North Carolina Highway 742 (NC 742) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It connects the city of Wadesboro with the towns of Oakboro and Chesterfield, South Carolina.

Quick Facts Route information, Length ...

North Carolina Highway 742
Route information
Maintained by NCDOT
Length	35.9 mi[1] (57.8 km)
Existed	1936–present
Major junctions
South end	SC 742 at the South Carolina line
Major intersections	US 52 / US 74 / NC 109 in Wadesboro
North end	NC 205 in Oakboro
Location
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
Counties	Anson, Union, Stanly
Highway system
North Carolina Highway System Interstate US State Scenic
← NC 740 → NC 751

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NC 742 is a predominantly two-lane rural highway that begins at the South Carolina state line, where continuing south on South Carolina Highway 742 (SC 742) would lead to Chesterfield. In Wadesboro, it first runs concurrent with NC 109 before going through the downtown area. At the intersection of Caswell and Greene Streets, NC 742 switches from NC 109, which continues north to Mount Gilead, onto U.S. Route 52 (US 52) and US 74. 1.1 miles (1.8 km) later, NC 742 splits from US 74, which continues west towards Charlotte. After another three-tenths mile (0.48 km) and passing over the CSX rail line (originally known as the Seaboard Line), NC 742 splits with US 52, which continues north towards Albemarle.

For the next 17 miles (27 km), NC 742 travels through farmlands of northwestern Anson County, with the community of Burnsville located in the middle of it. NC 742 continues through the northeastern corner of Union County for 2.7 miles (4.3 km), with no major junctions. After crossing the Rocky River, it enters Stanly County; 2.3 miles (3.7 km) later it crosses into Oakboro city limits. As it nears its end in downtown Oakboro, it connects with NC 138 which towards Aquadale and Albemarle. Two blocks further, it ends at the intersection of Main and Second Street, with NC 205, which continues north to Red Cross and southwest to New Salem and Marshville.

NC 742 was established in 1936 as a new primary routing from US 74 in Wadesboro to NC 205 in Oakboro.^[2] Around 1947, NC 742 was extended south, over part of US 74 and NC 109, to the South Carolina state line, where it continues south as SC 742 (originally SC 850).^[3] In 1996, the routings of US 52 and NC 742 were adjusted in Wadesboro; they were removed from Salisbury Street and onto a new road further west that crossed over the railroad tracks.^[4]