U.S. Route 75 in Iowa

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This article is about the section of U.S. Route 75 in Iowa. For the entire route, see U.S. Route 75.

U.S. Highway 75 marker

U.S. Highway 75

Map
US 75 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by Iowa DOT
Length80.010 mi[1] (128.764 km)
ExistedJuly 1, 1926 (1926-07-01)[2]–present
Major junctions
South end I-129 / US 20 / US 75 at Sioux City
Major intersections
North end
US 75
north of Rock Rapids
Location
CountryUnited States
StateIowa
Counties
Highway system
← I-74→ Iowa 76

U.S. Highway 75 (US 75) is a

United States Highway in northwestern Iowa. It begins at the Missouri River on a bridge with Interstate 129 (I-129) and US 20. Immediately upon landing in Iowa from Nebraska, I-129 ends at an interchange with I-29. US 20 and US 75 continue around Sioux City on a four-lane expressway until US 20 exits to the east. US 75 heads to the north-northeast, parallel to the Floyd River, until Le Mars. There, Iowa Highway 60 (Iowa 60) continues northeastward on the expressway while US 75 heads due north. Near Hull, it is briefly overlapped by US 18. It leaves the state and enters Minnesota north of Rock Rapids
.

US 75 was one of the original U.S. Highways to be created in 1926, though its roots trace back nine years prior to the creation of the

Primary Road No. 12
(No. 12) from Council Bluffs to Sioux City and the western branch and No. 22 along the eastern branch. In 1926, the U.S. Highway 75 name was applied through Iowa to Primary Roads No. 12 and 22, the King of Trails route.

In the 1950s, US 75's importance began to wane as I-29 was built along the Missouri River. As sections of the Interstate Highway opened up between Council Bluffs and Sioux City, US 75 were rerouted onto the new road. In 1984, the southern half of US 75 was removed from Iowa and rerouted into Nebraska. Today, the highway is still an important part of Iowa's highway system. In the late 1990s and throughout the 2000s, the highway along with Iowa 60 were improved into a continuous four-lane expressway between Sioux City and Minnesota.

Route description

US 75 enters Iowa on the Sergeant Floyd Memorial Bridge, which also carries

Union Pacific.[3]

US 75 in Hinton

In

business route through the city. On the western side, an interchange with Iowa 3 helps direct more traffic to the downtown area. The last Le Mars interchange takes US 75 off of the four-lane road; Iowa 60 assumes the expressway. At the end of the exit ramp, US 75 reconnects with the business loop and the highway heads north.[3]

Now on a two-lane road, US 75 heads due north. The BNSF Railway line and West Branch Floyd River, which previously split away from the course of the highway, rejoin the highway near Maurice. Two miles (3.2 km) north of Maurice is an intersection with Iowa 10, which connects to Orange City and Alton to the east and Hawarden to the west. A curve in the railway forces the highway to deviate from its due-north path, though it shortly resumes that course; the river again departs here. As the road enters Sioux Center, it becomes a four-lane, undivided highway again. It passes through the city's downtown area and then through the industrial district. North of the town, the road becomes three lanes for a short while, and then two lanes again as it approaches US 18 near Hull. The two highways overlap for one mile (1.6 km) before US 18 turns to the west.[3]

North of US 18, US 75 continues on its due-north course. It is crossed twice by the BNSF Railway line as the railroad tracks curve to the northwest. Near

section lines do not line up with Minnesota's section lines, so US 75 turns west to follow the boundary.[5] After a short distance, the road then turns north and enters the state completely.[3]

History

US 75 was created in 1926 with the U.S. Highway System, but its route dates back to 1917 when the King of Trails Association formed. The King of Trails entered Iowa at

Interstate 29 (I-29) was built along the banks of the Missouri River, US 75 was gradually moved on Interstate Highway. The portion of the highway south of Sioux City was moved into Nebraska in 1984.[8]

King of Trails

King of Trails marker

King of Trails

LocationCouncil Bluffs–Sioux City
Sioux City–Luverne, Minnesota
Existed1918–1926

The

Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Galveston, Texas.[9] As it was first planned out in July 1917, the road would connect 89 cities with populations over 1000 residents and nine military posts.[10] Through Iowa, the King of Trails entered at Council Bluffs and traveled north along the Missouri River through Onawa and Salix before it reached Sioux City. There, the route divided into two forks which met again at Ortonville, Minnesota. The western branch followed the Big Sioux River through the eastern tier of counties in South Dakota. The eastern branch traveled through Le Mars and Rock Rapids before entering Minnesota.[11] There had been some competition between advocates for the South Dakota–Minnesota and Iowa–Minnesota routes, but in early 1918, compromise was reached and both forks were designated as the King of Trails.[6]

