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Southern Entrance:	Wisconsin state line, 8 miles south of Watersmeet
Northern Terminus:	Downtown Ontonagon at cnr River St & Ontonagon St
Length:	54.737 miles
Maps:	Route Map of US-45 Ontonagon State Trunkline Changes 2006 The Ontonagon Reversal (1971–73) animated map
Notes:	US-45 is the youngest of all existing mainline US Highways in Michigan, added in 1934, seven years after the U.S. Highway System came into existence. US-33 debuted in Berrien Co a few years after US-45 was extended into Michigan, but was decomissioned in 1998, leaving US-45 as the most recent of the existing US Highway mainline routes in the state.
	The last remaining swing bridge on the Michigan state trunkline system sat on M-64 a few hundred feet southwest of US-45's northern terminus in Ontonagon until October 2006. A new fixed span across the Ontonagon River was constructed a bit more than ½ mile upstream of the current structure. The new highway accessing this new bridge now intersects US-45 several blocks south of its former junction with M-38. The new bridge now carries M-64 from the west across the river to its new junction with US-45 at the relocated M-38, all of US-45 from there northerly is scheduled to remain on the state highway system and remain designated as US-45 to its current terminus. (See the Ontonagon State Trunkline Changes 2006 map.)
	In "State Trunkline Needs, 1960–1980," a set of maps prepared by the State Highway Dept's Office of Planning, Programming Division in 1960 showing possible additions, upgrades and improvements to the state trunkline system over the ensuing twenty years, MSHD staff recommended one change to the route of US-45 during that timeframe. They suggested the department transfer jurisdiction of the segment of US-45 from jct M-26/M-35 southeast of Rockland northwesterly via Rockland Rd through Rockland to Ontonagon to county control. The maps also had the state taking control of Ontonagon–Greenland Rd between those two cities, and labeled it as part of an extendened M-35 route. Obviously, if US-45 from Rockland to Ontonagon was cancelled as a trunkline, the US-45 designation would not have just terminated at M-26 in the "middle of nowhere" (with apoligies to northeastern Rockland Twp) and would've likely been rerouted along M-26 to Greenland then via Ontonagon–Greenland Rd into Ontonagon. While this exact change did take place eleven years after it was proposed, that change was reversed two years later.
History:	1934 (June) – The Highway 26 Club, based at Land O' Lakes, Wisconsin just across the Michigan state line, is agitating for an extension of US-45 which currently runs from Mobile, Alabama to Des Plaines, Illinois, outside Chicago. The group is promoting a route which would divert the existing US-45 at Centralia, Illinois via Champaign and Rockford, then into Wisconsin to follow STH-26 via Oshkosh, Monico and Eagle River to Land O' Lakes, then take over the route of M-26 through Watersmeet, Bruces Crossing, Houghton, Hubbell, Lake Linden, Laurium, Calumet to Mohawk then via the recently-decommissioned route of M-26 to Gay, where US-45 would terminate. (Although the choice of the tiny mine ore-processing hamlet of Gay would seem to be an odd choice of a terminus for a major US Highway route.)
	1934 (Nov 1) – The American Association of State Highway Officals (AASHO, today's AASHTO) approves a northerly extension of US-45 from its existing terminus at Des Plaines, Illinois through Wisconsin to the Michigan state line at Land O' Lakes, where it will replace the M-26 designation northerly through Watersmeet and Bruce Crossing, then replaces the portion of M-35 through Rockland to a new northern terminus in downtown Ontonagon. This would make US-45 run from the Gulf of Mexico all the way to the shores of Lake Superior. M-26 and M-35 remain, however, on their existing routes through the winter until the new route markers are fabricated and installed.
	1935 (June) – The US-45 route designation debuts in Michigan, being extended from Des Plaines, Illinois northerly through Wisconsin, then supplanting M-26 from Land O' Lakes through Bruce Crossing to M-35 near Rockland, then replacing M-35 from Rockland into Ontonagon where it ends at M-64 downtown. With the brand-new US-45 running just 60 miles to the west of the existing M-45, state highway officials wisely decide to give M-45 a new designation to minimize confusion and M-95 takes over the route of the original M-45 at this time.
