U.S. Route 11 in Maryland
Encyclopedia
U.S. Route 11 (US 11) is a part of the U.S. Highway System that runs from New Orleans, Louisiana
to Rouses Point, New York
. In Maryland
, the federal highway runs 12.83 miles (20.6 km) from the West Virginia
state line at the Potomac River
in Williamsport
north to the Pennsylvania
state line near Maugansville
. US 11 is the primary north–south surface highway in central Washington County
, connecting Hagerstown
with Williamsport to the south and Hagerstown Regional Airport
to the north. The federal highway was once a major long-distance highway, but that role has been assumed by Interstate 81
(I-81), which parallels US 11 not only in Maryland but for most of its course from Tennessee
to Upstate New York
. US 11 is maintained by the Maryland State Highway Administration
except for the municipally-maintained portions within the corporate limits of Williamsport and Hagerstown.
US 11 is the descendant of a trail blazed through the Great Appalachian Valley
in the 18th century. In the 19th century, this trail was upgraded to a pair of turnpikes, one from Williamsport to Hagerstown and the second from Hagerstown to the Pennsylvania state line. The highway was constructed in its modern form in the early 20th century, with the bridge across the Potomac River constructed in 1909 and the old turnpikes paved as all-weather roads by the nascent Maryland State Roads Commission in the 1910s. These highways and the streets of Hagerstown and Williamsport were designated Maryland's portion of US 11 in 1926. The federal highway was improved outside of the towns in the years surrounding 1930 and again around 1950. Since the completion of I-81 in two sections in the late 1950s and mid 1960s removed long-distance traffic from the highway, US 11 has seen its two major relocations: one that removed the highway from downtown Hagerstown and another required by expansion at Hagerstown Regional Airport.
. The bridge passes over Potomac Park and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park
. At the east end of the bridge, US 11 enters the town of Williamsport, where the highway is municipally-maintained. The federal highway makes a turn to the north, then makes a sharp turn to the east onto Potomac Street adjacent to the Williamsport Visitor Center of the historical park. Within the Williamsport Historic District
, US 11 intersects MD 68
(Conococheague Street) and MD 63
. MD 63 joins MD 68 in a concurrency on Conococheague Street to the south and US 11 on Potomac Street east to Artizan Street, where MD 63 heads north out of town. US 11 veers northeast and heads through a more suburban area of Williamsport. The federal highway leaves the town of Williamsport and becomes state-maintained immediately before expanding to a four-lane divided highway for its partial cloverleaf interchange with I-81 (Maryland Veterans Memorial Highway).
US 11 continues northeast as Virginia Avenue, a two-lane highway through residential subdivisions. The federal highway passes close to the historic home Tammany
and intersects Governor Lane Boulevard, which heads south through an industrial park. US 11 passes under I-70
with no access and enters the suburb of Halfway, where the highway crosses the Winchester and Western Railroad
at-grade and at an angle. The federal highway intersects both Massey Boulevard and Halfway Boulevard, which head northwest toward the Valley Mall
. US 11 continues into the city of Hagerstown, where the highway becomes municipally-maintained and enters an industrial area. The federal highway crosses Norfolk Southern Railway
's Hagerstown District rail line immediately before its intersection with Wilson Boulevard, which heads east. Virginia Avenue, the old alignment of US 11, continues north toward downtown Hagerstown, passing through the South Prospect Street Historic District
and passing by Hagerstown City Park
, which contains the Hager House and the Washington County Museum of Fine Arts
.
US 11 turns west onto Burhans Boulevard and immediately crosses over the Norfolk Southern rail line again. The federal highway curves to the north, paralleling the rail line, then crosses over the Winchester and Western rail line as its junction with the Norfork Southern line. US 11 continues north through a residential neighborhood before passing by the Hagerstown Roundhouse Museum and passing under CSX
's Lurgan Subdivision
just east of its wye with the Norfolk Southern line. At the intersection with Elgin Boulevard and Lanvale Street, US 11 turns east to remain on Burhans Boulevard and starts to parallel the CSX rail line. The federal highway and railroad curve to the north, where the highway intersects US 40
on the opposite side of the tracks from downtown Hagerstown. US 40 consists of a one-way pair
, Washington Street eastbound and Franklin Street westbound. Between the two directions of US 40, US 11 passes the historic Western Maryland Railway Station
, which is now the headquarters of the Hagerstown Police Department. North of US 40, US 11 intersects Salem Avenue, crosses CSX's Lurgan Branch
, and curves north away from CSX's Hanover Subdivision
, which turns to the east. Burhans Boulevard reaches its northern end at an oblique three-way intersection with Pennsylvania Avenue.