Primary highways

In 1919, the Iowa General Assembly passed a bill that created a fund for improving and hard-surfacing nearly 6,300 miles (10,100 km) of primary roads in the state. The primary road system was to connect every city and town with at least 1000 inhabitants.[12] The bill gave Iowa's 99 counties the responsibility for maintaining the roads, which had previously fallen upon road associations that sponsored their respective highways.[13] The new primary roads were assigned route numbers, a trend in other Midwestern states. Route numbers were painted onto telegraph and telephone poles in order to guide travelers without the need for maps.[14] The King of Trails route was assigned two numbers: Primary Road No. 12 from Council Bluffs to Sioux City, which included the western fork into South Dakota, and Primary Road No. 22 from Sioux City to Minnesota.[7]

U.S. Highway origins

Iowa US 75 shield
Iowa US 75 shield

In the mid-1920s, automobile associations continued to sponsor their named routes — there were 64 such named routes in Iowa — on top of the route numbers given by the state highway commission. This proved to be more confusing than helpful to the casual traveler, so in 1924, the

U.S. Highway System was established, the automobile association-sponsored roads gradually disappeared.[15]

Original routing

US 75 and

Missouri River flats. At Mondamin, the highway turned north again to run roughly parallel to the Missouri River. It passed through Little Sioux, River Sioux, and Blencoe before meeting Iowa 37 in Onawa.[16]

4th Street in Sioux City

North of Onawa to the Monona–Woodbury county line, US 75 headed north-northwest on a gravel road. After crossing into Woodbury County near Sloan, a long section of paved road began. The road headed north-northwest through Whiting and Sloan. At Sergeant Bluff, it turned north toward Sioux City. Upon entering the city, US 75 followed Lakeport Road until reaching Morningside Avenue, which carried Iowa 141. US 75 turned west to follow Morningside Avenue past the eponymous college. The routes followed a stair-step routing until they reached Correctionville Road, which carried US 20. The three routes crossed the Floyd River together and entered downtown Sioux City along 4th Street. At Court Street, they diverged; US 20 and Iowa 141 continued west along 4th and US 75 turned north onto Court. When it reached 27th Street, the route turned back to the east toward Floyd Avenue, onto which it turned. Floyd Avenue headed northeast; it became Leeds Road upon exiting the city.[16]

North of Sioux City, US 75 followed a paved road that ran parallel to the Floyd River and two rail lines, the

Iowa 27 a few blocks west of downtown. North of Le Mars, US 75 followed a gravel road that roughly traveled due north; it passed near Struble and Maurice, intersected Iowa 10 and then went through Sioux Center. At Perkins, the highway intersected US 18 and the two highways headed north, then west, and then north again for a few miles. At Doon, US 18 turned west to go toward Inwood. US 75 eased back to the east to reach Rock Rapids and Iowa 9. The highway moved back to the west and entered Minnesota.[16]

Improvements

The system of auto trails that coursed through Iowa prior to the U.S. Highway System were routed to bring tourist traffic through the towns along the trails. Oftentimes, trail routes were determined by which cities had paid dues to the trail's association.

Iowa 167 was created to serve the town. In Sioux City, the road was shifted west to near the Missouri River, past the Sergeant Floyd Memorial along Lewis Road and Plymouth Street. In later years, the road would be straightened through Sioux City again and renamed Lewis Boulevard. The former alignment on Lakeport Road and Morningside Avenue became Iowa 230.[22]

Decline

Further information: Interstate 29 in Iowa § History

The

US 30 Alternate, which had replaced the mainline US 30, was the only remaining route along the old Lincoln Highway.[24] A new bridge for I-480 adjacent to the Ak-Sar-Ben Bridge opened in 1966. Within a few years, I-29 was complete between Council Bluffs and Sioux City and US 75 was shifted off of its two-lane road and onto the Interstate Highway.[25][26]

In Sioux City, US 75 exited I-29 at Industrial Road, now known as Singing Hills Boulevard, which was a short connector to Lewis Boulevard.

