Wisconsin Highway 120
State Trunk Highway 120 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 WIS 120 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by WisDOT | ||||
| Length | 21.34 mi[1] (34.34 km) | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end |  IL 47 in Genoa City | |||
  US 12 / WIS 50 in Lake Geneva | ||||
| North end |  I-43 in East Troy | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | Wisconsin | |||
| Counties | Walworth | |||
| Highway system | ||||
| ||||
State Trunk Highway 120 (often called Highway 120, STH-120 or WIS 120) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It runs in north–south in southeast Wisconsin from the Illinois Border near Lake Geneva to south of East Troy. It continues in Illinois as State Route 47.
Route description[edit]
WIS 120 begins at the Illinois state line as a continuation of IL 47. After 3.5 miles (5.6 km) of straight road, WIS 120 turns east, then curves north to bypass downtown Lake Geneva. 4.5 miles (7.2 km) later, it meets WIS 50 for a short concurrency (picking up CTH-H along the way). After the less-than 0.5 miles (0.80 km) overlap, WIS 120 and CTH-H join US Highway 12 as a freeway at Exit 330A, while WIS 50 heads east toward Kenosha. WIS 120 and CTH-H exit the US 12 freeway at Exit 328. While CTH-H turns south toward downtown, WIS 120 turns north to meet the western terminus of WIS 36 and the White River State Trail in unincorporated Springfield after 2.5 miles (4.0 km) of rural road. Continuing another 3.5 miles (5.6 km), WIS 120 meets WIS 11 in unincorporated Spring Prairie. WIS 120 then meets its northern terminus at I-43 almost 6 miles (9.7 km) later. The road continues as CTH-G/Church Street into Downtown East Troy.
WIS 120 starts as a rural two-lane highway. It becomes a four-lane divided road at the southern end of the overlap with CTH-H. It continues as such up to and including the WIS 50 overlap and the roughly 1 mile (1.6 km) section of freeway it shares with US 12 on the east side of Lake Geneva. Once it splits from US 12, it resumes as a two-lane road through its northern terminus at I-43.
Attractions[edit]
- Alpine Valley Resort, Golf Club and Theater
- Hawks View Golf Club
- Grand Geneva Resort (formerly the Playboy Club Resort of Lake Geneva)
- Hillmoor Country Club
- Big Foot Beach State Park
History[edit]
WIS 120 started showing up on state maps as early as 1937, however it ended in WIS 50 in downtown Lake Geneva.[2] Around 1987-1988, WIS 120 and CTH-H were routed around downtown using their present routes, WIS 50, and US 12.[3] WIS 120 continued straight past the current turn-off via Pilgrim Church Road, Lake Shore Drive, Baker Street, Wrigley Drive, and Broad Street. Also, part of the present-day route was WIS 36 and CTH-G from Lake Geneva to East Troy, until WIS 36 was truncated to its present terminus in Springfield around the same time as WIS 120 was rerouted. As a result, WIS 120 superseded parts of WIS 36 to Lake Geneva and CTH-G to its present terminus at I-43 in East Troy. The route has remained unchanged to this day.
Major intersections[edit]
 | This section is missing mileposts for junctions. |
The entire route is in Walworth County.
| Location | mi | km | Destinations | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Town of Linn |  IL 47 south | Continuation into Illinois | |||
| Lake Geneva |  WIS 50 west | Southern end of WIS 50 overlap | |||
 US 12 east / WIS 50 east – Chicago, Kenosha | Northern end of WIS 50 overlap; southern end of US 12 overlap | ||||
| US 12 west – Madison | Northern end of US 12 overlap | ||||
| Springfield |  WIS 36 east – Lyons, Burlington | ||||
| Spring Prairie |   WIS 11 to I-43 – Burlington | ||||
| East Troy | I-43 – Milwaukee, Beloit | ||||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Bessert, Chris. "Wisconsin Highways: Highways 120-129 (Highway 120)". Wisconsin Highways. Retrieved 2007-03-20.
- ^ State Highway Commission of Wisconsin (March 2, 1937). Official Highway Map of Wisconsin (PDF) (Map). 1:887,040. Madison: State Highway Commission of Wisconsin. Retrieved December 16, 2021 – via Wikimedia Commons.
- ^ Bessert, Chris. "Highways 30–39". Wisconsin Highways. Retrieved February 11, 2008.[self-published source]
External links[edit]
Media related to Wisconsin Highway 120 at Wikimedia Commons