US 11 continues north on Pennsylvania Avenue, passing North Hagerstown High School
. State maintenance of the federal highway resumes and the highway's name changes to Middleburg Pike at Haven Road just before the highway leaves the city of Hagerstown. US 11 continues north past residential subdivisions in the suburbs of Fountain Head and Orchard Hills
. The federal highway passes a Volvo
manufacturing plant and intersects Maugans Avenue, which heads west to Maugansville. North of the intersection with Showalter Road, US 11 adjoins the property of Hagerstown Regional Airport. The federal highway curves to the northeast and passes through a tunnel under the airport's east–west runway. The federal highway curves back to the northwest through an industrial area before resuming its northward course to the Pennsylvania state line. US 11 enters Pennsylvania just south of the federal highway's intersection with PA 163
(Mason Dixon Road).
from Philadelphia south through the Great Appalachian Valley to Virginia
and North Carolina
. In the center of the Hagerstown Valley along the trail, German
immigrant Jonathan Hager
laid out his namesake town in 1762. In the 19th century, the Hagerstown and Middleburg Turnpike was constructed between Hagerstown and Middleburg, a settlement on the Pennsylvania side of the state line. In addition. the Williamsport and Hagerstown Turnpike was constructed between the town that sprung up at the Potomac River crossing and the county seat of Washington County. Starting in 1896, the Hagerstown Railway Company of Washington County operated an interurban
between Williamsport and Hagerstown adjacent to the turnpike. The streetcar suburb
of Halfway developed along the turnpike and trolley line at the midpoint between the two municipalities.
The first portion of modern US 11 to be constructed was the bridge over the Potomac River at Williamsport, which was financed and constructed by Washington County and completed in 1909. The new bridge, which became the only crossing between Cumberland and Washington, D.C. to survive the flood of March 1936, charged tolls from a tollgate at the West Virginia end of the bridge. The Maryland State Roads Commission later purchased the bridge in 1954 and removed the tolls in 1958. Both the Williamsport Pike and Middleburg Pike, their right-of-way now owned by the Maryland State Roads Commission, were paved by 1921. Those highways as well as Potomac Street in the town of Williamsport and the streets connecting the two former turnpikes within the city of Hagerstown—Virginia Avenue, Jonathan Street, and Pennsylvania Avenue—were designated Maryland's portion of US 11 in 1926.
The first upgrades to US 11 occurred when Williamsport Pike and Middleburg Pike were rebuilt and widened in the late 1920s and early 1930s, respectively. Williamsport Pike was rebuilt again in 1948, with the highway widened using the right-of-way of the Williamsport–Hagerstown interurban that had ceased service in 1947. By 1950, US 11 in Hagerstown followed a one-way pair: the northbound direction followed Summit Avenue and Jonathan Street between Virginia Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue and the southbound direction used Prospect Street through the downtown area. The first relief from long-distance traffic came to US 11 when the first section of I-81 was completed from US 40 to the Pennsylvania state line in 1958. Following the completion of I-81 from US 40 south to the Potomac River in 1966, US 11 became a highway mainly for local traffic. US 11's bridge across the Potomac River was rebuilt in 1979. In addition, the highway's name south of Hagerstown was changed from Williamsport Pike to Virginia Avenue around 1995.
Despite the construction of I-81, another bypass of downtown Hagerstown, Burhans Boulevard, was constructed in the 1960s. Burhans Boulevard was named for Winslow F. Burhans, the mayor of Hagerstown from 1953 to 1965 who was instrumental in elevating the tracks of the Western Maryland Railway
on the west side of downtown Hagerstown to eliminate a series of grade crossings. The boulevard was started in 1960 between Salem Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue. Construction was underway on the section between Virginia Avenue and Elgin Boulevard by 1962. Both sections were completed by 1965. Burhans Boulevard was completed around 1968 from Elgin Boulevard to Washington Street, from which the boulevard continued north paralleling the Western Maryland tracks along what had formerly been Foundry Street. At the southern end of Hagerstown, Burhans Boulevard, Virginia Avenue, and Wilson Boulevard were relocated to eliminate two grade crossings with the Norfolk Southern Railway tracks in 1983. Burhans Boulevard remained a regular municipal street until US 11 was rerouted away from downtown Hagerstown around 1987.
