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 Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

, the highway enters the state from Arkansas, just south of

Branson Branson may refer to: Places ;Canada * Branson, Toronto ;United States * Branson, Missouri, a popular tourist destination in the Ozark Mountains * Branson, Colorado * Branson City, California * The Branson School, in Ross, California * Warrenpoi ...

. The highway exits the state into

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

near South Lineville.

Route description

US 65 enters Missouri between the towns of

Omaha, Arkansas Omaha is a town in Boone County, Arkansas, United States. As of the 2020 census the population stood at 128. It is a rural community located approximately 10 miles from Branson, Missouri and 15 miles from Harrison. The town is part of the Harr ...

and

Ridgedale, Missouri Ridgedale is an unincorporated community in southern Taney County, Missouri, United States. It lies approximately ten miles south of Branson on U.S. Route 65, about one-half mile north of the Arkansas state line. The community is part of the Brans ...

. The road is a four-lane expressway, traveling through both Branson and Hollister towards Springfield. Through the Branson area, it is a

freeway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms ...

. North of Branson, the highway intersections with both westbound Route 76 (a freeway spur) and

U.S. Route 160 U.S. Route 160 (US 160) is a 1,465 mile (2,358 km) long east–west United States highway in the Midwestern and Western United States. The western terminus of the route is at US 89 five miles (8 km) west of Tuba City, Arizo ...

. 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 (also known as

James River Freeway James River Freeway is a freeway located largely on the south side of Springfield, Missouri. Its western terminus is at Interstate 44 (I-44) north of Brookline and its eastern terminus is at U.S. Route 65 (US 65) in southeastern Springfiel ...

) and

Interstate 44 Interstate 44 (I-44) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. Although it is nominally an east–west road as it is even-numbered, it follows a more southwest–northeast alignment. Its western terminus is in Wichita Fal ...

(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, 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 Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, where the highway crosses over the western end of the

Lake of the Ozarks Lake of the Ozarks is a reservoir created by impounding the Osage River in the northern part of the Ozarks in central Missouri. Parts of three smaller tributaries to the Osage are included in the impoundment: the Niangua River, Grandglaize Creek ...

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 Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * 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 Queensl ...

. 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 Interstate 70 (I-70) is a major east–west Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the United States that runs from Interstate 15, I-15 near Cove Fort, Utah, to a park and ride lot just east of Interstate 695 (Maryland), I-695 in ...

and U.S. Route 40. In

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia * Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Islands * Marshall Islands, an i ...

(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 U.S. Route 24 (US 24) is one of the original United States highways of 1926. It originally ran from Pontiac, Michigan, in the east to Kansas City, Missouri, in the west. Today, the highway's eastern terminus is in Independence Township, Mic ...

(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 ...

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...

. 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

and

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