U.S. 19 carries four lanes through most of Cherokee County, running around Murphy to the south and Andrews to the north. This road is also signed as U.S. 129. 19 then meets the Nantahala River and runs through the deep Nantahala Gorge (photo at top). 

The highway serves Bryson City and carries four lanes through Cherokee. It then ascends the Plott Balsams, crossing the BRP (milepost 442) at Soco Gap (elevation 4337). It widens to four lanes again through Maggie Valley all the way east to Canton. Northwest of Waynesville, 19 shares pavement with U.S. 276. The highway hooks up with U.S. 23 in the Lake Junaluska area, and remains cosigned with it through Buncombe and part of Madison counties. 

Between Canton and Enka (I-40 exit 44), U.S. 19/23 carries three lanes -- a passing lane alternates in each direction every mile or so. 

In the Asheville area, U.S. 19/23 follows Smoky Park Drive, Patton Avenue and I-240 between exits 3 and 4A. It leaves 240 and runs north along the 19/23/70 freeway, passing Weaverville and eventually diverging from 23 north of Mars Hill as a two-lane road. 

The highway crosses from Madison into Yancey County at Ivy Gap, elevation 2980.  
 

Georgia to Andrews. From Georgia to Murphy, U.S. 19's original routing was: north over modern 19 for about a mile, then northeast over Martin Creek Road (SR 1556), then over Hiawassee Street through town. See Map #1. 129 was taken off Martin Creek Road and given its current alignment south of Murphy around 1951. The four-lane widening southwest of Murphy (that also carries 64, 74 and 129) was finished by 1970. 

Before the four-lane 19/129 between Murphy and Andrews was built, the highway ran over several different roads that parallel the modern 19 to the north. From Murphy 19 followed Valley River Avenue and Wilson Hill Street; these two roads now make up Business 19. It then followed vestigial Pleasant Valley Road (SR 1368; this road dead-ends before hitting modern 19), modern 19 and Old Tomotla Road (SR 1370). The highway followed Old Tomotla Road into the settlement of Tomotla. 

A VERY long time ago, 19 may have followed Regal Road (SR 1366) for about two miles northeast out of Murphy. This is unconfirmed. 

North of Tomotla, 19 followed the Southern RR (Great Smoky Mountain Railway) tracks, running along Tomotla Road (SR 1426), Maltby Road (SR 1374) and Airport Road (SR 1428). The latter road carried 19 almost all the way to Andrews. 

The modern four-lane 19 from Murphy north to Andrews, including the bridge over the Hiwassee River, dates from the late 1970s. Most of it was built as a brand-new road. The first four-lane segment was finished around Andrews by 1979; it was done all the way south to Murphy by 1981. 

U.S. 19 from Andrews north through the Nantahala Gorge has not changed significantly since the 1920s. 
 
Swain County. North of the Nantahala Gorge, 19 originally ran through the settlement of Almond, probably along modern N.C. 28. It then diverged east from modern 28 and crossed the Little Tennessee River, eventually rejoining modern 19 a few miles south of Bryson City. East of the river crossing, 19 ran along Lower Alarka Road (SR 1309). Map #2 below shows the original 19 (upper route through Almond) and the new 19 (lower route through Lauada). 
 

A five-mile stretch of U.S. 19 south of the modern U.S. 74 freeway, nearly identically the "new" 19 built in 1937, was widened to four lanes in the 1980s. 

Approaching Waynesville and Hazelwood from the south, the original 19 (along with 23) followed SR 1243 for several miles leading into town, then Main Street (Business U.S. 23) through Waynesville. 

In 1948, this original routing of 19 was renamed 19A, and modern 19 through the Cherokee area received its current alignment (Map #4). The modern 19 was previously numbered as N.C. 28 from Ela to Cherokee, and N.C. 293 from Cherokee to near Waynesville. These roads spent 1947 as U.S. 19A before becoming mainline 19. In preparation for signing the new (current) 19, the state built a new road south of Lake Junaluska and improved a primitive road west from Soco Gap to Cherokee. 

U.S. 19 was widened to four lanes around Maggie Valley, and along the stretch near Waynesville that coincides with U.S. 276, in the late 1960s. A gap between these four-lane stretches remained as two lanes until the 1990s.

These multilane portions of 19 predate I-40 by many years. 19/23 was once the only way to get to the Smokies from Asheville.

Around 1950, modern Patton Avenue west of downtown Asheville and across the French Broad River was built. (It would get rebuilt around 1969 with the construction of the eventual I-240.) Mainline U.S. 19 and 23 were that year rerouted entirely over Patton into downtown. The old roundabout route into downtown became 19A (Map #13 below). In time 19A became Business 19 as explained below. 

