The highway was authorized as "State Highway 35" on November 2, 1920. Originally, it began at Highway 18 on the northwestern shore of Mille Lacs Lake near Nichols. It ran north to Grand Rapids and turned east-northeast through the Iron Range to Ely. By 1923, the only paved portion was from Grand Rapids to Chisholm, and the highway was still unimproved for several miles north of Hill City. This segment was graveled that year, and the portion from Chisholm to Aurora was paved as well. The highway was paved from Tower to Ely in the late 1920s.