The other major relocation of US 11 occurred around Hagerstown Regional Airport. Due to the airport's east–west runway being extended eastward, US 11 was relocated by Washington County in 1964, resulting in a wide curve in what had been a straight highway. The portion of highway between Showalter Road and the Pennsylvania state line was subsequently county-maintained until 1972. Another extension of the east–west runway occurred between 2004 and 2007. For this extension, US 11 was relocated to a tunnel underneath the extended runway along the curved alignment in 2006.
.
{| class=wikitable
!Location
!Mile
!Destinations
!Notes
|-
|rowspan=4|Williamsport
|0.00
|
|Southern terminus of US 11 in Maryland; West Virginia
state line at Potomac River
|-
|0.62
|
|South end of concurrency with MD 63
|-
|0.75
|
|North end of concurrency with MD 63
|-
|1.67
|
|I-81 Exit 2
|-
|Halfway
|4.42
|Halfway Boulevard
|
|-
|rowspan=6|Hagerstown
|5.61
|Wilson Boulevard east / Virginia Avenue north
|US 11 turns west onto Burhans Boulevard; Virginia Avenue is old alignment of US 11
|-
|6.84
|Elgin Boulevard north / Lanvale Street west
|US 11 turns east to remain on Burhans Boulevard
|-
|7.27
|
|
|-
|7.37
|
|
|-
|7.48
|Church Street east / Salem Avenue west to
|
|-
|8.31
|Pennsylvania Avenue south
|US 11 continues north on Pennsylvania Avenue; Pennsylvania Avenue south is old alignment of US 11
|-
|rowspan=2|Fountainhead-Orchard Hills
|10.23
|Longmeadow Road east / Maugans Avenue west – Maugansville
|
|-
|11.38
|Showalter Road west – Hagerstown Regional Airport
|
|-
|
|12.83
|
|Northern terminus of US 11 in Maryland; Pennsylvania
state line
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
to Rouses Point, New York
Rouses Point, New York
Rouses Point is a village in Clinton County, New York, United States, along the 45th parallel. The population was 2,209 at the 2010 census. The village is named after Jacques Rouse, an early settler....
. In 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...
, the federal highway runs 12.83 miles (20.6 km) from the West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
state line at the Potomac River
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
in Williamsport
Williamsport, Maryland
Williamsport is a town in Washington County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,868 at the 2000 census and 2,278 as of July 2008.-Geography: Williamsport is located at ....
north to the Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
state line near Maugansville
Maugansville, Maryland
Maugansville is a census-designated place in Washington County, Maryland, United States. The population was 2,295 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Maugansville is located at ....
. US 11 is the primary north–south surface highway in central 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...
, connecting 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...
with Williamsport to the south and Hagerstown Regional Airport
Hagerstown Regional Airport
Hagerstown Regional Airport , also known as Richard A. Henson Field, is a county-owned public-use airport in Washington County, Maryland, United States. It is located four nautical miles north of the central business district of Hagerstown, about a half mile from the Maryland/Pennsylvania border....
to the north. The federal highway was once a major long-distance highway, but that role has been assumed by Interstate 81
Interstate 81 in Maryland
Interstate 81 is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs from Dandridge, Tennessee to Fishers Landing, New York. In Maryland, the Interstate highway runs from the West Virginia state line at the Potomac River in Williamsport north to the Pennsylvania state line near Maugansville...
(I-81), which parallels US 11 not only in Maryland but for most of its course from Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
to Upstate New York
Upstate New York
Upstate New York is the region of the U.S. state of New York that is located north of the core of the New York metropolitan area.-Definition:There is no clear or official boundary between Upstate New York and Downstate New York...
. US 11 is maintained by the Maryland State Highway Administration
Maryland State Highway Administration
The Maryland State Highway Administration is the state agency responsible for maintaining Maryland numbered highways outside of Baltimore City...
except for the municipally-maintained portions within the corporate limits of Williamsport and Hagerstown.
