Iowa Highways: 60 to 69

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Iowa 60 (I)
Designated: July 1, 1920 Decommissioned: January 1, 1969
Original northern terminus: IA 10 (later IA 3) at Goldfield; it was extended northward to US 18 at Wesley on July 8, 1931. Between 1934 and 1937 the north end was shifted to the Kossuth/Hancock county line east of Wesley.
Original southern terminus: IA 2 (later US 32, then US 6) at Des Moines; it was extended southward along former IA 6 (II) to the Missouri state line on December 1, 1931. (The number was approved by the Highway Commission on October 27 but was not changed until US 32 became US 6.)
Paving history: There were no paved segments at designation.
  • 1922: Paved from Polk City to Des Moines
  • 1923: Paved from Polk/Dallas county line south of Madrid to Polk City
  • 1929: Paved from the western split with US 20 in Hamilton County to Webster City (multiplexed segment with US 20)
  • 1930: Paved from US 30 east of Boone to the Polk/Dallas county line south of Madrid
  • 1931: Paved segment from Des Moines to IA 277 east of Numa was added to the highway by the end of the year
  • 1932: Paved from Goldfield to Eagle Grove
  • 1933: Paved from Eagle Grove to the Wright/Hamilton county line
  • 1936: Paved from the Wright/Hamilton county line to the western split with US 20
  • 1949: Paved from a point south of Centerville to Cincinnati
  • 1955: Segments from US 18 east of Wesley to IA 3 west of Goldfield and from Cincinnati to the Missouri state line upgraded from bituminous to paved. The last segment, from Webster City to US 30, had a bituminous surface at the time of decommissioning.

    • Major alignment changes:
  • November 1932: Realigned between Wesley and a county road (now C20) north of Renwick to follow the Kossuth/Hancock county line, creating IA 256 to serve Corwith. The previous route followed present-day county roads R18, B55, and R14.
  • April 27, 1949: Realigned between a point south of Centerville and Cincinnati, replacing the northernmost 1½ miles of IA 216. An extension of IA 277 replaced part of the old alignment, which followed present-day gravel County Road T20 south of the former 277 (now J46).
  • 1951: Realigned south of Cincinnati on a new bituminous alignment; the old alignment followed present-day County Roads J54 and S74, which are still gravel.
  • July 29, 1953: Rerouted in Des Moines via SE 14th Street (US 65/69) and Army Post Road. It had previously followed Grand Avenue, Southeast 30th Street, and Vandalia Road.
  • June 13, 1959: Rerouted around the Des Moines area via a new road between Madrid and Granger, IA 141, I-35, and Army Post Road. It had previously followed 2nd Avenue into downtown Des Moines.
  • For other alignment changes in the Des Moines area not listed here, see the Highways of Des Moines page.

    • Replaced by:
  • IA 46 (III) (between IA 163 and Army Post Road in 1953).
  • IA 415 (between Polk City and US 6 in 1959). The segment between Polk City and a point south of Madrid became a county road (later numbered R6F) until it became part of IA 415 in 1980.
  • IA 17 (north of the IA 141 junction at decommissioning).
  • IA 5 (south of I-35 at decommissioning).
    		•
    Iowa 60
    Length: 59 miles/93 kilometers
    Northern terminus: Minnesota state line near Bigelow, MN; continuation of MN 60
    Southern terminus: US 75 north of Le Mars
    Terminus photos

    Counties: Osceola, O'Brien, Plymouth, Sioux
    Cities along route: Sibley, Ashton, Sheldon, Hospers, Alton

    NHS: Entire route
    Freeway segments:
  • 3 miles, from the IA 10 exit east of Alton to 470th Street south of Alton
  • 3 miles, from the Sioux/O'Brien county line to US 18 east of Sheldon
  • 6 miles, bypass to the east and south of Sibley

    • Expressway segments:
  • 13 miles, from US 75 at Le Mars to the south end of the Alton bypass
  • 15 miles, from the IA 10 exit near Alton to the Sioux/O'Brien county line southwest of Sheldon
  • 14 miles, between a point south of Sibley and US 18 east of Sheldon
  • 5 miles, from the Iowa/Minnesota border to IA 9 in northern Osceola County

