Oklahoma State Highway 16

SH-16 begins at SH-33 on the east side of Drumright, in western Creek County. From there, it travels {{convert|6|mi|km|spell=in}} south to the town of Shamrock, then {{convert|13|mi|km}} roughly southeasterly to the city of Bristow.{{cite map|publisher=Oklahoma Department of Transportation|title=Official State Map|edition=2009–10|url=http://www.odot.org/hqdiv/p-r-div/maps/state-maps/2009state/pdfs/state-map.pdf|access-date=2011-02-10}}

SH-16 briefly overlaps SH-48 and SH-66 through Bristow. On the south side of Bristow, SH-16 heads east, then south, {{convert|10|mi|km}} to the town of Slick, then continues another {{convert|12|mi|km}} east to Beggs, where it junctions with U.S. Route 75 Alternate.

Four miles (6.4 km) east of Beggs, SH-16 intersects U.S. Route 75, a major national north–south highway and prominent in the area as a four-lane expressway connecting Tulsa and Okmulgee. From there it runs due east, intersecting SH-52 near the community of Bald Hill.

Twelve miles (19.3 km) after SH-52, SH-16 joins up with U.S. Route 62/64, {{convert|6|mi|km|spell=in}} south of Haskell. {{convert|5|mi|km|spell=In}} later, SH-162 branches off to the north, connecting with the town of Taft, and in another {{convert|8|mi|km|spell=in}} enters the city of Muskogee along Okmulgee Street.

In Muskogee, SH-16 meets U.S. Route 69 at 32nd Street, and turning north, forms a brief three-way concurrency (US-62/69/SH-16). At Shawnee Bypass, U.S. Route 62 and SH-16 turn east, and overlap {{convert|3|mi|km|spell=in}} to York Street, where SH-16 turns north on its own again.

SH-16 crosses the Arkansas and Verdigris Rivers, and passes under the Muskogee Turnpike, intersecting with SH-251A in Okay. {{convert|8|mi|km|spell=In}} farther to the north and west, SH-16 ends at SH-51, on the south side of Wagoner.

The present incarnation of SH-16 first appeared on Oklahoma's state highway map in 1937 as a gravel highway connecting Bristow to Beggs.{{cite map|publisher=Oklahoma Department of Highways|title=Map Showing Condition of Improvement of the State Highway System|edition=April 1937|url=http://www.odot.org/hqdiv/p-r-div/maps/state-maps/pdfs/1937.pdf|access-date=2011-11-15}} This would be SH-16's extent for nearly two decades. This section of the highway was first paved in 1950.{{cite map|url=http://www.odot.org/hqdiv/p-r-div/maps/state-maps/pdfs/1951.pdf|title=Map of Oklahoma's State Highway System|publisher=Oklahoma Department of Highways|edition=1951|access-date=2011-11-15}}

SH-16 was not extended beyond Beggs until 1954, when it was extended east to US-62 and US-64. This section of gravel highway had a slight jog to the north, causing it to meet the U.S. highways at Jamesville, north of the present-day junction.{{cite map|url=http://www.odot.org/hqdiv/p-r-div/maps/state-maps/pdfs/1955.pdf|title=Highways of Oklahoma|publisher=Oklahoma Department of Highways|year=1955|access-date=2011-11-15}} The following year, SH-16 was extended even further east, passing through Muskogee via US-62, US-64, and US-69, and proceeding along its present-day alignment to Okay. In Okay, the highway turned east, following present-day SH-251A across Fort Gibson Dam and coming to an end at SH-80. This extension was entirely paved.{{cite map|publisher=Oklahoma Department of Highways|title=Oklahoma's Highways 1956|url=http://www.odot.org/hqdiv/p-r-div/maps/state-maps/pdfs/1956.pdf|access-date=2011-11-15}}

