtown Hagerstown.
.
{|class=wikitable
!Location
!Mile
!Destinations
!Notes
|-
|Sharpsburg
|0.00
|
|Southern terminus
|-
|Fairplay
|5.72
|
|
|-
|Lappans
|6.77
|
|
|-
|rowspan=2|Hagerstown
|10.55
|
|I-70 Exit 29
|-
|11.75
|Potomac Street north
|Northern terminus
's Hagerstown shop, and the Hagerstown barracks of the Maryland State Police
. MD 65A is named for Henry Kyd Douglas, a staff officer to Stonewall Jackson
in the Army of Northern Virginia
who wrote the memoir I Rode With Stonewall. The highway was built concurrent with the construction of the new MVA service center in 1988 to provide an new connection between the police barracks and SHA shop and MD 65. The old access road was subsumed by the construction of a new ramp from eastbound I-70 to southbound MD 65 around 1995. The access road received the MD 65A designation in 2002.
State highway
State highway, state road or state route can refer to one of three related concepts, two of them related to a state or provincial government in a country that is divided into states or provinces :#A...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. Known for most of its length as Sharpsburg Pike, the state highway runs 11.75 miles (18.9 km) from MD 34
Maryland Route 34
Maryland Route 34 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known for most of its length as Shepherdstown Pike, the state highway begins at the West Virginia state line at the Potomac River, where the highway continues south as West Virginia Route 480 through Shepherdstown. The state...
in Sharpsburg
Sharpsburg, Maryland
Sharpsburg is a town in Washington County, Maryland, United States, approximately south of Hagerstown. The population was 691 at the 2000 census....
north to the southern end of Hagerstown
Hagerstown, Maryland
Hagerstown is a city in northwestern Maryland, United States. It is the county seat of Washington County, and, by many definitions, the largest city in a region known as Western Maryland. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2010 census was 39,662, and the population of the...
, where the highway continues north as Potomac Street toward the downtown area. MD 65 connects central and southern Washington County
Washington County, Maryland
Washington County is a county located in the western part of the U.S. state of Maryland, bordering southern Pennsylvania to the north, northern Virginia to the south, and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia to the south and west. As of the 2010 Census, its population is 147,430...
and serves as the primary access point to Antietam National Battlefield
Antietam National Battlefield
Antietam National Battlefield is a National Park Service protected area along Antietam Creek in Sharpsburg, Maryland which commemorates the American Civil War Battle of Antietam that occurred on September 17, 1862...
. The state highway, which was originally laid out as a turnpike, was constructed in its modern form in the mid 1920s. MD 65 was rebuilt in the early 1950s and relocated through Antietam National Battlefield by the early 1980s.
Route description
MD 65 begins at an intersection with MD 34 (Main Street) in the town of Sharpsburg. Church Street continues south toward Burnside's BridgeBurnside's Bridge
Burnside's Bridge is a landmark on the Antietam National Battlefield near Sharpsburg, Maryland. Crossing over Antietam Creek, the bridge played a key role in the September 1862 Battle of Antietam during the American Civil War when a small number of Confederate soldiers from Georgia for several...
across Antietam Creek
Antietam Creek
Antietam Creek is a tributary of the Potomac River located in south central Pennsylvania and western Maryland in the United States, a region known as the Hagerstown Valley...
. MD 65 leaves Sharpsburg and heads north as two-lane Sharpsburg Pike through Antietam National Battlefield, where the highway curves to the northwest and back north while the old alignment of MD 65, Dunker Church Road, continues straight to serve as the main entrance to the battlefield park. MD 65 continues north through farmland and scattered residences to the village of Fairplay
Fairplay, Maryland
Fairplay is an unincorporated community not considered as a census-designated place in Washington County, Maryland, United States. It is sometimes recognized along with neighboring Tilghmanton as Fairplay-Tilghmanton; the two communities share a post office as well as a fire company...
, where the state highway intersects MD 63
Maryland Route 63
Maryland Route 63 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from MD 65 in Fairplay north to the Pennsylvania state line near Cearfoss, where the highway continues as Pennsylvania Route 163 . MD 63 is an L-shaped route that passes through central Washington County...
(Spielman Road). North of the intersection of MD 68
Maryland Route 68
Maryland Route 68 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from U.S. Route 40 in Clear Spring east to US 40 Alternate in Boonsboro. MD 68 crosses central Washington County to the south of Hagerstown, connecting Clear Spring and Boonsboro with Williamsport, where...
(Lappans Road) in Lappans, the state highway passes Maryland Correctional Institution - Hagerstown. MD 65 passes between residential subdivisions in the community of St. James
St. James, Maryland
St. James is a census-designated place in Washington County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,657 at the 2000 census. It is also the home of St. James School, Hagerstown, a small, Episcopalian, boarding school.-Geography:St...
before reaching a partial cloverleaf interchange with Interstate 70
Interstate 70 in Maryland
Interstate 70 is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs from Cove Fort, Utah to Baltimore, Maryland. In Maryland, the Interstate Highway runs from the Pennsylvania state line in Hancock east to the Interstate's eastern terminus near its junction with I-695 at a park and ride in...
