US highways in Iowa
(decommissioned routes are in italics):
6
18
20
30
32
34
52
55
59
61
63
65
67
69
71
75
77
136
151
161
163
169
218
275
For an explanation of the route listings, click here.

US 52
Length in Iowa: 167 miles/268 kilometers
Northern terminus: Minnesota state line near Prosper, MN
Southern terminus: Illinois state line (Mississippi River) at Sabula with IA 64
Entrance photos

Counties: Winneshiek, Allamakee, Clayton, Dubuque, Jackson
Cities along route: Decorah, Calmar, Ossian, Castalia, Postville, Luana, Monona, Garnavillo, Guttenberg, Millville, Luxemburg, Holy Cross, Rickardsville, Durango, Sageville, Dubuque, St. Donatus, Bellevue, Sabula

NHS: From Minnesota state line to the IA 3/IA 136 junction at Luxemburg
Freeway segments: None
Expressway segments: The 3 miles it shares with US 61/151 in Dubuque
Multiplexes:
  • 16 miles with US 18 between Postville and Froelich
  • 27 miles with IA 3 between Luxemburg and Dubuque
  • 3 miles with US 61 and US 151, from 9th Street (southbound) and 11th Street (northbound) to Bellevue Road in Dubuque. (Until 1967, US 67 had also followed US 52 through Jackson County -- yes, folks, the road leading out of Dubuque was once marked as US 52/61/67/151.)
  • 3½ miles with IA 64, from west of Sabula to the Illinois state line; they stay together for an additional 28 miles in Illinois.
    		•
    History
    Designated: December 1934 (number approved November 20), to the former US 55 north of Sabula. A 1934 federal aid highway map showed it running with US 20 and IL 80 (now IL 84) between Dubuque and Savanna via Galena, but a Des Moines Register article from December 6, 1934, stated that US 52 was designated along its present route that month. (This may have been a proposed or short-lived routing.)
    Paving history: At the time of its designation, the only unpaved segment was between US 61 south of Dubuque and the Mississippi River bridge.
  • 1937: Paved from Bellevue northward to a point between St. Donatus and Bellevue
  • 1940: Paved from the split with US 67 through Sabula to the Mississippi River bridge
  • 1946: Paved from the Dubuque/Jackson county line to a point between St. Donatus and Bellevue
  • 1947: Paved from the split with US 61 to the Dubuque/Jackson county line
  • 1954: Paved from Bellevue to Green Island
  • 1955: Last segment, between Green Island and the split with US 67, was paved

    • Major alignment changes:
  • December 20, 1963: Rerouted along a 25-mile segment of US 20 between Dubuque and Dyersville and a 10-mile segment of IA 136 between Dyersville and Luxemburg. The original route was left alone as IA 3 and eventually co-signed as Alternate US 52.
  • October 11, 1967: Original alignment along IA 3 restored

    • Upgrades:
  • January 28, 1991: 1½-mile expressway segment from Grandview Avenue to 4th Street in Dubuque opens (with US 61 and US 151), adding to an existing 1½-mile segment south of Grandview that had existed since 1957.
  • August 19, 1993: Last piece of the Dubuque freeway/expressway, the ½-mile segment from 4th Street to 11th Street, opens (with US 61 and US 151)
    		•
    Notes
  • This diagonal highway, which runs from North Dakota to South Carolina, is signed as a north-south highway in Iowa and Minnesota (but it becomes an east-west highway in Illinois).
  • The Great River Road runs along US 52 from Guttenberg to Millville and again from Sageville through Dubuque to US 67.
    		•
    Alternate US 52
    Designated: March 13, 1964 Decommissioned: October 11, 1967
    Original northern terminus: US 52 in Luxemburg
    Original southern terminus: US 20 in Dubuque
    Paving history: The entire route was paved at the time of designation.
    Replaced by: US 52. On December 20, 1963, the Highway Commission decided to reroute US 52 along IA 136 and US 20 because of the deteriorating condition of the existing US 52. The Alternate US 52 designation was made after businesses in northern Dubuque threatened a lawsuit. Jeff Morrison found out about this after doing newspaper research; the only map I have found that shows this was a 1966 Standard Oil/Diversified Map of Iowa, as state highway maps from this era did not show this highway.
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    © 1997-2007 by Jason Hancock / Last updated March 25, 2007