 Originally, it ran much farther to the north than its current terminus, passing from the Oklahoma–Kansas border south of Coldwater north through Greensburg, Kinsley, western sections of Pawnee County, La Crosse, Hays, Plainville, Stockton, and Phillipsburg to a northern terminus just northeast of the town of Woodruff.It terminated at K‑22, which was later known as U.S. Route 83, close to the border with Nebraska.In 1941, the majority of K‑1 (except the southernmost section) began to be replaced with US‑183, beginning with the section between Rozel and Plainville.