(Eisenhower Memorial Highway). The state highway temporarily expands to a four-lane divided highway through the interchange, south of which the state highway intersects Colonel Henry K. Douglas Drive, which is unsigned
Unsigned highway
An unsigned highway is a highway that has been assigned a route number, but does not bear conventional road markings that would normally be used to identify the route with that number...
MD 65A. North of I-70, MD 65 passes Prime Outlets Hagerstown. The state highway enters the city of Hagerstown just north of Oak Ridge Drive. MD 65 passes South Hagerstown High School
South Hagerstown High School
South Hagerstown High School is located at 1101 South Potomac Street, in Hagerstown, Maryland, United States. The current principal is Richard Akers. The school is part of the Washington County Public Schools system. It enrolls 1280 Students and School day is 8:45 to 3:30. The size is 163,959...
before reaching its northern terminus at an arbitrary point adjacent to the high school's baseball field. The roadway continues north as Potomac Street, passing Rose Hill Cemetery, the Houses At 16-22 East Lee Street
Houses At 16-22 East Lee Street
Houses At 16-22 East Lee Street is a block of historic homes located at Hagerstown, Washington County, Maryland, United States. It consists of a group of five, -story frame rowhouses. The building rests on a brick and stone foundation and has two inner open passageways leading from the street to...
, and the Elliot-Bester House
Elliot-Bester House
Elliot-Bester House is a historic home located in Hagerstown, Washington County, Maryland, United States. It is a two-story brick dwelling, painted yellow and trimmed with black and white. The home is associated with Commodore Jesse D...
on its way toward downtown Hagerstown.
History
The predecessor highway of MD 65 was the 19th century Hagerstown and Sharpsburg Turnpike. The first section of modern MD 65 was paved from Hagerstown to a point between Lappans and Fairplay around 1923. The remainder of the highway was completed south to Sharpsburg in 1926. MD 65 was extended south along Church Street and Burnside Bridge Road to Burnside's Bridge between 1930 and 1933. By 1961, MD 65's southern terminus was rolled back to MD 34. MD 65 was rebuilt and widened from Sharpsburg to Hagerstown in 1952 and 1953. MD 65's interchange with I-70 opened in 1968 when I-70 was completed from I-81 east to US 40. The interchange originally had two straight ramps on the north side of the interchange and two loop ramps on the south side; a straight ramp from eastbound I-70 to southbound MD 65 was added around 1995. MD 65 was placed on a new alignment through Antietam National Battlefield by 1981.Junction list
The entire route is in Washington CountyWashington County, Maryland
Washington County is a county located in the western part of the U.S. state of Maryland, bordering southern Pennsylvania to the north, northern Virginia to the south, and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia to the south and west. As of the 2010 Census, its population is 147,430...
.
{|class=wikitable
!Location
!Mile
!Destinations
!Notes
|-
|Sharpsburg
Sharpsburg, Maryland
Sharpsburg is a town in Washington County, Maryland, United States, approximately south of Hagerstown. The population was 691 at the 2000 census....
|0.00
|
|Southern terminus
|-
|Fairplay
Fairplay, Maryland
Fairplay is an unincorporated community not considered as a census-designated place in Washington County, Maryland, United States. It is sometimes recognized along with neighboring Tilghmanton as Fairplay-Tilghmanton; the two communities share a post office as well as a fire company...
|5.72
|
|
|-
|Lappans
|6.77
|
|
|-
|rowspan=2|Hagerstown
Hagerstown, Maryland
Hagerstown is a city in northwestern Maryland, United States. It is the county seat of Washington County, and, by many definitions, the largest city in a region known as Western Maryland. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2010 census was 39,662, and the population of the...
|10.55
|
|I-70 Exit 29
|-
|11.75
|Potomac Street north
|Northern terminus
Auxiliary route
MD 65A is the designation for Colonel Henry K. Douglas Drive, a 0.35 mile (0.563269 km) spur west from MD 65 just south of I-70. The state highway provides access to the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration's (MVA) Hagerstown center, the Maryland State Highway AdministrationMaryland State Highway Administration
The Maryland State Highway Administration is the state agency responsible for maintaining Maryland numbered highways outside of Baltimore City...
's Hagerstown shop, and the Hagerstown barracks of the Maryland State Police
Maryland State Police
The Maryland State Police is the official state police force of the state of Maryland. The Maryland State Police is headquartered at 1201 Reisterstown Road in the Pikesville CDP in unincorporated Baltimore County.-Organizational structure:...
. MD 65A is named for Henry Kyd Douglas, a staff officer to Stonewall Jackson
Stonewall Jackson
ຄຽשת״ׇׂׂׂׂ֣|birth_place= Clarksburg, Virginia |death_place=Guinea Station, Virginia|placeofburial=Stonewall Jackson Memorial CemeteryLexington, Virginia|placeofburial_label= Place of burial|image=...
in the Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...
who wrote the memoir I Rode With Stonewall. The highway was built concurrent with the construction of the new MVA service center in 1988 to provide an new connection between the police barracks and SHA shop and MD 65. The old access road was subsumed by the construction of a new ramp from eastbound I-70 to southbound MD 65 around 1995. The access road received the MD 65A designation in 2002.