Do you know who this well traveled Dayton roadway is named for?

Credit: Lisa Powell

Credit: Lisa Powell

Funding has been approved to add an additional lane on U.S. 35 from Steve Whalen Boulevard to Interstate 675.

While many drivers use the boulevard for their daily commute, the origin of its name may not be as familiar.

Steve Whalen Boulevard is named for Dayton Police Officer William Steven Whalen who was killed in the line of duty in 1991.

Officer Whalen was attempting a traffic stop on Xenia Avenue when a suspect opened fire with an AR-15 rifle from the rear window of a truck.

RELATED: U.S. 35 project receives funding

To honor the slain officer the former Hamilton-Wyoming Connector was renamed Steve Whalen Boulevard in 1992.

In 2014 a mural, painted by local students with Whalen’s likeness and positive messages, was dedicated along the boulevard.

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