	1940 (Nov 10) – A 0.625-mile long realignment of US-45 in southeastern Gogebic Co about three miles north of the Wisconsin state line is established starting approximately 0.15 mile north of Old Military Rd intersection, then northerly to the present-day intersection of US-45 & Old U.S. 45 Rd. The 0.7-mile long former route, which swung slightly to the west of the realignment before crossing back to the east side for a bit, is cancelled as a state trunline and eventually abandoned as a public roadway. (Faint traces of the old alignment exist today.) The realignment is done as part of a 3.59-mile, $59,400 project to widen and improve the portion of US-45 from the state line northerly. Construction is likely completed and the highway is fully opened to traffic about this same time.
	1949 (Nov 10) – A new 2.75-mile long route for US-45 in the sourthern portion of the Village of Ontonagon is established as a state trunkline route beginning 250 feet north of Slate St and bending northwesterly and then back northerly again at Granite St, then following the one block of Steel St north to Mercury St where it meets its existing route (and US-45 continues northerly via Steel St into downtown). The 0.3-mile former route along Old Rockland Rd and Mercury St is cancelled as a trunkline and turned back to village control. Work to complete the project extends into 1950 with the 4.9-mile stretch of roadway from River St in Ontonagon southerly to Woodspur Rd paved during the 1951 construction season. (The connection from the former route of US-45 along Old Rockland Rd to US-45/Rockland Rd is later severed in the mid-1990s.)
	1949 (Oct 19, Nov 7) – A new 3.058-mile realignment of US-45 in southeastern Gogebic Co between Land O' Lakes and Watersmeet is completed and opened to traffic on October 19 from the northern end of the 1940 realignment at the present-day intersection of US-45 & Old U.S. 45 Rd and continues almost due northerly to the modern day intersection of US-45 & Duck Lake Rd, about a mile south of downtown Watersmeet. The new route is officially established as a trunkline a few weeks later on November 7 while the 3.8-mile long former route via present-day Old U.S. 45 Rd and Duck Lake Rd is cancelled and turned back to county control, although the section of Old U.S. 45 Rd between the Chicago & North Western Ry (present-day Watersmeet-Land O' Lakes Rail Trail) and Duck Lake Rd is abandoned as a public roadway and is reverting back to nature.
	1949 (Nov 10) – As part of a project to widen and pave US-45 from Rockland to Woodspur in central Ontonagon Co, a 0.357-mile segment of new highway is established starting at McClellan Ave on the north end of Rockland and continuing northwesterly back to the existing route. The 0.4-mile long former route is cancelled as a trunkline route and turned back to county control (named "Old US-45").