AASHTO a number of changes that would alter the highway systems of both states. Nebraska proposed that US 73, which ended at US 20 in South Sioux City would be truncated and its northern end pulled all the way back to an intersection with US 75 in southeastern Nebraska. Iowa and Nebraska jointly proposed moving US 75 out of Iowa between Council Bluffs and Sioux City, from the redundant I-29 corridor, and onto the corridor abandoned by US 73. The proposed changes were approved.[8] Iowa DOT officials made the transfer official on December 5, 1984.[27] Now a much shorter highway within Iowa, it entered the state on the I-129 bridge with US 20. Upon entering the state, northbound US 75 immediately exited onto southbound I-29 in order to reach Singing Hills Boulevard and resume its course.[28]

Modernization

While the highway south of Sioux City was growing less important due to the construction of I-29, the highway north of Sioux City was growing in importance. In the late 1950s, US 75 was widened to four lanes from Lewis Boulevard in Sioux City to Le Mars.[24][29] In 1968, the state highway commission slated a number of important corridors, including the Sioux City to Minnesota corridor, which comprised US 75 and then-Iowa 33, to be expanded to a four-lane expressway. These corridors were to be completed with the highest priority once the Interstate Highway System was completed in the state.[30] However, only the section of the corridor between Sioux City and Le Mars was improved by the end of the 20th century.[31]

In the late 1990s, the Iowa DOT once again identified six corridors in need of upgrading to four lane highway. One of those corridors was US 75 and

business route.[36]

Major intersections

CountyLocationmi[1]kmExitDestinationsNotes
Missouri River0.0000.000


 I-129 west / US 20 west / US 75 south – South Sioux City		Continuation into Nebraska
Sergeant Floyd Memorial Bridge; Nebraska–Iowa state line
US 75 Bus. – Council Bluffs, Sioux Gateway Airport, Downtown Sioux City
Exit numbers follow I-129; signed as exits 1A (south) and 1B (north) northbound; no exit number southbound; northern end of I-129 overlap
1.7422.8031Lakeport StreetExit numbers follow US 20
2.8674.6142Sunnybrook Drive
3.4095.4863Morningside AvenueFormer
Iowa 982
4.060–
4.542		6.534–
7.310		4
93
US 20 Bus. west (Gordon Drive) – Fort Dodge
Northern end of US 20 overlap; signed as exits 4A (east) and 4B (west) northbound; exit 93 on US 75 south
7.85412.64097Outer Drive North / 28th Street
9.86615.87899 CR D12 (46th Street) / Floyd BoulevardNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
10.281–
10.850		16.546–
17.461
US 75 Bus.
to CR D12 (Floyd Boulevard) / 46th Street		Southbound exit and northbound entrance
Iowa 470
)		Former US 75
22.89236.841Main Street (
Iowa 470
)		Former US 75
US 75 Bus. north (24th Street SW) – Airport
US 75 Business signed northbound only
America Township28.73746.248118 Iowa 3 (Plymouth Street) – Business District
30.951–
31.373		49.811–
50.490
US 75 Bus. south (5th Avenue NW) / Iowa 60 north – Sheldon, Alton, Le Mars
US 75 Business signed southbound only; Iowa 60 exit 120
SiouxSherman–West Branch
township line		43.72670.370 Iowa 10 – Hawarden, Orange City
Lincoln Township56.78791.390
 US 18 east – Hull		Southern end of US 18 overlap
57.78592.996
 US 18 west – Rock Valley		Northern end of US 18 overlap
LyonRock Rapids73.780118.737
 Iowa 9 east (Main Street east)		Eastern end of Iowa 9 overlap
Riverside Township74.788120.360
 Iowa 9 west – Lester, Larchwood		Western end of Iowa 9 overlap
US 75 north – Luverne
Continuation into Minnesota
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

