ELi5 – How are street adresses determined / how do they get numbered?

Question

ELi5 – How are street adresses determined / how do they get numbered?

In: 59

Answer 1

Where I live (rural area), our addresses are distance from where our major N/S highway intersects our major E/W highway.

So if your address is 5864 E 850 N, the road you live on is 850N which is 8.5 miles north on the n/s highway from the intersection, and then you’d turn east on 850N off the highway and drive 5.864 miles which will put you right in front of their mailbox, but possibly past their driveway.

There are few non-numerical road names outside of city limits, but those that have actual names travel from one road to another, but do not continue through the intersection on either end. Or at least I’ve never seen one that does.