This 1949 map scan shows the historic alignments of routes 8, 65 and 65A south of Shelton and Derby.

Route 65A was a 2.91-mile segment of former Route 65 in Trumbull and Shelton. In 1944, Route 65 was moved to a 2-lane bypass of the Nichols section of Trumbull, in the same alignment as today's Route 8 freeway; the old Route 65 became Route 65A.

Its path, from south to north:

• Huntington Tpke., from Penny Ave. to Shelton Rd.
• Shelton Rd. to Bridgeport Ave.

On Dec. 17, 1951, because of changes to Route 8 and Route 65, the state extended Route 113 along Shelton Rd. to end at Bridgeport Ave. This extension replaced most of Route 65A; the remainder, a segment of Huntington Tpke. west of Nichols Ave., became SR 711.

SR 711 happened to have a number that fit the new geographical scheme introduced in 1961, and is one of the handful of "secret routes" to have kept its number in the reclassification.

In 1963, Route 113 was changed again, replaced (mostly) by Route 108. The Shelton Rd. segment of former Route 65A is now locally maintained.