Editing U.S. Route 101 (section)

===Establishment and early development===
[[File:101 Solana Beach.jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.75|Historic Route 101 in Solana Beach, California|alt=View from a sidewalk of several banners and signs with the U.S. 101 shield displayed in decorative fashion alongside an American flag pattern.]]

US&nbsp;101 was established as part of the initial United States Numbered Highway System that was developed by the [[American Association of State Highway Officials]] (AASHO) in the 1920s. The preliminary plan recommended in 1925 had the highway terminate at [[San Diego]] in the south and in [[Port Angeles, Washington]], to the north.<ref>{{cite report |author=Joint Board on Interstate Highways |date=October 30, 1925 |title=Report of Joint Board on Interstate Highways |page=57 |publisher=[[United States Department of Agriculture]] |oclc=71026428 |url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Report_of_Joint_Board_on_Interstate_Highways_October_30,_1925 |via=[[Wikisource]] |accessdate=July 26, 2023 |archive-date=November 14, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114145350/https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Report_of_Joint_Board_on_Interstate_Highways_October_30,_1925}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=December 23, 1925 |title=Two highways of California have military value |page=19 |work=The Sacramento Bee |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-sacramento-bee-two-highways-of-calif/128919157/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=July 26, 2023 |archive-date=July 27, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727041456/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-sacramento-bee-two-highways-of-calif/128919157/}}</ref> The final plan extended US&nbsp;101 within Washington around the east side of the Olympic Peninsula to Olympia<ref>{{cite news |date=January 1928 |title=United States Numbered Highways |page=34 |work=[[California Highways and Public Works]] |publisher=[[California Department of Public Works]] |url=https://dot-ca.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16436coll4/id/11001 |via=California Department of Transportation Library Digital Collections |accessdate=July 28, 2023 |archive-date=July 29, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230729021142/https://dot-ca.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16436coll4/id/11001}}</ref> and was adopted by the AASHO on November 11, 1926.<ref name="USH"/><ref>{{cite web |last=Weingroff |first=Richard F. |year=1997 |title=From names to numbers: the origins of the U.S. Numbered Highway System |url=https://highways.dot.gov/highway-history/general-highway-history/names-numbers-origins-us-numbered-highway-system |work=General Highway History |publisher=Federal Highway Administration |accessdate=July 26, 2023 |archive-date=July 27, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727041533/https://highways.dot.gov/highway-history/general-highway-history/names-numbers-origins-us-numbered-highway-system}}</ref> The first section of US&nbsp;101 to be signed in California was between San Diego and Los Angeles in January 1928, which was followed by the rest of the route later in the year.<ref>{{cite news |last=O'Brien |first=M. A. |date=May 1952 |title=History of United States Numbered Highways |pages=54–55 |volume=31 |issue=5–6 |work=California Highways and Public Works |publisher=California Department of Public Works |url=https://libraryarchives.metro.net/dpgtl/Californiahighways/chpw_1952_mayjun.pdf |via=[[Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority|Metro]] Transportation Research Library & Archive |accessdate=August 1, 2023 |archive-date=August 2, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802005147/https://libraryarchives.metro.net/dpgtl/Californiahighways/chpw_1952_mayjun.pdf}}</ref>

