The section of present day State Highway 194 between U.S. 53 in Hermantown and downtown Duluth was authorized in 1933. The original alignment of this section was from U.S. 53 (Miller Trunk Highway) down Central Entrance to 6th Avenue East and then to Second and Third Streets in downtown Duluth (where it intersected then-Highway 61 as Second / Third Streets downtown). In 1991, the alignment of State Highway 194 on the Duluth hillside was changed from 6th Avenue East to Mesaba Avenue, southbound to Interstate 35. The section of Highway 61 that was signed on Second and Third Streets in downtown Duluth was eliminated at this time, due to the new I-35 extension around downtown Duluth completed in 1992.
