Governor Kathy Hochul has signed a bill designating US Route 20 in New York as the New York Medal of Honor Highway.
Highway will honor 600 NY Medal of Honor recipients
A part of Route 20 will be further designated “The Disabled American Veterans – New York Medal of Honor Highway.” “By designating our portion of U.S. Route 20 as New York Medal of Honor Highway, we are joining a cross-country effort by nine other state governments to honor our service members who achieved the highest level of prestige,” Governor Hochul said. “By committing to this designation, New York will be able to honor its 600 recipients, one of which is the only woman recipient Dr. Mary Edwards Walker.”
Route 20 through Fredonia will honor Sergeant Jonathan Gollnitz
Route 20 through Fredonia will be designated as “Sergeant Jonathan Gollnitz Memorial-New York Medal of Honor Highway” in memory of the Fredonia native who was killed in Afghanistan in 2012.
The law takes effect in September. The state Department of Transportation will install signage along the route. The longest highway in the US, Route 20 runs 3,365 miles from Kenmore Square in Boston, Massachusetts to Newport, Oregon. Route 20 was known as the Boston-Buffalo Highway before the construction of the New York State Thruway and the Massachusetts Turnpike.
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