Oklahoma State Highway 17

SH-17 begins at U.S. Highway 277 in the north-central part of Elgin. SH-17 proceeds due east out of town for approximately 1+1⁄2 miles (2.4 km) before turning southeast. Around 2+1⁄2 miles (4.0 km) west of Sterling, the route returns to a due east course, then curves slightly to the south as it enters town.^[3] On the west side of town, SH-17 serves as the northern terminus of SH-65, which follows 5th Avenue southward out of town. SH-17 continues east through Sterling along Main Street.^[4]

East of Sterling, SH-17 crosses Beaver Creek near its source. About five miles (8.0 km) east of SH-65, SH-17 crosses the Comanche–Grady county line. The route then turns northeast, turning back east to follow the same line of latitude it originally followed in Elgin. The highway passes south of the ghost town of Acme.^[3] On the west side of Rush Springs, it intersects the US-81 expressway bypass of the town. SH-17 then continues east along Blakeley Avenue into downtown Rush Springs, where it ends at US-81's Rush Springs business loop.^[4]

The present-day State Highway 17 was commissioned between May 1936 and April 1937. Originally, the all-dirt highway began in Sterling and ran to Rush Springs; the Sterling–Elgin portion of the highway was at that time part of SH-65.^[5] However, at some point between April 1937 and April 1938, SH-65 was truncated to the south, and SH-17 was extended west to Elgin along the former route of SH-65.^[6] No further changes have been made to SH-17's route since.