State Patrol Drive - Burlington
By Curt Cunningham

Out in the country where farms had been established, roads had to meander in and around these large tracts of land. In many places the roads had to zig-zag around the property lines which made the route longer than it needed to be which in turn made travel much slower. The early Farm to Market roads as they were called tried to eliminate as may elbow joints as they could to make a direct line to the markets which would save time and money for the farmers.

By the end of the 1910's the State Highway dept. began to eliminate the elbow joints on state roads wherever possible. The Pacific Highway between Burlington and Edison Station was one of these places where the elbow jointed road made the route a mile longer. In 1920 the elbow jointed Pacific Highway between Allen and Blanchard would be straightened out and the new highway would follow the trolley tracks. In 1922 the Allen - Burlington section would be built which eliminated the final elbow in the highway between Burlington and Blanchard.

The state submitted an application for federal aid on April 18, 1919 for the grading of the highway between Blanchard and Allen. Federal approval was given on May 12, 1919. This was named Project No. 18 and contracts #397 and #398 were let. Contract #398 was for the grading of the Pacific Highway between Blanchard and Allen in Skagit County; from station 348-|-58.3, a point 1/2 mile from Blanchard at the section corner of Sections 21, 22, 27 and 28, of Township 36 N. Range 3 East, in a southerly direction to station 643--00, a point opposite the interurban station at Allen a distance of 5.58 miles.

Contract #397 was for a 75-foot reinforced concrete arch bridge over the Samish river. There were no exceptions in project and work began on September 1, 1919. The bridge was completed August 20, 1920 and the grading contract was practically complete on September 30, 1920 when the report was written. Source of sand and gravel came from the Skagit county pit which was located on a county road 4 miles north of Burlington. The estimated cost was $66,142.62.

The first paving project was Contract No. 488—Blanchard-Allen Section, Skagit County; length 6.17 miles, from station 314+83.2 to station 640+50. The beginning of the project was at Blanchard and it terminated at Allen. The contract was let on March 28, 1921. The date of the contract was April 1, 1921 with work begging on April 12, 1921. The project was completed on September 30, 1921. The contract price was $192,383.36 with a final estimate of $190,032.92. The average cost per mile was $30,799.50. The Skagit Construction Company of Mt. Vernon was the contractor of the project. The contract was for concrete paving 20 feet wide and 6 inches thick. The source of the sand and gravel came from the La Plant pit in the NE1/4 of Section 35 of Township 35 North, Range 4 East. The roadbed cuts were 36 feet wide and the embankments were built 26 feet wide.

After this project was completed there was still one elbow joint which remained on the highway between Burlington and Blanchard. In 1922 this elbow joint would be eliminated and the new highway followed the trolley tracks between Burlington and Blanchard. Construction began on March 20, 1922 and the 2.88 mile section was completed by fall of that year.

This project was State Highway dept. Contract No. 584—Allen-Burlington Section, Skagit County for a length of 2.88 miles, from station 644+37 to station 796+55.2. The date of the contract was March 8, 1922 and work began on March 20, 1922. The project was 95% completed on September 30, 1922 when the report was written. The contract price was $13,461.84. The contractor was Andrew Sather Co. of Burlington. The construction was for grading the roadbed 20-ft. wide and included a slab bridge. The roadbed cuts were 35 feet wide with the embankments 28 feet wide. The source of the sand and gravel came from the Skagit river.

The contract did not call for paving and it was just a dirt road. It would take 3 more years before the road was finally paved. On April 6, 1925 Contract No. 922 which was also Federal Aid Project No. 130-B was let for the paving of the Allen-Burlington section of the Pacific Highway. The project length was 3 miles with work begging on April 28, 1925. The project was completed on September 23, 1925 and cost $80,438.02. The contractor was Norris Brothers of Burlington. The type of construction was concrete paving the roadbed 20 feet wide with cuts 49 feet wide and embankments 28 feet wide.

In 1931 a new alignment of the Pacific Highway which was now called U. S. Highway 99 was completed between Burlington and Bellingham using the old Great Northern right-of-way. The new road ran due north to Alger from Burlington. This new highway bypassed Chuckanut Drive which then became U.S. Route 99 Alternate.

In the mid 1950's, construction of the interstate severed Chuckanut Drive from the 1931 Highway 99. There was limited space to build off ramps to the freeway onto Chuckanut Drive (Now SR-11) so the road was moved to the south. This left about a 700 foot section of the original 1922 highway. Today this section is known as State Patrol Drive. This is because the Patrol Station is located on the now dead end road.