Footnotes

  1. ^
    ESRI shapefile
    )    . Ames: Iowa Department of Transportation. April 9, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  2. ^
    Iowa State Highway Commission
    : 3–6. 1925.
  3. ^ a b c d e Iowa Department of Transportation (2014). State of Iowa Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa Department of Transportation. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
  4. ^ Google (March 26, 2017). "Map of Hinton, Iowa" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  5. ^ Office of Transportation System Management (2015). General Highway Map of Rock County, Minnesota (PDF) (Map). St. Paul: Minnesota Department of Transportation. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
  6. ^
    Newspaperarchive.com. Open access icon
  7. ^ a b Iowa State Highway Commission (1919). State of Iowa Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa State Highway Commission. Retrieved May 15, 2016.
  8. ^ a b Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering (May 23, 1984). "Route Numbering Committee Agenda" (Report). Washington, DC: American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. p. 5. Retrieved May 23, 2013 – via Wikisource.
  9. ^ "Meetings". Good Roads. 14 (3). The E.L. Powers Co.: 37 July 21, 1917. Retrieved May 1, 2015 – via Google Books.
  10. ^ "New International Road". American Motorist. 9. American Automobile Association: 40. August 1917. Retrieved May 1, 2015 – via Google Books.
  11. Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  12. ^ "Iowa's new road law provides pay-as-you-go plan for improving and hardsurfacing 6,278 miles of highway". Service Bulletin Supplement March–April 1919. 7 (3–4). Iowa State Highway Commission: 3. 1919. Retrieved May 15, 2016 – via Google Books.
  13. ^ "Iowa Registered Routes". Iowa Department of Transportation. Retrieved May 15, 2016.
  14. ^ "Iowa primary roads to be marked with official standard symbol and number July 12 to 17". Service Bulletin May–June 1920. 8 (5–6). Iowa State Highway Commission: 3. 1920. Retrieved May 15, 2016 – via Google Books.
  15. ^ a b Thompson (1989), p. 146
  16. ^ a b c Iowa State Highway Commission (1927). State of Iowa Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa State Highway Commission. Retrieved May 16, 2016.
  17. ^ Weingroff, Richard F. "From names to numbers: the origins of the U.S. Numbered Highway System". Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved May 22, 2016.
  18. ^ Iowa State Highway Commission (1929). State of Iowa Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa State Highway Commission. Retrieved May 22, 2016.
  19. ^ Iowa State Highway Commission (1930). State of Iowa Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa State Highway Commission. Retrieved May 22, 2016.
  20. Gross Domestic Product deflator
    figures follow the MeasuringWorth series.
  21. Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  22. ^ Iowa State Highway Commission (1939). State of Iowa Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa State Highway Commission. Retrieved May 22, 2016.
  23. State of Iowa. 1957. pp. 45–48. Archived from the original on June 11, 2016. Retrieved May 22, 2016 – via Google Books
    .
  24. ^ a b Iowa State Highway Commission (1959). State of Iowa Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa State Highway Commission. Retrieved May 22, 2016.
  25. ^ Iowa State Highway Commission (1969). State of Iowa Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa State Highway Commission. Retrieved May 22, 2016.
  26. ^ Completion Map of Interstate System (PDF) (Map). Iowa Department of Transportation. January 1, 1982. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 25, 2017. Retrieved May 22, 2016.
  27. ^ a b Cain, Patrick R.; Knight, Peggy. "Primary route descriptions — U.S. 75 (Woodbury County)". Iowa Department of Transportation. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  28. ^ Iowa Department of Transportation (1986). State of Iowa Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa Department of Transportation. Sioux City inset. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  29. ^ Iowa State Highway Commission (1958). State of Iowa Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa State Highway Commission. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  30. ^ Thompson (1989), pp. 249–250
  31. ^ Iowa Department of Transportation (2000). State of Iowa Transportation Map (PDF) (Map). Ames: Iowa Department of Transportation. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
  32. ^ Richardson, Nancy (December 2005). "One 2 One" (PDF). Inside. Iowa Department of Transportation: 2.
  33. ^ Yoder, Dave. "New U.S. 75 bypass opens". Sioux City Journal. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  34. ^ Morris, Sue (February 17, 2003). "Le Mars bypass will have three access points". Le Mars Daily Sentinel. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  35. ^ Biesanz, Magdalene (November 22, 2006). "Second portion of Le Mars Bypass opens". Le Mars Daily Sentinel. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  36. ^ Biesanz, Magdalene (September 18, 2007). "City prepares to take over Business 75". Le Mars Daily Sentinel. Retrieved May 23, 2016.

Works cited

  • Thompson, William H. (1989). Transportation in Iowa: A Historical Summary. Ames: Iowa Department of Transportation.
    ISBN 0-9623167-0-9
    .

External links

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U.S. Route 75
Previous state:
Nebraska 		Iowa Next state:
Minnesota
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