History of Secondary Highway 583:
Secondary Highway 583 is a local highway in the District of Cochrane which connects the small communities of Mead and Lac Ste. Therese to Highway 11 in the vicinity
of Hearst. Highway 583 was designated in two sections during 1956. Both the Coppell Road from Mead northerly to Hearst and the Lac Ste. Therese Road from Hearst
northerly to Lac Ste. Therese were first designated as Secondary Highway 583 by an Order-in-Council dated May 9, 1956. A Preliminary Route Plan was prepared by the
Department of Highways of Ontario (DHO) in May 1956, which showed the proposed assumption of these two roads as part of a new Secondary Highway. From the southern end
of the Lac Ste. Therese Road to Ninth Street in Hearst, Highway 583 shared an overlapped concurrent route with Highway 11. The new highway was reported to have a
length of 29.5 miles (47.5 km) originally, not including the overlapped section with Highway 11. Highway 583 was originally gravel-surfaced from Mead northerly to
Hearst and from Highway 11 northerly to Lac Ste. Therese. A primed bituminous surface was constructed along Highway 583 from Hearst southerly for 6 miles during 1967.
A bituminous surface treatment was completed north of Hearst to Lac Ste. Therese during 1968. Three miles of the highway were surface-treated south of Hearst in 1970
and an additional four miles of the highway were surfaced in 1972. The highway was first shown with a completely paved surface on the 1974 Edition of the Ontario
Official Road Map.
As originally assumed in the 1950s, the DHO did not acquire jurisdiction over the urban section of Highway 583 (Ninth Street) through the incorporated limits of the
Town of Hearst. A Municipal Connecting Link was established for this non-assumed section of Highway 583 in the early 1960s. The Municipal Connecting Link through
Hearst was designated by an Order-in-Council, effective October 20, 1960. This designation extended from the Highway 11 Junction southerly along Ninth Street to the
Mattawishkwia River Bridge at the southern entrance to town. This Municipal Connecting Link remained in effect until the late 1990s, when it was revoked by a
Minister's Order, effective January 21, 1999. However, the route of Highway 583 is still signed continuously through Hearst in order to provide connectivity between
the north and south legs of this highway.
The route of Highway 583 has essentially remained unchanged since the 1950s. Unless posted otherwise, the speed limit on Highway 583 is 80 km/h (50 mph). Services are
only available in Hearst.
| 
