South Carolina Highway 61

SC Highway 61
Route information
Maintained by SCDOT
Length:	67.3 mi[1] (108.3 km)
Existed:	1923 – present
Tourist routes:	Ashley River Road
Major junctions
West end:	US 78 west of Branchville
	US 21 south of Branchville I-95 near Walterboro I-526 in Charleston SC 165 near Summerville US 17 in Charleston
East end:	SC 30 in Charleston
Location
Counties:	Bamberg, Colleton, Dorchester, Charleston
Highway system
South Carolina Highways Interstate U.S. State Scenic ← SC 60 SC 63 →

South Carolina Highway 61 (SC 61) is a 67.3-mile (108.3 km) long state highway in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The highway is designated on an east–west direction, from U.S. Route 78 (US 78) near Branchville to SC 30 in Charleston. The portion of SC 61 from Church Creek Bridge and 10 miles (16 km) north is designated a National Scenic Byway.^[2]

Route description

St. Andrew's Boulevard

The eastern-most section of SC 61 is named St. Andrew's Boulevard. This section travels from US 17 to SC 171. It is mostly residential buildings that have been rezoned commercial.

Ashley River Road

Ashley River Road is the portion of SC 61 that travels through Charleston near the Ashley River from SC 171 to SC 165. It is four lanes near Sam Rittenberg Boulevard, but becomes two lanes through the scenic stretch. Along the two-lane stretch, there are many large oaks and historic plantations. The SC 61/Ashley River Road exit from Interstate 526 (I-526) actually exits onto SC 461 (Paul Cantrell Boulevard).

Points of interest along Ashley River Road:

• Drayton Hall
• Magnolia Plantation and Gardens and the Audubon Swamp Garden
• Middleton Place Plantation
• Shadowmoss Plantation - Golf Club & Residential
• MacLaura Hall - Private Residential

Beech Hill Road

Beech Hill Road is the section of SC 61 that travels from SC 165 to US 17A. The Legend Oaks Plantation is south of this section of highway.

Augusta Highway

Augusta Highway is the longest section of SC 61 from US 17A to the westernmost end of SC 61 where it merges into US 78.

National Register of Historic Places

Some or all of Ashley River Road was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.^[3][4][5] In 1993, it was included in the Ashley River Historic District.

Major intersections

County	Location	mi	km	Destinations	Notes
Bamberg	​			US 78	Western terminus
	​			US 21
Colleton	​			SC 217
	​			I-95
	Canadys			US 15
	​			SC 651
Dorchester	Givhans			SC 27
	​			US 17 Alt. south	West end of Alt. US 17 overlap
	​			US 17 Alt. north	East end of Alt. US 17 overlap
	​			SC 165
Charleston	Charleston			SC 461
				SC 7
				SC 171
				US 17
				SC 30	Eastern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

Future

Developers continue to build more homes further and further down Ashley River Road. A great deal of controversy was created about overdevelopment when the City of North Charleston annexed the 6,600-acre tract known as Watson Hill. The tract was sold by MeadWestvaco to private developers who then requested the annexation by North Charleston. The town of Summerville tried to rush an annexation to block North Charleston which ended in a court battle. Summerville later rescinded and backed away from its annexation attempt. The slump in the economy, 2008-2010, forced these developers to sell and the property was repurchased by MeadWestvaco.^[6][7]

A recent public meeting suggested that if development is to occur, instead of widening Ashley River Road to alleviate congestion, Glenn McConnell Parkway, also known as SC 461, could be extended beyond its terminus at Bees Ferry Road. This is possible since Glenn McConnell Parkway travels parallel to SC 61.

References

External links

• Media related to South Carolina Highway 61 at Wikimedia Commons
• CharlestonWiki Highway 61 article

U.S. National Register of Historic Places in South Carolina
Topics	Contributing property Keeper of the Register Historic district History of the National Register of Historic Places National Park Service Property types
Lists by county	Abbeville Aiken Allendale Anderson Bamberg Barnwell Beaufort Berkeley Calhoun Charleston Cherokee Chester Chesterfield Clarendon Colleton Darlington Dillon Dorchester Edgefield Fairfield Florence Georgetown Greenville Greenwood Hampton Horry Jasper Kershaw Lancaster Laurens Lee Lexington Marion Marlboro McCormick Newberry Oconee Orangeburg Pickens Richland Saluda Spartanburg Sumter Union Williamsburg York
Lists by city	Charleston Columbia Greenville North Charleston Rock Hill
Other lists	Bridges National Historic Landmarks
Keeper of the Register History of the National Register of Historic Places Property types Historic district Contributing property