I-95 (aka the Connecticut Turnpike or Thruway — though definitely not the “John Davis Lodge Turnpike”) has been part of Westport for so long that its path through here, largely paralleling the railroad tracks, seems foreordained.
Of course, it was not.
In 1951 — when planning for the highway was underway — 2 different routes were proposed.
One was very similar to what was ultimately decided — though it appears a second, or alternate, exit was included, at the Compo Road South/Greens Farms Road/ Bridge street intersection. (Greens Farms Road was further south then than it is now.)
But a northern highway was also considered.
Two proposed routes, from the October 18, 1951 Westporter-Herald. Click on or hover over to enlarge.
It would veer off just after the Norwalk border. It would rip through Treadwell Avenue and Kings Highway South, cross over Post Road West (with an exit by Birchwood Country Club), then head east at Riverside Avenue (another possible exit).
The “expressway” would continue just south of Post Road East (known at the time as State Street East), obliterating residences in its path through Hillandale Road, then just south of Greens Farms Elementary School (another potential exit), and on eastward through Maple Avenue South.
At the Fairfield line, the highway would continue at what is now its current location.
Legend has it that the more southern route was chosen because the governor — a Westport resident — lived on Easton Road, closer to the northern path.
The governor’s name?
John Davis Lodge.
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50 Years Ago This Week:
The Staples High School boys soccer team, coached by Albie Loeffler, earned its 5th consecutive state title (a Connecticut record).
Jimmy Manning headed in a beautiful cross from Kenny Murphy in sudden-death overtime to defeat #1-ranked Manchester. The upstaters had a perfect record going into the state final.
Staples finished 13-1-5.
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