US 11 is the descendant of a trail blazed through the Great Appalachian Valley
Great Appalachian Valley
The Great Valley, also called the Great Appalachian Valley or Great Valley Region, is one of the major landform features of eastern North America. It is a gigantic trough — a chain of valley lowlands — and the central feature of the Appalachian Mountain system...
in the 18th century. In the 19th century, this trail was upgraded to a pair of turnpikes, one from Williamsport to Hagerstown and the second from Hagerstown to the Pennsylvania state line. The highway was constructed in its modern form in the early 20th century, with the bridge across the Potomac River constructed in 1909 and the old turnpikes paved as all-weather roads by the nascent Maryland State Roads Commission in the 1910s. These highways and the streets of Hagerstown and Williamsport were designated Maryland's portion of US 11 in 1926. The federal highway was improved outside of the towns in the years surrounding 1930 and again around 1950. Since the completion of I-81 in two sections in the late 1950s and mid 1960s removed long-distance traffic from the highway, US 11 has seen its two major relocations: one that removed the highway from downtown Hagerstown and another required by expansion at Hagerstown Regional Airport.
Route description
US 11 begins at the West Virginia state line on the south bank of the Potomac River. The highway crosses the Potomac River on a two-lane bridge just south of its confluence with Conococheague CreekConococheague Creek
Conococheague Creek, a tributary of the Potomac River, is a free-flowing stream that originates in Pennsylvania and empties into the Potomac River near Williamsport, Maryland. It is in length, with in Pennsylvania and in Maryland...
. The bridge passes over Potomac Park and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park
The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park is a United States National Historical Park located in the District of Columbia and the states of Maryland and West Virginia. The park was established as a National Monument in 1961 by President Dwight D...
. At the east end of the bridge, US 11 enters the town of Williamsport, where the highway is municipally-maintained. The federal highway makes a turn to the north, then makes a sharp turn to the east onto Potomac Street adjacent to the Williamsport Visitor Center of the historical park. Within the Williamsport Historic District
Williamsport Historic District
Williamsport Historic District is a national historic district at Williamsport, Washington County, Maryland, United States. The district consists of the historic core of this town. Almost 20 percent of the buildings in the district date from the late 18th and early 19th centuries. They are...
, US 11 intersects 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...
(Conococheague Street) and 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...
. MD 63 joins MD 68 in a concurrency on Conococheague Street to the south and US 11 on Potomac Street east to Artizan Street, where MD 63 heads north out of town. US 11 veers northeast and heads through a more suburban area of Williamsport. The federal highway leaves the town of Williamsport and becomes state-maintained immediately before expanding to a four-lane divided highway for its partial cloverleaf interchange with I-81 (Maryland Veterans Memorial Highway).
US 11 continues northeast as Virginia Avenue, a two-lane highway through residential subdivisions. The federal highway passes close to the historic home Tammany
Tammany (Williamsport, Maryland)
Tammany, or Mount Tammany, is a historic home located at Williamsport, Washington County, Maryland, United States. It is a two-part brick structure resting on low fieldstone foundations. The main block is a two-story, three-bay structure with a side hall entrance. Attached to its north gable wall...
and intersects Governor Lane Boulevard, which heads south through an industrial park. US 11 passes under I-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...
with no access and enters the suburb of Halfway, where the highway crosses the Winchester and Western Railroad
Winchester and Western Railroad
The Winchester and Western Railroad is a shortline railroad operating from Gore through Winchester, Virginia and West Virginia to Hagerstown, Maryland. It also operates several lines in southern New Jersey, connecting to Conrail Shared Assets Operations at Millville and Vineland...
at-grade and at an angle. The federal highway intersects both Massey Boulevard and Halfway Boulevard, which head northwest toward the Valley Mall
Valley Mall (Hagerstown)
Valley Mall is an American shopping mall serving Hagerstown, Western Maryland and nearby communities in West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Valley Mall is one of two indoor malls in the Hagerstown Metropolitan Area...
. US 11 continues into the city of Hagerstown, where the highway becomes municipally-maintained and enters an industrial area. The federal highway crosses Norfolk Southern Railway
Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada...