Portions of the coastal highway had already been constructed by the respective state governments and also followed foot and wagon routes developed in earlier centuries.<ref name="SDUT-2017">{{cite news |last=Garrick |first=David |date=August 20, 2017 |title=Original Highway 101, precursor to I-5, was first official north-south San Diego route |page=1 |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/politics/sd-me-101-history-20170818-story.html |work=[[The San Diego Union-Tribune]] |accessdate=July 26, 2023 |archive-date=July 27, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727040025/https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/politics/sd-me-101-history-20170818-story.html}}</ref> Among these was [[El Camino Real (California)|El Camino Real]] in California, which was formed by the [[Portolá expedition]] in 1769 and 1770 and connected the historic [[Spanish missions in California|Spanish missions]], pueblos, and [[presidio]]s.<ref>{{cite news |last=Lieu |first=Alex |date=August 6, 1995 |title=Ventura Freeway: Valley lifeline follows path taken by explorers |page=B3 |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-ventura-freeway-v/129058919/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=July 28, 2023 |archive-date=July 29, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230729040039/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-ventura-freeway-v/129058919/}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The California Missions Trail |url=https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=22722 |publisher=[[California State Parks]] |accessdate=July 28, 2023 |archive-date=July 26, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230726200321/http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=22722}}</ref> The California state government chose a section of El Camino Real in San Bruno in 1912 to become the first paved highway in the state.<ref>{{cite news |date=August 8, 1912 |title=State's $18,000,000 highway is started |page=5 |work=[[San Francisco Examiner]] |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-francisco-examiner-states-180/129284283/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=August 1, 2023 |archive-date=August 2, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802011235/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-francisco-examiner-states-180/129284283/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Clifford |first=Jim |date=November 6, 2017 |title=State highway system started in San Bruno |url=https://www.smdailyjournal.com/news/local/state-highway-system-started-in-san-bruno/article_22623e8c-c278-11e7-9cd4-83f2563fcd30.html |work=[[San Mateo Daily Journal]] |url-access=subscription |accessdate=August 1, 2023 |archive-date=August 2, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802011237/https://www.smdailyjournal.com/news/local/state-highway-system-started-in-san-bruno/article_22623e8c-c278-11e7-9cd4-83f2563fcd30.html}}</ref> The San Diego–San Francisco section of El Camino Real was incorporated into the multi-state [[Pacific Highway (U.S.)|Pacific Highway]] in the 1910s;<ref>{{cite map |last=Westgard |first=A. L. |date=September 1915 |title=Map of the Pacific Highway |scale=1:5,000,000 |publisher=[[National Highways Association]] |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/2021668510/ |via=[[Library of Congress]] |accessdate=August 1, 2023 |archive-date=August 2, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802011237/https://www.loc.gov/item/2021668510/}}</ref><ref>{{cite map |year=1917 |title=Automobile Highway Map of California and Western Nevada |scale=1:1,450,000 |publisher=[[California State Automobile Association]] |location=San Francisco |url=https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~289517~90061476 |via=David Rumsey Map Collection |accessdate=August 1, 2023 |archive-date=August 2, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802011235/https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~289517~90061476}}</ref> other sections of US&nbsp;101 in California used the existing Redwood Highway, which was constructed from 1917 to 1923,<ref name="Redwood">{{cite book |last=Bearss |first=Edwin C. |date=September 1, 1969 |title=Redwood National Park: History, Basic Data |chapter=Chapter IX. Trails, Roads, Ferries, and Freighters |pages=146–147 |publisher=National Park Service |location=Washington, D.C. |oclc=8364201 |chapter-url=https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/redw/history9b.htm |accessdate=August 1, 2023 |archive-date=October 28, 2021 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211028172009/https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/redw/history9b.htm}}</ref> and Coast Highway.<ref>{{cite news |date=January 1926 |title=Commission approves California routes in system of United States Highways |page=13 |volume=3 |issue=1 |work=California Highways and Public Works |publisher=California Department of Public Works |url=https://libraryarchives.metro.net/dpgtl/Californiahighways/ch_1926_jan.pdf |via=Metro Transportation Research Library & Archive |accessdate=August 1, 2023 |archive-date=August 2, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802011237/https://libraryarchives.metro.net/dpgtl/Californiahighways/ch_1926_jan.pdf}}</ref>

[[File:HUMBUG MOUNTAIN - NARA - 520143.jpg|thumb|right|A section of the Oregon Coast Highway near [[Humbug Mountain]], photographed in 1938|alt=Black-and-white photograph of a narrow road winding around the cliffs overlooking the ocean.]]