    • Exit lists: Segment from US 75 in Le Mars to the Iowa/Minnesota state line
    History
    Designated: January 1, 1969, to the old IA 33 in northwest Iowa so it would connect with MN 60
    Paving history: The entire road was paved at the time of designation.
    Upgrades:
  • September 16, 2004: 5-mile freeway/expressway segment, including a bypass of Alton, opens in Sioux County. The old segment through Alton became the unsigned IA 404 (II).
  • December 2005: 13-mile segment between Alton and Sheldon opens
  • June 2006: 11-mile expressway segment between Le Mars and Alton opens, as did a 9-mile expressway segment between a point north of the O'Brien/Osceola county line and a point near the Sibley airport (including a bypass of Ashton). The IA 404 designation was assigned to the bypassed segments through Seney and Ashton but the three bypassed IA 60 segments had been turned over to local control by the end of 2006. Also, according to the Wisconsin Numbering State Trunk Highways document, the former diagonal IA 60 segment north of Le Mars was designated as IA 960 when it was bypassed but the road is no longer under state control according to the map of Plymouth County.
  • October 6, 2006: 10-mile bypass of Sheldon opens
  • September 2007: 3-mile expressway segment north of IA 9 opens
  • October 31, 2007: 6-mile freeway/expressway segment opens between the Sibley airport and IA 9 to complete the Sibley bypass, with the IA 404 designation replacing the old IA 60 in Sibley. (The south interchange into Sibley did not open until July 2008 and old IA 60 was transferred to local control by the end of the year.)
  • November 2008: 2-mile expressway segment opens between the Minnesota state line and the north end of the Sibley four-lane segment. This segment was constructed by Minnesota as part of its bypass of Bigelow. With the completion of this last segment, all of IA 60 is now a four-lane divided highway.
    		•
    Notes
    One of the most-traveled highways in northwest Iowa, IA 60 has been upgraded to four-lane expressway status. (Minnesota's long-term plan is to follow suit with its remaining two-lane stretches of MN 60, as this would create an expressway along US 75, IA/MN 60, and US 169 from Sioux City to Mankato, MN, to Minneapolis.) The four-lane link between Bigelow and I-90 at Worthington is tentatively scheduled for completion by the fall of 2013.
    Business IA 60
  • Sheldon: Created along old IA 60 (2nd Avenue) and US 18 (Park Street) after the bypass opened in October 2006. Signage was minimal along US 18 at first but has improved as of mid-2008. (Terminus photos)
    		•
    Iowa 61
    Designated: July 1, 1920 Decommissioned: October 16, 1926
    Original western terminus: IA 28 at Anamosa
    Original eastern terminus: IA 6 at Clinton
    Paving history: There were no paved segments at designation.
  • 1923: Short segment west of Clinton paved
  • 1924: Segment from Charlotte to Clinton paved; this was the only paved segment at decommissioning.
    Replaced by:
  • IA 117 (I) (between Anamosa and Maquoketa)
  • US 61 (duplicate segment with IA 20 south of Maquoketa)
  • IA 136 (between US 61 and Clinton). The number has since been used for US 61.
    • Iowa 62
    Length: 20 miles/32 kilometers
    Northern terminus: US 52 in Bellevue
    Southern terminus: IA 64 in Maquoketa
    Terminus photos

    Counties: Jackson
    Cities along route: Bellevue, Andrew, Maquoketa
    History
    Designated: July 1, 1920. Before US 52 was built in the early 1930s as US 55, it was merely a long spur from US 61 in Maquoketa to Bellevue.
    Paving history: There were no paved segments at designation. A short segment southwest of Bellevue was paved in 1930; the rest of the road remained gravel until 1961.
    Iowa 63
    Designated: July 1, 1920 Decommissioned: October 16, 1926
    Original northern terminus: IA 7 at Grinnell
    Original southern terminus: IA 2 at Oskaloosa; it was truncated at New Sharon on November 3, 1924, eliminating a redundant multiplex with IA 59. (This segment became part of the relocated US 63 in 1934.)
    Paving history: There were no paved segments.
    Replaced by: IA 146 (at decommissioning). The number has since been used for US 63.
    Iowa 64 (I)
    Designated: July 1, 1920 Decommissioned: December 11, 1936
    Original northern terminus: IA 6 (US 30) at Colo
    Original southern terminus: IA 7 (US 32, later US 6) at Colfax; it was extended southward to US 63 at Prairie City in 1927.
    Paving history: There were no paved segments.
    Replaced by: IA 117 in a route number swap.
    Iowa 64
    Length: 64 miles/103 kilometers
    Western terminus: US 151 in Anamosa
    Eastern terminus: Illinois state line (Mississippi River) at Sabula with US 52; continues as IL 64.
    Terminus photos
    IA 64 and IA 48 are the only two routes in Iowa where the rounded length of the route (in miles) is the same as that of the highway number.

    Counties: Jones, Jackson
    Cities along route: Anamosa, Wyoming, Monmouth, Baldwin, Maquoketa, Preston, Miles, Sabula

    Multiplexes:
  • 2 miles with IA 38 in southern Jones County
  • 1 mile with IA 136 through Wyoming
  • 3½ miles with US 52, from west of Sabula to the Illinois state line; they stay together for an additional 28 miles in Illinois.
    		•
    History
    Designated: December 11, 1936 (number approved November 25), replacing the former IA 117 (I) and following part of US 161 (later US 151) in order to create a continuously-numbered road between Cedar Rapids and Chicago
    Paving history: At the time of designation, the segment from Cedar Rapids to Maquoketa and the multiplex with US 52 were paved.
  • 1937: Paved from Maquoketa to a county road (now Y60) north of Delmar
  • 1938: Paved from the county road north of Delmar to Preston
  • 1939: Paved from Preston to Miles; the extension to Council Bluffs was entirely paved.
  • 1940: Last segment, from Miles to US 52, was paved.