	1954–58 – A multi-year modernization project for US-45 from US-2 at Watersmeet in eastern Gogebic Co northerly into Ontonagon Co, to a point 4½ mile north of Paulding (five miles south of Bruce Crossing) involves significant stretches of relocation on new alignment in two major phases: South – Watersmeet/Bass Lake: From US-2 at Watersmeet northerly past Bass Lake and into Ontonagon Co involves three realignments with the remainder of the route being modernized. This portion of the project is completed in December 1954 and opened to traffic as a gravel-surfaced highway. The new 0.555-mile stretch on the north side of Watersmeet and the 2.858-mile "Bass Lake bypass" to the north up to the Gogebic/Ontonagon Co line are established on August 3, 1955. The 0.6-mile and 3.4-mile former aligments cancelled and turned back to county control. The first phase improvements include: Two sharper turns at the Chicago & North Western Ry crossing in downtown Watersmeet are removed, replaced by an almost-negligble reverse curve between E Ave and D Ave. A realignment on the north side of Watersmeet starting at A Ave and continuing northerly across the Chicago & North Western tracks to Rifle Range Rd replaces three sharper turns with two gentle sweeping reverse curves. Much of the former route of US-45 along Crozer St and Old U.S. 2 East becomes a local road, except the portion crossing the C&NW Ry tracks (present-day State Line Trail), which is dead-ended. The ¾ mile from Rifle Range Rd north to Bass Lake Rd involves construction of a new roadway immediately adjacent to the west side of the existing highway. A longer realignment bypasses Bass Lake to the west then enters Ontonagon Co and swings back to the east, intersecting the existing route, present-day Old US-45. The new realignment continues for an additional ¾ mile to the north line of Sec. 34, although this section is not yet opened to traffic as the new highway to the north of that will not be constructed for another few years. North – Paulding/Paulding Light: The second phase of the project begins at the north line of Sec. 34 about four miles south of Paulding and continues northerly, east of the existing route, for about 3½ miles before veering back west to merge into the existing highway through Paulding. At Roselawn Creek the new highway bends back to the east for another mile before swinging back to the existing route. The final three mile stretch north to the Haight Twp Hall is constructed immediately to the east of the former route and merges back into the existing highway at the township hall. This northern phase is completed and opened to traffic by the end of 1957. The first 1.249-mile segment of realigned highway from the Gogebic/Ontonagon Co line northerly to the north line of Sec. 34 is established as a trunkline route on June 24, 1957. The 0.4-mile portion of Old US-45 from the county line north to relocated US-45 is also cancelled as a trunkline and turned back to county control. The remaining 5.068 miles of relocated US-45 from the north line of Sec. 34 northerly through Paulding to a point about a mile north of Paulding is established on December 26 1957. The 5.7-mile former route along Old US-45 is cancelled as a trunkline route and turned back to county control. On the three northernmost miles, the former route (immediately to the west of the newly-built highway) is obliterated. Once the northern phase is completed as a gravel-surfaced highway, the entire stretch of highway from US-2 in Watersmeet northerly into Ontonagon Co to four miles north of Paulding is paved and completed in late 1958. The portion of Old US-45 bypassed during 1957 happens to be the location of the fabled "Paulding Light" phenomenon.
	1959 (Nov 3), 1960 (Apr 6) – A new 7.835-mile long stretch of US-45 through the Military Hills section of central Ontonagon Co is completed and opened to traffic on November 3, 1959 at dedication ceremonies and a banquet held celebrating the project. The new segment begins one mile north of Gauthier Rd (six miles north of Bruce Crossing) and continues northerly across a new bridge spanning the East Branch of the Ontonagon River, to a new ⊤-intersection with M-26 about two miles east of Rockland, where it turns left replacing the M-26 designation for 0.3 mile back to the former southern terminus of M-26 at the "Rockland-Y" (wye). While a significant portion of this new stretch of highway is constructed on a new, modernized alignment, some portions of the old route are subsumed under the new highway. Most of the bypassed sections of old route are either obliterated or abandoned as public roadways, while a few sections remain and are named "Old US-45." The entirety of the 8.2-mile long former route, whether turned back to local control, abandoned, obliterated or buried under the new road, is cancelled as a state trunkline route on April 6, 1960, the same day as the 7.835 miles of new highway are officially established as a trunkline route.
	1971 (June 22) – At its regular meeting at the Edwater Hotel in Madison, Wisconsin, the U.S. Route Numbering Subcommittee of the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) approves a request from the Michigan Dept of State Highways to relocate the route of US-45 between M-26 southeast of Rockland and Ontonagon from its existing route via Rockland and placing it onto a new alignment utilizing the existing M-26 from southeast of Rockland through Mass City to the Greenland area, then northwesterly past Greenland into Ontonagon.
