U.S. Route 14 in Wyoming

US 14 north toward Devils Tower

While the official western terminus of the road is at the Eastern gate of Yellowstone National Park, some commercially produced maps show US 14 within the park itself starting at a junction with US 89 and US 287 at West Thumb and following the northern shore of Yellowstone Lake. From the park US 14 is cosigned with US 16 and US 20. The roads lead east out of the Absaroka Range and down the Shoshone River valley to Cody. Here, US 14A splits north toward Powell, while US 14/US 16/US 20 continues east across the Bighorn Basin to Greybull. At Greybull, US 16 and US 20 go south, while US 14 travels east to Shell, and the western slope of the Bighorn Mountains. The road ascends a windy path through steep Shell Canyon and rejoins US 14A at the top of the range at Burgess Junction.[1] The road is designated as Bighorn Scenic Byway between Shell and Dayton on the eastern side of the mountain range. On the east side of the Bighorn Mountains, the road merges with I-90 and travels southeast to Sheridan. From Sheridan, the road continues east, rejoining with US 16 near Clearmont. The roads travel across the Powder River Country to Gillette where it joins again with I-90 to Moorcroft. From here, it diverges north from I-90 briefly to junction with Wyoming Highway 24 (WYO 24) with access to Devils Tower National Monument. US 14 turns south and rejoins I-90 which it follows to the eastern border of Wyoming and South Dakota.

US 14 eastbound in Sheridan County

US 14 was originally planned to stop in Wall, South Dakota. In 1936, the road was extended to the Wyoming border and US 16 was rerouted through Newcastle and the old US 16 was redesignated as US 14. Prior to 1940, US 14 followed the route currently serviced by US 14A through Lovell and Powell. In 1940, the highway took over WYO 520 between Burgess Junction and Greybull, and the old road was renamed WYO 14. Due to confusion, it was recommissioned as US 14A in 1965. In the 1960s, portions of the highway in the eastern part of the state became I-90.

U.S. Highway 14A (US 14A) is an alternate route for US 14 between Cody and Burgess Junction. At its west end in Cody, US 14 is concurrent with US 16 and US 20. West of Burgess Junction, US 14A passes through the Bighorn Mountains, reaching a maximum elevation of 9,430 feet (2,870 m). This portion of the road is closed during the winter months. The total length of US 14A is approximately 106 miles (171 km). Intermediate towns on the highway include Powell and Lovell. At Lovell, US 14A is concurrent with US 310 for approximately three miles (4.8 km).

In the initial 1925 plan, roughly the west half of present US 14A, from Cody to US 310 in Deaver, was assigned the number U.S. Highway 220 (US 220).[2] However, two spurs of US 20 were added in Pennsylvania, and so US 220 became U.S. Highway 420 (US 420) in the final 1926 plan.[3]

Around 1933, US 116 was extended west from Sheridan to Deaver, then absorbing US 420 to end at Cody. Soon after, it became part of an extended US 14. US 14 was shifted south to its present alignment in 1940, and the old alignment became WYO 14 for a while and was recommissioned as US 14A around 1965.