SR 96 passes through the counties of Crawford, Richland and Ashland.

This extension followed the existing SR 96 west out of Shelby, along with what is now Crawford County Road 45 (Stetzer Road) west-southwesterly to a new western terminus in the eastern end of Bucyrus at Old Lincoln Highway, which at the time designated as US 30N.

[5][6] In 1971, coinciding with the completion of the US 30N (now mainline US 30) freeway bypass of Bucyrus, SR 96 was re-routed onto its present alignment through eastern Crawford County to its current western terminus at SR 98 northeast of Bucyrus.

[7][8] Then, by 1992, SR 96 was extended slightly on the eastern end.

With the re-routing of US 250 onto a northern bypass of Ashland that tied with the US 42 eastern bypass of the city, SR 96 was extended into the eastern end of Ashland along the former routing of US 250 to a new eastern terminus where US 250 re-joined its former alignment at the US 42 interchange (now a signalized intersection).