's Hagerstown District rail line immediately before its intersection with Wilson Boulevard, which heads east. Virginia Avenue, the old alignment of US 11, continues north toward downtown Hagerstown, passing through the South Prospect Street Historic District
South Prospect Street Historic District
South Prospect Street Historic District is a national historic district at Hagerstown, Washington County, Maryland, United States. The district is a 19th and early 20th century residential neighborhood which was once the address of many of Hagerstown's leading citizens...
and passing by Hagerstown City Park
Hagerstown City Park
Hagerstown City Park is a public urban park just southwest of the central business district of Hagerstown, Maryland, United States. The park is located at the junction of Virginia Avenue, Key Street, Walnut Street, Prospect Street, and Memorial Boulevard....
, which contains the Hager House and the Washington County Museum of Fine Arts
Washington County Museum of Fine Arts
Washington County Museum of Fine Arts is an art museum located in Hagerstown, Maryland, United States. The building is located off Park Circle and serves as a centerpiece in Hagerstown City Park. The museum was donated in 1929 by Mr. and Mrs. William Singer, Jr. It was completed in 1931 and two...
.
US 11 turns west onto Burhans Boulevard and immediately crosses over the Norfolk Southern rail line again. The federal highway curves to the north, paralleling the rail line, then crosses over the Winchester and Western rail line as its junction with the Norfork Southern line. US 11 continues north through a residential neighborhood before passing by the Hagerstown Roundhouse Museum and passing under CSX
CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
's Lurgan Subdivision
Lurgan Subdivision
The Lurgan Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and West Virginia. The line runs from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, south to Hagerstown, Maryland, and west to Cherry Run, West Virginia, along a former Western Maryland...
just east of its wye with the Norfolk Southern line. At the intersection with Elgin Boulevard and Lanvale Street, US 11 turns east to remain on Burhans Boulevard and starts to parallel the CSX rail line. The federal highway and railroad curve to the north, where the highway intersects US 40
U.S. Route 40 in Maryland
U.S. Route 40 in the U.S. state of Maryland runs from western Maryland to Cecil County in the state's northeastern corner. With a total length of over , it is the longest numbered highway in Maryland. Almost half of the road overlaps with Interstate 68 or Interstate 70, while the old alignment...
on the opposite side of the tracks from downtown Hagerstown. US 40 consists of a one-way pair
One-way pair
A one-way pair, one-way couple, or just couplet is a pair of parallel, usually one-way streets that carry opposite directions of a signed route or major traffic flow, or sometimes opposite directions of a bus or streetcar route....
, Washington Street eastbound and Franklin Street westbound. Between the two directions of US 40, US 11 passes the historic Western Maryland Railway Station
Western Maryland Railway Station (Hagerstown, Maryland)
Western Maryland Railway Station is a historic railway station in Hagerstown, Washington County, Maryland. It was built in 1913 as a stop for the Western Maryland Railway. It is a -story hip roof brick building, reflecting the influence of the Commercial Style of the early 20th century...
, which is now the headquarters of the Hagerstown Police Department. North of US 40, US 11 intersects Salem Avenue, crosses CSX's Lurgan Branch
Lurgan Branch
The Lurgan Branch is a railroad line owned and operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania and Maryland. The line runs from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania southwest to Hagerstown, Maryland along former Reading Company and Pennsylvania Railroad lines...
, and curves north away from CSX's Hanover Subdivision
Hanover Subdivision
The Hanover Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of Maryland and Pennsylvania. The line runs from Baltimore, Maryland west to Hagerstown, Maryland along several former Western Maryland Railway lines...
, which turns to the east. Burhans Boulevard reaches its northern end at an oblique three-way intersection with Pennsylvania Avenue.
US 11 continues north on Pennsylvania Avenue, passing North Hagerstown High School
North Hagerstown High School
North Hagerstown High School is located at 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, in Hagerstown, Maryland, United States. The current principal is Valerie Novak, a former principal of Northern Middle School. The school's colors are red, white, and black. The school is part of the Washington County Public...
. State maintenance of the federal highway resumes and the highway's name changes to Middleburg Pike at Haven Road just before the highway leaves the city of Hagerstown. US 11 continues north past residential subdivisions in the suburbs of Fountain Head and Orchard Hills
Fountainhead-Orchard Hills, Maryland
Fountainhead-Orchard Hills is a census-designated place in Washington County, Maryland, USA. The population was 3,844 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Fountainhead-Orchard Hills is located at ....