Around 1961, the East-West Expressway opened in Asheville. This freeway is now part of I-240 from the modern 19/23/70 interchange (Exit 4A) east to the Beaucatcher Tunnel. U.S. 19 and 23 -- but not 70, which still went through downtown -- were signed over the freeway when it opened. The former 19A/23A, since redesignated as Business 19/23, was rerouted slightly (Map #10 and description below). For a few years after the freeway's opening 19 exited it to follow Merrimon Avenue north. 

The modern 19/23/70 freeway in northern Buncombe County was built over several years, mostly as an all-new road. First came the bypass segment around Weaverville, which was finished around 1966 (Map #5). A few years later (date is uncertain), the freeway was extended south to modern I-240, and 19, 23 and 70 were taken off Merrimon Avenue and signed over it. By 1975, four lanes were complete past Weaverville all the way to the modern 19/23 split north of Mars Hill. The northernmost mile or two of this new road was not originally a freeway, but is now. Before the freeway existed, 19 in northern Buncombe County ran over parallel SR 2207. 
 
Madison County. U.S. 19 originally crossed from Buncombe into Madison County near where it does now. From the area near the bridge at the county line, old 19 ran north along SR 1610 for a short distance, then along Beech Glen Road (SR 1540) for several miles, first heading east and then north, eventually hooking back up with the modern 19 east of today's 19/23 divergence. The northern leg of Beech Glen Road may also be known as Middle Fork Road. 

19 was given its modern routing east of Mars Hill in late 1946 or early 1947. The current alignment, partially widened to four lanes in the 1970s as explained above, had previously been part of N.C. 36. Maps #6 and #7 show the change: The broken line running northeast-southwest in the 1947 map was part of 19/23 the year before. In 1946, 36 and 19/23 were connected only by an unpaved road. (Even though it is colored red, the N.C. 36 shown north of 36A was not a U.S. highway at the time. U.S. 23 followed U.S. 19 until the 1950s.) 

Further north, 19's ascent up to Ivy Gap used to run over Bethel Circle (SR 1511; short) and Old Mountain Road (SR 1507; longer and twisty). When these old roads were bypassed is uncertain. 

19E, 19W and... 19A? At first there was no 19E/W split. The original U.S. 19 ran over today's U.S. 19E (Map #8). Most of modern 19E still follows the original 19 today, with notable exceptions around Burnsville and Spruce Pine. 

19E and 19W was first created in early 1930. The split occurred in the same place it does today, about six miles west of Burnsville in Yancey County. 

For a short time in 1935, however, 19E and 19W apparently had different names. 19W was signed as mainline U.S. 19/23 (no letter suffix), and modern 19E was signed as Alternate 19 or A19 (Map #14 below). This arrangement only shows up on maps dated 1935. 
 

The U.S. 74 Nantahala Gorge bypass ($640 million; project A-9) may or may not carry U.S. 19. If it does, the current 19 through the gorge would probably get demoted to Business or Alternate status. The project calls for a mostly new four-lane road between Andrews and Bryson City, skirting the gorge to the north. Part of the four-lane road will run along modern N.C. 28. The project will not finish until well after 2008. 

The three-lane 19/23 from Canton east to N.C. 151 will be widened to four lanes starting in 2007 (8.6 miles; $33 million; project R-4406). 

The U.S. 19/23/70 freeway north of Asheville will be modernized as part of the I-26 project (A-10). Modernization of the 15-mile segment from I-240 north to N.C. 197 will start after 2006. $12.9 million has been budgeted. Part of the larger I-26 project included upgrading the short stretch of freeway north of 197, which was completed in the late 1990s. 

East of the new I-26, U.S. 19 and 19E will be upgraded to four lanes all the way to 19E's southern junction with N.C. 194. This is part of an ambitious effort to connect Asheville to Boone entirely by four-lane roads -- the state also wants to widen 194, U.S. 221 and N.C. 105 to do this. The U.S. 19/19E widening has been broken up into three projects: 

1. 19/23 split east to SR 1336 in Yancey County: 14.2 miles, $83 million, project R-2518. Construction is scheduled to start in 2004 in Madison County and 2006 in Yancey County. 

2. SR 1336 east to existing four-lane 19E in Spruce Pine: 15.5 miles, $92 million, project R-2519. Construction is scheduled to start in 2004 west of N.C. 80 and 2008 east of 80. 

