Washington State Route 21

Washington State Route 21

State Route 21 (SR 21) is a 191.34-mile (307.93 km) long state highway in the U.S. state of Washington that traverses four counties: Franklin, Adams, Lincoln and Ferry. The highway extends from an intersection with SR 260 in Kahlotus north through Lind, Odessa, Keller, Republic and Curlew before becoming Highway 41 (BC 41) at the Canadian border in Danville. SR 21 is concurrent with U.S. Route 2 (US 2) in Wilbur and SR 20 in Republic and has two diamond interchanges: at US 395 in Lind and Interstate 90 (I-90) south of Odessa. Between Lincoln and Ferry counties, the roadway crosses Franklin D. Roosevelt Lake on the Keller Ferry, operated fare free by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) and the Department of Highways (DoH) since 1930.

Since 1899, at least one segment of the current highway has been in the state highway system. In 1899, the Marble Mount Road was established and later numbered State Road 4 in 1905 and renamed to the Sans Poil-Loomis Road in 1907. In 1915, a branch to the Canadian border was added to the highway, but was removed in 1923. In 1937, the Primary state highways were established and State Road 4 became Primary State Highway 4 (PSH 4), while the former Canadian branch became Secondary State Highway 4A (SSH 4A). Another highway, extending from Lind to Wilbur, became SSH 4B. In 1964, PSH 4 was split into SR 20 and SR 21 while SSH 2A and SSH 2B also became SR 21. In 1983, a road between Lind and Kahlotus became part of SR 21.

The Keller Ferry, which travels across the Columbia River at Franklin D. Roosevelt Lake to connect the two segments of SR 21, was originally a cable ferry operated in the early 1890s. J.C. Keller, founder of Keller, purchased the ferry in 1899 and traded ownership to Lincoln and Ferry counties in 1925. In 1929, the two counties unveiled a new eight-car cable ferry, named the Keller of Seattle, which served the two counties until 1930, when the predecessor of the current WSDOT, the DoH, purchased the ferry, but still operated Keller of Seattle until replacing it with the L.A. McLeod in 1939. In 1944, the Ann of Wilbur tugboat and Sanpoil barge acted as a ferry before a new replacement, the Martha S. was launched in 1948. The Martha S. has been in continual operation since 1948 and WSDOT planned to replace the ferry in the near future, but funding came $5.5 million US$ short. The ferry was suspended in early October 2009 after a leak was found in the hull of the Martha S.