    • Major alignment changes:
  • July 22, 1939 (routing approved June 20): IA 64 was re-routed from one end of the state to the other, connecting US 6 in Council Bluffs with Illinois' route 64 at Savanna via Des Moines, Marshalltown, and Cedar Rapids. Along the way it had taken the route of IA 7 (I) between Des Moines and Council Bluffs, and the diagonal IA 88 between Des Moines and Marshalltown.
    This approximately 350-mile route was the longest in the state at the time. It involved a lot of multiplexing with US highways, though: IA 64 ran 12 miles with US 59 between Avoca and Harlan, 10 miles with US 6 through Des Moines, 17 miles with US 65 northeast of Des Moines (including about five miles with US 6), and 70 miles with US 30 from near Marshalltown to Cedar Rapids in addition to the existing 27 miles with US 151 between Cedar Rapids and Anamosa.
  • 1947: Route straightened through Marshall County (with US 30), with part of the old highway becoming IA 330.
  • September 25, 1954: Rerouted between Le Grand and Tama on a new alignment (with US 30), engulfing IA 135 (I) and creating IA 135 (II) into Montour. The old segments are now parts of IA 146 and County Road E49.
  • November 19, 1958: Realigned around Des Moines after relocated IA 141 and the first segment of I-35/I-80 were completed. IA 64 followed IA 60 (I) and IA 141 south of Grimes and I-35/80 to the Merle Hay Road exit. (Part of old IA 64, along Merle Hay Road, had been redesignated as IA 401 and is now IA 28.)
  • August 12, 1959: Re-routed along part of IA 191 between Neola and Portsmouth and IA 39 (I) between Portsmouth and Harlan. IA 83 replaced the old IA 64 segment between Neola and Avoca.
  • November 17, 1960: Moved onto the newly-completed segment of I-80 between Merle Hay Road and US 65 near Altoona; an extension of IA 401 replaced the old segment along Merle Hay Road.
  • November 1965: Two-lane bypass around Anamosa, with US 151, opens; the old segment into Anamosa became IA 428 (I).
  • January 1, 1969: Truncated west of Anamosa, eliminating all duplexes except the one with US 52 into Illinois. The other standalone segments became IA 191 (from Council Bluffs to Portsmouth), IA 44 (from Portsmouth to Grimes), and IA 330 (from US 65 to US 30). The link with IL 64, which runs through north-central Illinois before ending at Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, was retained.
  • For street alignments in Council Bluffs, see Jeff Morrison's Council Bluffs/Omaha Highway Chronology page.
  • For street alignments in the Des Moines area, see the Highways of Des Moines page.
  • For street alignments in the Cedar Rapids area, see the Highways of Cedar Rapids page.
    		•
    Notes
    A replacement for the Savanna-Sabula Bridge, which dates back from 1932, is programmed for construction in 2016.
    Iowa 65
    Designated: July 1, 1920 Decommissioned: October 16, 1926
    Original northern terminus: IA 24 at Indianola; it was truncated at IA 1 (I) south of Indianola on November 3, 1924, eliminating a redundant multiplex with that highway.
    Original southern terminus: Lucas; it was truncated to IA 8 west of the city on January 6, 1925
    Paving history: There were no paved segments.
    Replaced by: IA 137 (I) (at decommissioning). The number has since been used for US 65, which would replace the original IA 137 in 1934.
    Iowa 66 (I)
    Designated: July 1, 1920 Decommissioned: December 1, 1930
    Original northern terminus: Humeston
    Original southern terminus: IA 3 in western Wayne County
    Paving history: There were no paved segments.
    Replaced by: An extension of IA 137 (I)
    Iowa 66 (II)
    Designated: December 1, 1930 (number approved October 1) Decommissioned: July 1, 2003
    Original northern terminus: Diagonal; between May 12, 1948, and 1954 it was extended northward along a dirt road to US 34 near Creston.
    Original southern terminus: IA 3 (I), later IA 2, east of Benton
    Paving history: There were no paved segments at designation; the remaining segment from Diagonal to IA 2 was paved in 1955.
    Replaced by: County Road P33
    Terminus photos
    Iowa 67
    Designated: July 1, 1920 Decommissioned: December 4, 1934
    Original northern terminus: IA 3 (now IA 2) near Promise City
    Original southern terminus: Seymour
    Paving history: There were no paved segments.
    Replaced by: IA 55; the number has since been used for US 67.
    Iowa 68
    Designated: July 1, 1920 Decommissioned: July 1, 2003
    Original northern terminus: IA 8 (I), later US 34, in western Monroe County
    Original southern terminus: Melrose
    Paving history: There were no paved segments at designation; it was paved in 1993.
    Replaced by: County Road S70
    Terminus photos
    Iowa 69
    Designated: July 1, 1920 Decommissioned: October 16, 1926
    Original northern terminus: Mystic
    Original southern terminus: IA 3 (now IA 2) west of Centerville
    Paving history: There were no paved segments.
    Replaced by: IA 138; the number has since been used for US 69.
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    © 1997-2012 by Jason Hancock / Last updated June 27, 2012