3. Existing four-lane 19E in Spruce Pine northeast to N.C. 194: 10.3 miles, $40 million, project R-2520. Part of this project includes widening 194 east to its junction with U.S. 221. Construction will not start until after 2008. 
 

U.S. 19 through Cherokee County is a major thoroughfare, and near the Great Smoky Mountains it connects the twin tourist traps of Cherokee and Maggie Valley. But much of 19 is no longer a true primary artery. This is partly because the state has used U.S. 74 to indicate the fastest route west of Asheville. 

In Buncombe County 19 might as well not be signed, considering how it is cosigned with other roads throughout the entire county (as well as through parts of adjoining counties). In other places such as Bryson City and Canton, other, faster roads grab the spotlight. Nobody who is going from, say, Asheville to Murphy would take 19 the whole way anymore. 

That said, the most famous stretch of 19 remains that through the Nantahala Gorge. In the summer this road is slow going with whitewater rafters and other recreational users. The new bypass of the gorge will cut through a now-pristine part of the Nantahala National Forest, raising environmental issues. On the other hand, this is a necessary highway link in WNC's road network, and widening the existing road through the gorge is probably out of the question. 
 

The Murphy Business 19. Business 19 through Murphy (Cherokee County) runs over Hiawassee Street, Valley River Avenue and Wilson Hill Street (Map #9). This Business route was formed around 1980 when the modern four-lane 19/129 was built. For a few years it was also signed as Business 129. 

The Andrews Business 19. Business 19 through Andrews (Cherokee County) runs through Main Street. This was mainline 19 until the late 1970s. 

The Asheville Business 19. Business 19 through Asheville starts at Smoky Park Drive on the west side of town. It runs over Haywood Road and I-240, hooking back up with mainline 19 at the 240/Patton Avenue interchange (Exit 3). These roads are also signed as Business 23. 

Around 1961, mainline 19/23 was rerouted over the new East-West Expressway (now part of I-240). This meant that Business 19's eastern endpoint, Clingman Avenue, was no longer mainline 19, Patton Avenue. So Business 19 was rerouted from Haywood Road onto North Hanover Street, hitting Patton Avenue and the mainline route west of the French Broad River. North Hanover Street had been N.C. 191; now I-240 runs along it. 
 

The Weaverville Business 19. The Weaverville Highway north of Asheville and North Main Street through Weaverville are signed as Business 19/23. This road was part of mainline 19 (and 23) before the 19/23/25/70 freeway was built to the west of town in 1966. 
 

The Cherokee/Maggie 19A. Modern U.S. 19 between Ela and Clyde (i.e., through Cherokee and Maggie Valley and Soco Gap) was signed as 19A for a brief time around 1947. This road had been previously signed as N.C. 28 and 293, and by 1948 it was renamed as mainline 19. See Map #11. 
 

This route should have remained 19A all along. Considering the mountainous stretch around Soco Gap and the traffic around the tourist traps, this road is much slower than the "other" 19A (modern 74) ever was. It's moot now; the state has since used U.S. 74 to indicate the fastest route west of Asheville. 

The Dillsboro/Sylva 19A. The most well-known 19A dipped south of the modern 19 through Jackson and Haywood counties (Map #4 above). At first it diverged from mainline 19 near Ela in Jackson County, and ran through Dillsboro, Sylva and Waynesville before meeting its parent in Clyde. This had been the original mainline U.S. 19 from 1927 through about 1948. In 1948, 19 was given its modern routing through Cherokee and Maggie Valley, and the original 19 was renamed to 19A. Technically, 19 and 19A were switched. 

The modern U.S. 74 freeway between Bryson City and the U.S. 441 junction opened around 1976. 19A was extended along this new road, and the short older 19A through Whittier and Ela (SR 1195) was demoted to secondary status (Map #13). This meant 19A closely paralleled its unchanged mainline in the Bryson City area as a faster road. 
 

Other parts of this 19A were upgraded and widened gradually starting in the late 1960s. Work included freeway bypasses of Waynesville (late 1960s) and the Dillsboro/Sylva area (early 1970s). Official maps suggest the old routes through these towns were probably signed only as Business 23, as they are now, and never as Business 19A. 

This 19A was killed completely when U.S. 74 was extended west from Asheville over it in 1987. 

The Asheville 19A. Another 19A was signed through Asheville in the 1950s. It ran over the original 19/23 west of Pack Square as explained above. This 19A existed between 1950, when mainline 19 was rerouted onto new Patton Avenue, and 1960, when it was renamed Business 19. Compare Map #13 below with Map #10 above.