. The federal highway passes a Volvo
Volvo
AB Volvo is a Swedish builder of commercial vehicles, including trucks, buses and construction equipment. Volvo also supplies marine and industrial drive systems, aerospace components and financial services...
manufacturing plant and intersects Maugans Avenue, which heads west to Maugansville. North of the intersection with Showalter Road, US 11 adjoins the property of Hagerstown Regional Airport. The federal highway curves to the northeast and passes through a tunnel under the airport's east–west runway. The federal highway curves back to the northwest through an industrial area before resuming its northward course to the Pennsylvania state line. US 11 enters Pennsylvania just south of the federal highway's intersection with PA 163
Pennsylvania Route 163
Pennsylvania Route 163 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Known for most of its length as Mason Dixon Road, the state highway runs from the Maryland state line, where the highway continues south as Maryland Route 63 , east to U.S...
(Mason Dixon Road).
History
US 11 is the descendent of a trail blazed from Pennsylvania following the establishment of Evan Watkins's ferry across the Potomac River at the mouth of Conococheague Creek in 1744. This trail became part of the Great Wagon RoadGreat Wagon Road
The Great Wagon Road was a colonial American improved trail transiting the Great Appalachian Valley from Pennsylvania to North Carolina, and from there to Georgia....
from Philadelphia south through the Great Appalachian Valley to Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
. In the center of the Hagerstown Valley along the trail, German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
immigrant Jonathan Hager
Jonathan Hager
Jonathan Hager is the founder of Hagerstown, Maryland, United States. He was born in Germany and fought in the French and Indian War serving out of Fort Frederick.-History:...
laid out his namesake town in 1762. In the 19th century, the Hagerstown and Middleburg Turnpike was constructed between Hagerstown and Middleburg, a settlement on the Pennsylvania side of the state line. In addition. the Williamsport and Hagerstown Turnpike was constructed between the town that sprung up at the Potomac River crossing and the county seat of Washington County. Starting in 1896, the Hagerstown Railway Company of Washington County operated an interurban
Interurban
An interurban, also called a radial railway in parts of Canada, is a type of electric passenger railroad; in short a hybrid between tram and train. Interurbans enjoyed widespread popularity in the first three decades of the twentieth century in North America. Until the early 1920s, most roads were...
between Williamsport and Hagerstown adjacent to the turnpike. The streetcar suburb
Streetcar suburb
A streetcar suburb is a residential community whose growth and development was strongly shaped by the use of streetcar lines as a primary means of transportation. Early suburbs were served by horsecars, but by the late 19th century cable cars and electric streetcars, or trams, were used, allowing...
of Halfway developed along the turnpike and trolley line at the midpoint between the two municipalities.
The first portion of modern US 11 to be constructed was the bridge over the Potomac River at Williamsport, which was financed and constructed by Washington County and completed in 1909. The new bridge, which became the only crossing between Cumberland and Washington, D.C. to survive the flood of March 1936, charged tolls from a tollgate at the West Virginia end of the bridge. The Maryland State Roads Commission later purchased the bridge in 1954 and removed the tolls in 1958. Both the Williamsport Pike and Middleburg Pike, their right-of-way now owned by the Maryland State Roads Commission, were paved by 1921. Those highways as well as Potomac Street in the town of Williamsport and the streets connecting the two former turnpikes within the city of Hagerstown—Virginia Avenue, Jonathan Street, and Pennsylvania Avenue—were designated Maryland's portion of US 11 in 1926.
The first upgrades to US 11 occurred when Williamsport Pike and Middleburg Pike were rebuilt and widened in the late 1920s and early 1930s, respectively. Williamsport Pike was rebuilt again in 1948, with the highway widened using the right-of-way of the Williamsport–Hagerstown interurban that had ceased service in 1947. By 1950, US 11 in Hagerstown followed a one-way pair: the northbound direction followed Summit Avenue and Jonathan Street between Virginia Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue and the southbound direction used Prospect Street through the downtown area. The first relief from long-distance traffic came to US 11 when the first section of I-81 was completed from US 40 to the Pennsylvania state line in 1958. Following the completion of I-81 from US 40 south to the Potomac River in 1966, US 11 became a highway mainly for local traffic. US 11's bridge across the Potomac River was rebuilt in 1979. In addition, the highway's name south of Hagerstown was changed from Williamsport Pike to Virginia Avenue around 1995.