Construction of the Oregon Coast Highway began in 1921, two years after a state [[referendum]] that voted in favor of funding the development of highways with a one-cent [[gas tax]]. At the time, several short wagon roads and plank roads connected settlements on the coast, and overland travel primarily used beaches.{{sfnp|Gratreak|Stuart|Jones|Becker|2015|p=39}}<ref name="Husing">{{cite magazine |last=Husing |first=Onno |date=March 2008 |title=A History of U.S. Highway 101 |pages=3–4 |magazine=Oregon Coastal Notes |publisher=[[Oregon Coastal Zone Management Association]] |url=http://www.oczma.org/pdfs/U.S.Highway%20101%20Final.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150916191128/http://www.oczma.org/pdfs/U.S.Highway%20101%20Final.pdf |archive-date=September 16, 2015 |accessdate=July 26, 2023}}</ref> The highway was gradually constructed and paved in the 1920s, but a set of six [[ferry]] crossings remained. These ferries were operated by private companies until the state government acquired them in 1927 with plans to replace them with bridges.{{sfnp|Husing|2008|p=11}} The five major Oregon bridges on US&nbsp;101 were designed by state engineer [[Conde B. McCullough]] and opened by 1936 using funding from the federal government's [[New Deal]] programs. As automobile traffic on the Oregon Coast increased, other sections were realigned to avoid rugged terrain or bypassed with tunnels.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Hadlow |first=Robert W. |date=August 11, 2022 |title=US 101 (Oregon Coast Highway) |url=https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/highway_101_oregon_coast_highway_/ |encyclopedia=[[Oregon Encyclopedia]] |accessdate=July 26, 2023 |archive-date=May 18, 2021 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518150359/https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/highway_101_oregon_coast_highway_/}}</ref> The Oregon Coast Highway was declared complete on October 3, 1936, and cost $25&nbsp;million to construct (equivalent to ${{Format price|{{Inflation|US-GDP|25000000|1936}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US-GDP}} dollars).{{sfnp|Husing|2008|pp=14–15}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP}}

Washington completed the final sections of the Olympic Loop Highway between 1927 and 1931 for $11&nbsp;million (equivalent to ${{Format price|{{Inflation|US-GDP|11000000|1931}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US-GDP}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|US-GDP}}<ref>{{cite news |date=August 24, 1931 |title=Olympic Loop Highway completed; Big celebration Wednesday will signal opening |page=12 |work=The Seattle Times}}</ref> The project paved several existing sections of the state roads and also constructed {{convert|7|mi|km}} of new highway from the [[Queets River]] to Ruby Beach near [[Kalaloch, Washington|Kalaloch]]. Portions of US&nbsp;101 passed through lands that were later incorporated into Olympic National Park when it was established in 1938; under the [[National Park Service]], sections of the Crescent Lake Highway were widened and improved in 1949.<ref>{{cite web |title=Historic Highway US 101 |url=https://wsdot.wa.gov/construction-planning/protecting-environment/historic-highways/historic-highway-us-101 |publisher=Washington State Department of Transportation |accessdate=July 26, 2023 |archive-date=August 17, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230817210516/https://wsdot.wa.gov/construction-planning/protecting-environment/historic-highways/historic-highway-us-101}}</ref> The [[Washington State Highway Commission]] submitted an application to AASHO in 1955 to extend US&nbsp;101 northeast from Discovery Bay to [[Whidbey Island]] and [[Mount Vernon, Washington|Mount Vernon]], where it would terminate at [[U.S. Route 99|US&nbsp;99]].<ref>{{cite news |date=September 20, 1955 |title=Direct link between Camano, Whidbey islands is proposed |page=20 |work=The Everett Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-direct-link-between-cam/140326877/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=March 14, 2024 |archive-date=March 14, 2024 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240314203144/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-direct-link-between-cam/140326877/}}</ref> The proposal was rejected by AASHO for being too long of a detour and including a tolled ferry crossing.<ref>{{cite web |date=July 21, 1955 |title=An Application from the State Highway Department of Washington for the extension of U.S. Route No. 101 |pages=2–3, 8 |publisher=[[Washington State Highway Commission]], American Association of State Highway Officials |url=https://grmservices.grmims.com/vsearch/portal/public/na4/aashto/default |via=AASHTO Route Numbering Archive |accessdate=August 1, 2023 |archive-date=October 2, 2020 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201002030140/https://grmservices.grmims.com/vsearch/portal/public/na4/aashto/default}}</ref>