"Soy Sauce to Beer"

Southern terminus: Walworth County, at the Illinois state line south of Walworth

Northern terminus: Over the Mississippi River at the Minnesota State Line in La Crosse

Mileage: about 199 miles

Counties along the way: Walworth, Rock, Dane, Iowa, Sauk, Richland, Vernon, La Crosse

Sample towns along the way: Walworth, Darien, Janesville, Evansville, Oregon, Fitchburg, Madison, Middleton, Cross Plains, Black Earth, Mazomanie, Spring Green, Richland Center, Viroqua, Westby, La Crosse

Bypass alternates at: Janesville, Madison

Quickie Summary: U.S. Highway 14 in Wisconsin enters the state from Illinois and greets the largest soy sauce factory in North America at Walworth - the smell of it will waft across the road on many days. From there, southern Wisconsin farms dominate as you hit Janesville, loop around the northern part of town (with plenty of amenities) and head into Madison from the south through suburbs like Oregon and Fitchburg. U.S. 14 joins Madison's beltway (or you can take the original route through town and the UW campus) and then goes through Middleton and toward the beautiful topography west of the capitol city. The largest shoe store in the Midwest, Frank Lloyd Wright's home base, the artistic influence of Viroqua and the gorgeous hills approaching La Crosse all await you. The highway enters La Crosse and goes right past the City Brewery before heading across the Mississippi into Minnesota.

The Drive (South to North): U.S. 14 leaves Big Foot, Illinois and enters Wisconsin in wide-open farmland. One mile in, Highway 67 joins for the ride into Walworth (pop. 2,304). U.S. 14 enters Wisconsin from the flatlands of Illinois. This area is quite flat compared to where it enters Wisconsin from Minnesota, about 200 miles away.

Just down the road is Darien (pop. 1,572). Originally called "Bruceville" after founder John Bruce, Jr., a New Yorker who came here in 1837 and opened a hotel. At the time, a military road connecting Fort Dearborn in Chicago and Fort Madison - yes, in Madison - ran roughly where U.S. 14 is today. It was renamed Darien in 1840, after the Darien in New York. So yes, there's a big New York influence here. It took 111 years for Darien to incorporate. Today, Darien sits at the crossroads of U.S. 14 and I-43, with the intersection with County X being the former main crossroads; before the interstate was built, that was the main road from Beloit to Milwaukee. Past I-43, U.S. 14 heads up and meets with Highway 89 and Highway 11, which it joins for a trip west.

Coupled with Highway 11, you'll pass a farm called Happy Holstein Heaven, which claims to be the home of "happy cows", a claim Californians will want to debate using their cheese commercials, but who cares what they think? It's a direct shot to Janesville (pop. 60,483), the "City of Parks". Major companies founded in Janesville include Parker Pen and Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance, neither of which are in the city anymore. Janesville does host playground equipment maker Swing N Slide, now a subsidiary of Playcore, Inc., Blain's Farm & Fleet (a store you see many times on the State Trunk Tour), and Gray's Brewing Company, of which more will be divulged shortly. It's the home of Senator Russ Feingold, Representative Paul Ryan, race car driver Stan Fox, even WNBA Houston Comets player Mistie Williams, daughter of Chubby Checker. Janesville hosted Wisconsin's first state fair in 1851 on a site just south of downtown, which still holds a series of impressive, expansive older homes. Janesville is the county seat of Rock County and the largest on the Rock River, with the exception of Rockford, Illinois.

*** "THROUGH JANESVILLE" ORIGINAL ROUTE *** U.S. 14 does an "end around", around the east and north sides of Janesville. Prior to the bypass' construction in the 1950's, U.S. 14 headed right through the city. This section, which lasts about 8 miles, follows the old route, which is locally signed in some places as "Business U.S. 14". You re-join today's U.S. 14 northwest of town. Left: U.S. 14's city route into Janesville, as Racine Street, just past I-39/90. A number of lovely parks line the way as the road descends toward the Rock River and downtown. Right: In the downtown area, featuring Rock County's tallest buildings (okay, so they're not THAT tall), city routes for U.S. 14 and Highway 11 criss-cross with U.S. 51 and Highway 26, which originates just west of the river. Following U.S. 14's original route through Janesville, stay on the route past the I-39/90 interchange into town. You come in on Racine Street, past Palmer Park and into the downtown area. After crossing the Rock River, you turn northwest on Franklin Street. The "City" U.S. 14 signs that have been up since the 1950s should guide your way. At Court Street, you jog to the right briefly into the main downtown area (demarcated by actual multi-story buildings) before jogging back west (doing a U-turn) along Milwaukee Street and then up Pearl Street (now County E). BREWERY ALERT You can follow the former Highway 11 along Court Street for approximately 2 miles, where you can stumble upon Gray's Brewing, crafter of numerous award-winning brews. They've even been making cream sodas since 1856. Left: U.S. 14 followed this stretch of Franklin Street to downtown Janesville. The U.S. 14 sign is an original from the 1950s, so this shot is probably exactly how this street looked then, if you change the car and clothing styles. Center: Janesville hosted the first Wisconsin State Fair in October, 1851. No word on how much cream puffs cost back then.Right: Nearby St. Lawrence Avenue, which parallels the river, overlooks downtown and lovely old mansions line the street for a good distance. Left: Perched high above the Rock River, overlooking downtown in front of the Rock County Courthouse, Janesville remembers fallen Civil War soldiers with this commemoration. Center and Right: Gray's Brewing has been at it since 1856, making cream sodas and a variety of craft beers. They ship beer to various establishments across the state and beyond. From downtown, you follow today's County E northwest for a few miles, with the Rock River just to your east. You re-join U.S. 14 at this point and can head west.

Following today's U.S. 14 route brings you around Janesville's east and north side. Approaching the junction with I-39/90 and Highway 26, you encounter a multitude of restaurants, hotels, gas stations, big-box stores and everything else you could want. This is not a bad place to stock up on supplies!

A pretty open stretch of highway greets you outside Janesville. It's about 15 miles to Evansville (pop. 4,658), a city rich in architecture - much of which was built on tobacco fortunes in the 19th century. The 22-block Historic District . Today, Evansville's also grabbing the title of "Soybean Capital of Wisconsin", which probably means they send a lot of soybeans back to that Kikkoman plant in Walworth.

Much more about U.S. 14 is coming! Keep watching this page and the main page of StateTrunkTour.com for details.

CONNECTIONS:
North Terminus:
Can connect immediately to: Highway 16, U.S. Highway 53, U.S. Highway 61
Can connect nearby to: Highway 33, about 0.5 miles south; Highway 35, about 1.5 miles east

South Terminus:
Can connect immediately to: U.S. 14 in Illinois
Can connect nearby to: Highway 67, about 1 mile north

Upcoming events in places along U.S. Highway 14:
Middleton's Big Event, Middleton, June 14, 2008
Father's Day Tours at Lincoln-Tallman House, Janesville, June 15, 2008

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