Route 58 is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Connecticut connecting the towns of Fairfield and Bethel. Route 58 is 18.58 miles (29.90 km) long and is one of the primary routes to the downtown Danbury area via Routes 302 and 53.
 Route 58 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Map of Fairfield County in southwestern Connecticut with Route 58 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by CTDOT | ||||
| Length | 18.58 mi[1] (29.90 km) | |||
| Existed | 1932–present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end |  US 1 in Fairfield | |||
  Route 15 / Merritt Parkway in Fairfield | ||||
| North end |  Route 302 in Bethel | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | Connecticut | |||
| Counties | Fairfield | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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Route description
editRoute 58 officially begins at U.S. Route 1 in Fairfield, traveling for about 1.0-mile (1.6 km) on Tunxis Hill Road up to the Black Rock Turnpike. Route 58 continues northward along the Black Rock Turnpike, passing through the towns of Easton and Redding. There is an interchange with the Merritt Parkway in Fairfield. Within Easton, Route 58 can also go by the name "Black Rock Road" as well as "Black Rock Turnpike." Route 58 passes by two reservoirs (Hemlock Reservoir and Aspetuck Reservoir) that supply the Greater Bridgeport area with much of its drinking water. On crossing into the town of Bethel, Route 58 runs along "Putnam Park Road", ending at Route 302.[2]
Black Rock Turnpike continues south after Route 58 separates from it in Fairfield. It ends at a junction between U.S. Route 1 and Interstate 95. This portion is designated as State Road 732 and is 1.05 miles (1.69 km) long.
A 3.1-mile (5.0 km) section in Easton near the Hemlock Reservoir is a designated scenic highway.
History
editOn April 25, 1777, during the Revolutionary War, British soldiers under the command of General William Tryon marched up the Redding Road, which paralleled present-day Route 58 south of Easton center and ran along Route 58 north of Easton center, on their way to Danbury to destroy homes, warehouses and ammunition stores as part of the Danbury Raid.
In May 1797, the northern portion of Redding Road was chartered as the Fairfield, Weston, and Redding Turnpike. The turnpike company improved the road from Easton village through Redding Ridge into Bethel (then a part of Danbury). It ran from Easton center along modern Route 58 then along Sunset Hill Road and Hoyts Hill Road. In May 1832,[3] the road from Black Rock harbor to Easton village was chartered as a public toll road known as the Black Rock and Weston Turnpike, or more commonly as just the Black Rock Turnpike. The old road ran north up to the Branch Turnpike (Route 136) and used the Branch Turnpike to reach Easton.[4] Both turnpike roads are collectively known as Black Rock Turnpike today.
In the 1922, the Bridgeport to Danbury road became a state road and was known as State Highway 124. Highway 124 uses a newer alignment through Putnam Memorial State Park instead of the 19th century turnpike alignment (Sunset Hill Road). It also continued into downtown Danbury using modern Route 302 and 53. Modern Route 58 was created in the 1932 state highway renumbering from old Highway 124. The route was truncated in 1935 to end in Bethel (at modern Route 302) instead of Danbury, when U.S. Route 202 was designated, which was designated on the Danbury-Bethel segment.[5]
The state developed plans in the 1960s to extend Route 58 northward as a freeway from its present terminus to I-84 in Danbury to divert through traffic around Danbury's congested central business district. Although the Route 58 Connector was cancelled, a short segment (known as Patriot Drive today) near the Danbury Train Station between White Street and Liberty Street was built.
Major intersections
editThe entire route is in Fairfield County.
| Location | mi[1] | km | Destinations | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairfield | 0.00 | 0.00 | US 1 (Kings Highway) | Southern terminus; former Boston Post Road | |
| 1.04 | 1.67 | Black Rock Turnpike (SR 732 south) | |||
| 1.55 | 2.49 |   Route 135 south – Fairfield University | Northern terminus of Route 135 | ||
| 3.41 | 5.49 | Route 15 / Merritt Parkway – New Haven, New York City | Exit 44 on Route 15 / Merritt Parkway | ||
| Easton | 6.90 | 11.10 |  Route 136 (Westport Road) | ||
| Redding | 15.77 | 25.38 |  Route 107 south – Redding Center | Northern terminus of Route 107 | |
| Bethel | 18.58 | 29.90 | Route 302 – Bethel, Danbury, Newtown | Northern terminus | |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
References
edit- ^ a b Connecticut State Highway Log, 2006 Archived 2015-09-05 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Route 58 to be Closed for Replacement of Bridge over Putnam Brook in Bethel". Connecticut Department of Transportation. 8 September 2014. Retrieved 2020-03-14.
- ^ Cruson, Daniel (20 June 2000). "Scenic Roads of Redding Connecticut (CT)". Redding and Easton. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4396-2735-8. OCLC 879611641.
Another turnpike was created in 1832 [...] The Black Rock and Weston Turnpike. The company that was chartered to construct and improve this road was permitted to operate from Black Rock Harbor northwesterly to a point just north of today's Westport Road (route #136).[...] The road was made entirely free when the Black Rock and Weston Turnpike Co. was dissolved in 1851.
- ^ Cruson, Daniel (2000-06-20). Redding and Easton. Arcadia Publishing. p. 155. ISBN 978-1-4396-2735-8.
Cattle graze by the side of Black Rock Turnpike, just north of Center Road.[...] To keep cattle from wandering off, farmers frequently put gates across the road, creating a road hazard that infuriated early auto enthusiasts and the local constabulary
- ^ "Low Roads and High Roads: Tour 1B: From Bridgeport to Junction with US 202, 18.1 miles, State 58". Connecticut : A Guide to its Roads, Lore, and People. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. 1938. pp. 352–353. hdl:2027/mdp.39015001142218.
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