Arizona State Route 51 (SR 51), also known as the Piestewa Freeway, is a numbered state highway in Phoenix, Arizona. It connects Interstate 10 just outside Downtown Phoenix with Loop 101 on the north side of Phoenix, making it one of the area's major freeways. It is a largely north–south route and is known for traversing the Piestewa Peak Recreation Area. The peak was named after Lori Piestewa, the first Native American woman to die in combat in the U.S. military. Prior to this time, the freeway was known as the Squaw Peak Parkway, a name considered offensive by Native Americans. Rapid growth and increased traffic demand on the east side of Metro Phoenix made the Piestewa Freeway necessary. The freeway was proposed at least as far back as 1955. It was intended to become part of a never-constructed Interstate 510. Route description SR 51 begins at an interchange with I-10 and Loop 202 immediately east of downtown Phoenix. The route heads north from the interchange through the northern sections of Phoenix. The freeway travels through some major areas of Phoenix and past some major services such as the Phoenix Children's Hospital, Arizona Heart Hospital and Heart Institute, and the Camelback Colonnade at 20th Street and Camelback Road. The highway then begins to climb to the top of Dreamy Draw, a mountain passage between Piestewa Peak and North Mountain, before descending into the Paradise Valley area of North Phoenix. It reaches its northern terminus at a three-way interchange with Loop 101 by Desert Ridge. The entire length of SR 51 features HOV lanes. History General Location of National System of Interstate Highways, a 1955 proposal for what would become the Interstate Highway System, included a spur freeway from what would become Interstate 10, proceeding north along a route similar to the modern Piestewa Freeway. The road was later designated I-510. The routing of the freeway later appeared in route logs in 1968 under the designation of State Route 510 and the name Squaw Peak Freeway. The freeway was originally named the Squaw Peak Parkway. The modern usage of the word squaw, which can be perceived as a derogatory term for Native American women, had led to guidelines from the U.S. Board on Geographic Names that the word should be phased out of the names of natural features. In 2003, Governor Janet Napolitano announced her intent to rename the peak for