	1971 (Oct 22) – The rerouting of US-45 approved by the AASHO in June (see above) is completed and opened to traffic in Ontonagon Co. From the jct of US-45 & M-26 southeast of Rockland, US-45 supplants the M-26 designated northeasterly through Mass City to the Greenland area where it turns westerly and northwesterly via a completely reconstructed Ontonagon–Greenland Rd (present-day M-38) onto Ontonagon. As a result, M-26 is scaled back to the new intersection with US-45 one mile east of Greenland. The former US-45 (Rockland Rd) is retained as an unsigned, un-numbered state highway for the time being. While a reason for the routing changes has not been found to date, news reports at the time state the new route "will provide traffic east of Greenland with a shorter, modern access route to the western part of the Upper Peninsula." Oddly, though, the new alignment for US-45 is five miles longer than the former route via Rockland (18.3 miles versus 13.3 miles), so US-45 traffic would find the new route a major inconvenience! The reconstruction and partial realignment of Ontonagon–Greenland Rd cost $4.06 million. (See The Ontonagon Reversal, 1971–73 for complete details.)
	1973 (June 26) – Two years and five days after approving the Dept of State Highways' request to relocate US-45 in Ontonagon Co onto a portion of M-26 and then a newly reconstructed route between Greenland and Ontonagon, the U.S. Route Numbering Subcommittee of the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) approves a request by the Dept of State Highways at its regular meeting held in Washington, D.C. to restore US-45 to its pre-1971 alignment between Rockland and Ontonagon. The Dept of State Highways then removes the US-45 route markers it erected in 1971 and moves them to the pre-1971 US-45 route along Rockland Rd via Rockland and northwesterly into Ontonagon. The M-26 designation is restored to its former routing from Greenland southwesterly through Mass City to US-45 southeast of Rockland. M-38 is then extended westerly concurrently with M-26 for approximately one mile east of Greenland and then northwesterly along Ontonagon–Greenland Rd replacing the US-45 designation (1971–1973) into Ontonagon. (See The Ontonagon Reversal, 1971–73 for complete details.)
Controlled Access:	No portion of US-45 is freeway or expressway.
NHS:	US-45 from its southern entrance at he Wisconsin state line to jct M-26 southeast of Rockland is on the National Highway System (NHS). (40.5 miles) (This route was added to the NHS in 2012 with the passage of the MAP-21 funding and authorization bill.)
Circle Tour:	Formerly Lake Superior Circle Tour: In downtown Ontonagon, prior to the removal of the 1939 M-64 swing bridge spanning the Ontonagon River, US-45 was on the LSCT from its northern terminus southeasterly to the former junction with M-38 on the east side of downtown. Now that M-64 and M-38 directly meet each other at US-45 south of downtown, US-45 itself is no longer on the LSCT.
Memorial Highway:	At present, no portion of US-45 has been designated as part of a Memorial Highway.
Continue on:	US-45 into Wisconsin at the Wisconsin Highways Website STH-32 into Wisconsin at the Wisconsin Highways Website
Photographs:
Weblinks:	US-45: The Ontonagon Reversal (1971–73) – a comprehensive history and background of how US-45 was rerouted in Ontonagon Co in 1971, then "de-rerouted" two years later, affecting the routes of M-26 and M-38 in the process. US-45 @ Michigan Highway Ends – photos of the termini of US-45 at Dan Garnell's excellent Michigan Highway Ends website. Just in time for Halloween: Michigan Tech Students Solve the Mystery of the Paulding Light – published October 28, 2010 in Michigan Tech News. Historic US-45 bridges from Nathan Holth's comprehensive Historic Bridges website: US-45 East Branch Ontonagon River Bridge – "This bridge is an example of a riveted, haunched deck plate girder, a bridge type that the Michigan State Highway Department used for high level crossings that had to cross over not only a river but some of the river valley as well." US-45 Middle Branch Ontonagon River Bridge – "This bridge is an example of a mid-20th Century concrete t-beam bridge in Michigan." Old US-45 Bridge – "Long, long ago, the road and this bridge was actually part of US-45. This bridge is a reminder that this road was once something more."

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