In 1958, the jog between Beggs and Jamesville was removed, moving the US-62/64 junction to its present-day location; this portion of highway remained unpaved.{{cite map|publisher=Oklahoma Department of Highways|title=1959 Oklahoma Road Map|url=http://www.odot.org/hqdiv/p-r-div/maps/state-maps/pdfs/1959.pdf|access-date=2011-11-15 }} The 1961 map shows the entirety of the Beggs—US-62/64 segment as paved,{{cite map|publisher=Oklahoma Department of Highways|title=Oklahoma 1961 Road Map|url=http://www.odot.org/hqdiv/p-r-div/maps/state-maps/pdfs/1961.pdf|access-date=2011-11-15}} however, the following year's map shows the portion east of the Okmulgee–Muskogee County line as gravel.{{cite map|publisher=Oklahoma Department of Highways|title=Oklahoma 1962|url=http://www.odot.org/hqdiv/p-r-div/maps/state-maps/pdfs/1962.pdf|access-date=2011-11-15 }} By 1963 this portion of gravel highway in Muskogee County had apparently been paved.{{cite map|publisher=Oklahoma Department of Highways|title=Oklahoma 1963|url=http://www.odot.org/hqdiv/p-r-div/maps/state-maps/pdfs/1963.pdf|access-date=2011-11-15 }}

The highway was extended again in 1961, this time to the west. At that time, SH-16 absorbed the wholly paved SH-27 between Bristow and Drumright, setting its western terminus at its present-day location. SH-16's final extension occurred in 1965, when SH-251A was established and SH-16 was realigned to instead continue north past Okay and terminate at SH-51 in Wagoner.{{cite map|publisher=Oklahoma Department of Highways|title=Oklahoma 1966|url=http://www.odot.org/hqdiv/p-r-div/maps/state-maps/pdfs/1966.pdf|access-date=2011-11-15 }} No further changes have been made to the highway since then.

{{jcttop|state=OK|length_ref=}}

{{OKint

|county=Creek

|cspan=4

|location=Drumright

|mile=0.0

|road={{jct|state=OK|OK|33|OK|99}}

|notes=Western terminus

}}

{{OKint

|location=Bristow

|lspan=3

|type=concur

|mile=19.2

|road={{jct|state=OK|OK|48|OK|66}}

|notes={{ccr-end|North|SH-48 and SH-66}}

}}

{{OKint

|type=concur

|mile=19.9

|road={{jct|state=OK|OK|66|nolink1=yes}}

|notes={{ccr-end|South|SH-66}}

}}

{{OKint

|type=concur

|mile=20.3

|road={{jct|state=OK|OK|48|nolink1=yes}}

|notes={{ccr-end|South|SH-48}}

}}

{{OKint

|county=Okmulgee

|cspan=3

|location=Beggs

|type=concur

|mile=42.5

|road={{jct|state=OK|US-Alt|75}}

|notes={{ccr-end|West|US-75 Alt.}}

}}

{{OKint

|location=none

|type=concur

|mile=46.1

|road={{jct|state=OK|US|75|US-Alt|75|nolink2=yes}}

|notes=Eastern terminus of US-75 Alt.

}}

{{OKint

|location=none

|mile=54.6

|road={{jct|state=OK|OK|52}}

|notes=Northern terminus of SH-52

}}

{{OKint

|county=Muskogee

|cspan=6

|location=none

|type=concur

|mile=66.5

|road={{jct|state=OK|US|62|US|64}}

|notes={{ccr-end|West|US-62 and US-64}}

}}

{{OKint

|location=none

|mile=71.5

|road={{jct|state=OK|OK|162}}

|notes=Southern terminus of SH-162

}}

{{OKint

|location=Muskogee

|lspan=4

|type=concur

|mile=80.2

|road={{jct|state=OK|US|64|US|69|US-Bus|62|nolink1=yes|nolink3=yes}}

|notes={{ccr-end|East|US-64}}, {{ccr-end|south|US-69}}

}}

{{OKint

|type=concur

|mile=81.3

|road={{jct|state=OK|US|69|nolink1=yes}}

|notes={{ccr-end|North|US-69}}

}}

{{OKint

|mile=83.8

|road={{jct|state=OK|US-Bus|62|nolink1=yes}}

}}

{{OKint

|mile=84.8

|type=concur

|road={{jct|state=OK|US|62|nolink1=yes}}

|notes={{ccr-end|East|US-62}}

}}

{{OKint

|county=Wagoner

|cspan=2

|location=Okay

|mile=90.5

|road={{jct|state=OK|OK|251A}}

|notes=Western terminus of SH-251A

}}

{{OKint

|location=Wagoner

|mile=99.2

|road={{jct|state=OK|OK|51}}

|notes=Eastern terminus

}}

{{jctbtm|keys=concur}}

{{Attached KML|display=title,inline}}

{{reflist}}

016

Category:Transportation in Creek County, Oklahoma

Category:Transportation in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma

Category:Transportation in Muskogee County, Oklahoma

Category:Transportation in Wagoner County, Oklahoma