Street). History Highway69 has undergone several major changes during its existence, so much so that the first section designated has not been a King's Highway for 60years and lay approximately from the current highway. In other places, a minor two-lane gravel highway has gradually been upgraded to a four-lane freeway. On August5, 1936, the DHO assumed the Rama Road, connecting Highway 12 at Atherley with Highway 11 at Washago. On March31, 1937, the Department of Northern Development (DND) was merged into the DHO, allowing the latter to extend the provincial highway network north of the Severn River. Subsequently, through August 1937, Highway69 was extended north to the Naiscoot River, midway between Pointe au Baril and Britt. This extension followed DND trunk routes to Nobel, where a munitions and aircraft factory would soon provide an instrumental role in the war effort. In the north, the road connecting Sudbury and Burwash was also assumed as Highway69 on August11. It was intended to connect these two segments over the next several years; however, the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 halted all non-essential construction due to the short supply of labour and materials. Although an extension from the Naiscoot River to Britt would open by 1940. Once the war ended, construction resumed to bridge the gap between the two sections of Highway 69. French River and Alban would be linked to the provincial highway network via Britt by 1952. This allowed motorists to take a far more direct route between Severn River and Sudbury, by taking advantage of a detour via Highway 535 and Highway64, through the small communities of Hagar and Noëlville. That same year also saw the rerouting of the southern end of the highway; the southern end was moved east from Atherley to Brechin and the Rama Road decommissioned as a provincial highway. The new routing was longer but gave the southern end of the highway a more significant purpose than as a bypass of Highway11. The Rama Road has since been known as Simcoe County Road44. The biggest gap that remained on Highway69 was between Alban and Burwash, but this was eliminated from 1952 to 1955, providing a third link from Southern Ontario to Northern Ontario (the other two being Highway11 and Highway17). Until Highway69 was completed between Parry Sound and Sudbury, drivers travelling between Southern Ontario and Sudbury or Sault Ste. Marie had to travel along