What is U.S. Route 81?
{{Infobox road |country=USA |type=US |route=81 |map=US 81 map.png |length_mi=1220 |length_ref={{citation needed|date=February 2018}} |length_round=0 |established=1926, truncated to Fort Worth in the 1990s{{citation needed|date=February 2018}} |direction_a=South |direction_b=North |terminus_a={{jct|state=TX|I|35W|US|287}} at [[Fort Worth, Texas|Fort Worth, TX]] |junction={{plainlist|1= *{{jct|state=OK|I|44}} at [[Chickasha, Oklahoma|Chickasha, OK]] *{{jct|state=OK|I|40}} at [[El Reno, Oklahoma|El Reno, OK]] *{{jct|state=KS|I|135}} from [[Wichita, Kansas|Wichita, KS]] to [[Salina, Kansas|Salina, KS]] *{{jct|state=KS|I|70}} near [[Salina, Kansas|Salina, KS]] *{{jct|state=NE|I|80}} at [[York, Nebraska|York NE]] *{{jct|state=SD|I|90}} at [[Salem, South Dakota|Salem, SD]] *{{jct|state=SD|I|29}} from [[Watertown, South Dakota|Watertown, SD]] to [[Manvel, North Dakota|Manvel, ND]] *{{jct|state=ND|I|94}} at [[Fargo, North Dakota|Fargo, ND]] *{{jct|state=ND|US|2}} at [[Grand Forks, North Dakota|Grand Forks, ND]] *{{jct|state=ND|I|29}} from [[Joliette, North Dakota|Joliette, ND]] to [[Pembina, ND]] }} |terminus_b={{jct|state=ND|I|29}} / {{jct|state=MB|PTH|75}} at [[Pembina–Emerson Border Crossing]] near [[Pembina, ND]] |states=[[Texas]], [[Oklahoma]], [[Kansas]], [[Nebraska]], [[South Dakota]], [[North Dakota]] }} '''U.S. Route 81''' or '''U.S. Highway 81''' ('''US&nbsp;81''') is a major north–south U.S. highway. It goes for {{convert|1220|mi|km}} in the [[central United States]]. It is one of the original [[United States Numbered Highways]] created in 1926 by the [[American Association of State Highway Officials]]. The route of US&nbsp;81 follows that of the old [[Meridian Highway]] which dates back as early as 1911.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://ktwu.washburn.edu/journeys/scripts/2003/1603a.html |title=Transcript - The Meridian Highway<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=2019-08-07 |archive-date=2006-09-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060904082018/http://ktwu.washburn.edu/journeys/scripts/2003/1603a.html