Despite the construction of I-81, another bypass of downtown Hagerstown, Burhans Boulevard, was constructed in the 1960s. Burhans Boulevard was named for Winslow F. Burhans, the mayor of Hagerstown from 1953 to 1965 who was instrumental in elevating the tracks of the Western Maryland Railway
Western Maryland Railway
The Western Maryland Railway was an American Class I railroad which operated in Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. It was primarily a coal hauling and freight railroad, with a small passenger train operation. The WM became part of the Chessie System in 1973 and ceased operating its lines...
on the west side of downtown Hagerstown to eliminate a series of grade crossings. The boulevard was started in 1960 between Salem Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue. Construction was underway on the section between Virginia Avenue and Elgin Boulevard by 1962. Both sections were completed by 1965. Burhans Boulevard was completed around 1968 from Elgin Boulevard to Washington Street, from which the boulevard continued north paralleling the Western Maryland tracks along what had formerly been Foundry Street. At the southern end of Hagerstown, Burhans Boulevard, Virginia Avenue, and Wilson Boulevard were relocated to eliminate two grade crossings with the Norfolk Southern Railway tracks in 1983. Burhans Boulevard remained a regular municipal street until US 11 was rerouted away from downtown Hagerstown around 1987.
The other major relocation of US 11 occurred around Hagerstown Regional Airport. Due to the airport's east–west runway being extended eastward, US 11 was relocated by Washington County in 1964, resulting in a wide curve in what had been a straight highway. The portion of highway between Showalter Road and the Pennsylvania state line was subsequently county-maintained until 1972. Another extension of the east–west runway occurred between 2004 and 2007. For this extension, US 11 was relocated to a tunnel underneath the extended runway along the curved alignment in 2006.
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...
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!Location
!Mile
!Destinations
!Notes
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|rowspan=4|Williamsport
Williamsport, Maryland
Williamsport is a town in Washington County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,868 at the 2000 census and 2,278 as of July 2008.-Geography: Williamsport is located at ....
|0.00
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|Southern terminus of US 11 in Maryland; West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
state line at Potomac River
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
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|0.62
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|South end of concurrency with MD 63
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|0.75
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|North end of concurrency with MD 63
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|1.67
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|I-81 Exit 2
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|Halfway
Halfway, Maryland
Halfway is a census-designated place in Washington County, Maryland, United States. The population was 10,065 at the 2000 census. It is named for being halfway between Hagerstown and Williamsport...
|4.42
|Halfway Boulevard
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|rowspan=6|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...
|5.61
|Wilson Boulevard east / Virginia Avenue north
|US 11 turns west onto Burhans Boulevard; Virginia Avenue is old alignment of US 11
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|6.84
|Elgin Boulevard north / Lanvale Street west
|US 11 turns east to remain on Burhans Boulevard
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|7.27
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|7.37
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|7.48
|Church Street east / Salem Avenue west to
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|8.31
|Pennsylvania Avenue south
|US 11 continues north on Pennsylvania Avenue; Pennsylvania Avenue south is old alignment of US 11
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|rowspan=2|Fountainhead-Orchard Hills
Fountainhead-Orchard Hills, Maryland
Fountainhead-Orchard Hills is a census-designated place in Washington County, Maryland, USA. The population was 3,844 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Fountainhead-Orchard Hills is located at ....
|10.23
|Longmeadow Road east / Maugans Avenue west – Maugansville
Maugansville, Maryland
Maugansville is a census-designated place in Washington County, Maryland, United States. The population was 2,295 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Maugansville is located at ....
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|11.38
|Showalter Road west – Hagerstown Regional Airport
Hagerstown Regional Airport
Hagerstown Regional Airport , also known as Richard A. Henson Field, is a county-owned public-use airport in Washington County, Maryland, United States. It is located four nautical miles north of the central business district of Hagerstown, about a half mile from the Maryland/Pennsylvania border....
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|12.83
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|Northern terminus of US 11 in Maryland; Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
state line