U.S. Route 65 (US 65) is a north–south

U.S. highway The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these h ...

that runs from

Clayton, Louisiana Clayton is a town in northern Concordia Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 711 at the 2010 census. Cotton is a principal commodity in the area. Clayton is located on the Tensas River, important for fishing and boating, promote ...

Albert Lea, Minnesota Albert Lea is a city in Freeborn County, in southern Minnesota. It is the county seat. Its population was 18,492 at the 2020 census. The city is at the junction of Interstates 35 and 90, about south of the Twin Cities. It is on the shores of ...

. In Missouri, the highway enters the state from Arkansas, just south of Branson. The highway exits the state into Iowa near South Lineville.

Route description

US 65 enters Missouri between the towns of Omaha, Arkansas and Ridgedale, Missouri. The road is a four-lane expressway, traveling through both Branson and Hollister towards Springfield. Through the Branson area, it is a freeway. North of Branson, the highway intersections with both westbound Route 76 (a freeway spur) and U.S. Route 160. All the way to Highlandville, U.S. 160 is the old alignment of U.S. 65 (until the 1960s). US 65 at Sunshine

Just south of Route EE at the Highlandville exit, U.S. 65 returns to freeway status. The freeway is called "Schoolcraft Freeway" in

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

, named in honor of

Henry Rowe Schoolcraft Henry Rowe Schoolcraft (March 28, 1793 – December 10, 1864) was an American geographer, geologist, and ethnologist, noted for his early studies of Native American cultures, as well as for his 1832 expedition to the source of the Mississippi R ...

. Also in Springfield, the highway has junctions with

U.S. Route 60 U.S. Route 60 is a major east–west United States highway, traveling from southwestern Arizona to the Atlantic Ocean coast in Virginia. The highway's eastern terminus is in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where it is known as Pacific Avenue, in the ...

(also known as James River Freeway) and Interstate 44 (I-44). The I-44 interchange includes a flyover ramp connecting northbound U.S. 65 with westbound I-44. Construction is completed that added two at U.S. 60. In September 2011, U.S. 65 became a six-lane divided freeway in Springfield between Interstate 44 and U.S. 60. It was the first six-lane highway in Southwest Missouri. North of Springfield, it returns to a four-lane, non-interstate highway. From Springfield to Buffalo, U.S. 65 has been upgraded as a four-lane non-interstate highway. This project began with the addition of a partial four-lane highway through the Fair Grove area to replace a dangerous traffic light intersection with an overpass. It culminated with the entire length of U.S. 65 becoming a four-lane highway from Springfield to just outside of Buffalo. The project was completed in summer 2010. Through Buffalo, the highway now becomes two lanes with a center left-turn lane. This part of the highway has also seen upgrades in recent years, such as adding

rumble strips Rumble strips (also known as sleeper lines or alert strips) are a road safety feature to alert inattentive drivers of potential danger, by causing a tactile vibration and audible rumbling transmitted through the wheels into the vehicle interior. ...

and extending the middle turn lanes to just outside the city's northern portion. From Buffalo to

Preston Preston is a place name, surname and given name that may refer to: Places England *Preston, Lancashire, an urban settlement **The City of Preston, Lancashire, a borough and non-metropolitan district which contains the settlement **County Boro ...

, entering Hickory County, U.S. 65 remains a two-lane highway and has a four-way intersection with U.S. Route 54. US 65 in Chillicothe

U.S. 65 shares a

concurrency Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to: Law * Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea'' * Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...

with Route 7 before entering Warsaw, where the highway crosses over the western end of the Lake of the Ozarks and again becomes a four-lane non-interstate highway at the intersection where it separates from Route 7. After leaving Warsaw, U.S. 65 passes through Lincoln then has a brief concurrency with

Route 52 The following highways are numbered 52: Australia * Kings Highway (Australia) * Isis Highway ( Childers to Ban Ban Springs) - Queensland State Route 52 ( Wide Bay–Burnett Region) * Gillies Highway - Queensland State Route 52 (Far North Quee ...

. At Sedalia (where it is called Limit Avenue), it has an intersection with

U.S. Route 50 U.S. Route 50 or U.S. Highway 50 (US 50) is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching from Interstate 80 (I-80) in West Sacramento, California, to Maryland Route 528 (MD 528) in Ocean City, Maryland, on the Atlanti ...

(known locally as Broadway Blvd). At Marshall Junction, north of Sedalia in Saline County, U.S. 65 intersects with both Interstate 70 and

U.S. Route 40 U.S. Route 40 or U.S. Highway 40 (US 40), also known as the Main Street of America, is a major east–west United States Highway traveling across the United States from the Mountain States to the Mid-Atlantic States. As with most routes wh ...

. In Marshall (where it is called Lexington, Ave), U.S. 65 returns to two-lanes and stays so all the way up to Iowa. At Waverly, the highway becomes concurrent with U.S. Route 24 (which continues to Carrollton). Also in Waverly, U.S. 65 and U.S. 24 both cross the Missouri River on the Waverly Bridge. Further north, the road crosses

U.S. Route 36 U.S. Route 36 (US 36) is an east–west United States highway that travels approximately from Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado to Uhrichsville, Ohio. The highway's western terminus is at Deer Ridge Junction, an intersection i ...

at Chillicothe and

U.S. Route 136 U.S. Route 136 is an east-west U.S. highway that is a spur route of U.S. Route 36. It runs from Edison, Nebraska, at U.S. Route 6 and U.S. Route 34 to the Interstate 74/Interstate 465 interchange in Speedway, Indiana. This is a distance of . U ...

at Princeton. The highway leaves Missouri at South Lineville and enters Iowa. The section of highway from Preston to Marshall Junction has been cited as a good drive for motorcyclists, with its sparsely populated areas and the hilly landscape.

History

From 1922 to 1926, US 65 in Missouri was known as Route 3. US 65 originally followed Route 248 and US 160 between Branson and

. Route 3 was originally planned on a shorter route between Springfield and

, with Route 71 on the longer alignment via Buffalo, but Route 3 was quickly shifted east, absorbing Route 71.

Major intersections

References

External links

Route description

History

Major intersections

See also

References

External links