Iowa Highway 3 (Iowa 3) is a state

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...

that runs from east to west across the state of

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 ...

. It is the longest state highway in Iowa, at long. Iowa 3 begins at the

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

state line where it continues as

South Dakota Highway 50 South Dakota Highway 50 (SD 50) is a state route serving south central and southeast South Dakota. The current alignment begins at the junction of South Dakota Highway 34 at "Lee's Corner" east of Fort Thompson, and ends at the Iowa border near ...

and ends at the

Northwest Arterial Iowa Highway 32 (Iowa 32), also known as the Northwest Arterial, was a state highway that ran through the northwest quadrant of Dubuque. At just over long, it was among the shortest state highways in the state. The highway began at U.S. H ...

at the

Dubuque Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a r ...

city limits. It is designated the American Veterans Memorial Highway for its entirety. It is located approximately halfway between

Interstate 80 Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...

and

Interstate 90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West, Great Plains, Midwest, and ...

Route description

Iowa 3 runs for across the northern third of the state, roughly midway between US 18 to the north and US 20 to the south. All of Iowa 3 east of

Le Mars Le Mars is the county seat of Plymouth County, Iowa, United States. It is located on the Floyd River northeast of Sioux City. The population was 10,571 at the time of the 2020 census. Le Mars is part of the Sioux City metropolitan area. Histo ...

has been listed on the National Highway System, a network of roads important to the country's economy, defense, and mobility. Iowa 3 begins at the

Big Sioux River The Big Sioux River is a tributary of the Missouri River in eastern South Dakota and northwestern Iowa in the United States. It flows generally southwardly for ,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataTh ...

where it continues west into

. Shortly after entering Iowa, the highway intersects Iowa 12. Iowa 3 traffic turns north onto Iowa 12 and the two highways travel together toward

Akron Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...

. There, the two highways split as Iowa 3 heads east toward

where it meets

U.S. Highway 75 U.S. Route 75 is a major north–south U.S. Highway that extends in the central United States. The highway's northern terminus is in Noyes, Minnesota, at the Canadian border, where it once continued as Manitoba Highway 75 on the other sid ...

(US 75) and its business route. The highway continues east toward Remsen and Marcus where it meets Iowa 140 and Iowa 143 in each respective town. At

Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...

, the highway intersects US 59 and skirts the northeastern edge of town. North of

Aurelia Aurelia may refer to: People * Version of feminine given name Aurélie * Aurelia (mother of Caesar) * Aurelia gens, a Roman family * Aurelia Browder, American civil rights activist * Astrud Aurelia, American drag queen Science * ''Aurelia'' (c ...

, Iowa 3 meets Iowa 7. Northeast of Truesdale, Iowa 3 intersects US 71. Iowa Highway 3 east of Humboldt

Continuing east, Iowa 3 intersects Iowa 4 in

Pocahontas Pocahontas (, ; born Amonute, known as Matoaka, 1596 – March 1617) was a Native American woman, belonging to the Powhatan people, notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. She was the daughter of ...

. Between Pocahontas and Gilmore City, Iowa 3 meets Iowa 15. Iowa 3 intersects US 169 in Humboldt. East of Humboldt, Iowa 3 is overlapped briefly by Iowa 17 near Goldfield. Iowa 3 overlaps US 69 east of

Clarion Clarion may refer to: Music * Clarion (instrument), a type of trumpet used in the Middle Ages * The register of a clarinet that ranges from B4 to C6 * A trumpet organ stop that usually plays an octave above unison pitch * "Clarion" (song), a 2 ...

. Between Latimer and Coulter, Iowa 3 meets

I-35 Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexican border ...

at a

diamond interchange A diamond interchange is a common type of road junction, used where a controlled-access highway crosses a minor road. Design The freeway itself is grade-separated from the minor road, one crossing the other over a bridge. Approaching the ...

. East of that interchange in

Hampton Hampton may refer to: Places Australia *Hampton bioregion, an IBRA biogeographic region in Western Australia *Hampton, New South Wales *Hampton, Queensland, a town in the Toowoomba Region * Hampton, Victoria Canada * Hampton, New Brunswick *Ha ...

, Iowa 3 intersects US 65. At

Allison Allison may refer to: People * Allison (given name) * Allison (surname) (includes a list of people with this name) * Eugene Allison Smith (1922-1980), American politician and farmer Companies * Allison Engine Company, American aircraft engine ...

, Iowa 3 is briefly overlapped by Iowa 14. Iowa 3 meets Iowa 188 south of Clarksville. Waverly iowa

West of Waverly, Iowa 3 intersects US 218 /

Iowa 27 The Avenue of the Saints is a highway in the Midwestern United States that connects St. Louis, Missouri and St. Paul, Minnesota. Route description Missouri The southern end of the Avenue of the Saints is at exit 28A of Interstate 64 (I‑64) ...

, the

Avenue of the Saints The Avenue of the Saints is a highway in the Midwestern United States that connects St. Louis, Missouri and St. Paul, Minnesota. Route description Missouri The southern end of the Avenue of the Saints is at exit 28A of Interstate 64 (I‑64) ...

highway, at an interchange. Through Waverly, Iowa 3 is overlapped by US 218 Business before that route turns south to rejoin US 218. Just north of

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Iowa 3 intersects US 63 at a diamond interchange. At

Oelwein Oelwein is a city in Fayette County, Iowa, Fayette County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,920 at the time of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census, a decrease of 11.5% from the 2000 census. The largest community in Fayette County, ...

, Iowa 3 overlaps Iowa 150 before continuing east towards Iowa 187. From Strawberry Point to near

Edgewood Edgewood may refer to: Places Canada *Edgewood, British Columbia South Africa *Edgewood, a University of KwaZulu-Natal campus in Pinetown, South Africa United States Cities and towns *Edgewood, California *Edgewood, Florida *Edgewood, Illinois, a ...

, Iowa 3 overlaps Iowa 13. East of Edgewood, Iowa 3 enters the

Driftless Area The Driftless Area, a topographical and cultural region in the American Midwest, comprises southwestern Wisconsin, southeastern Minnesota, northeastern Iowa, and the extreme northwestern corner of Illinois. Never covered by ice during the last ...

, where the terrain changes markedly from gently rolling farmland to steep bluffs; the intersection with Iowa 38 is located on the edge of the Driftless Area. At

Luxemburg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small land ...

, Iowa 3 meets US 52 and Iowa 136. The next , from Luxemburg to Sageville, are particularly curvy because of the terrain. At the city limits between Sageville and

, Iowa 3 ends at the

, which carried Iowa 32 prior to 2020.

History

;Original Iowa 3 :Now known as

Iowa Highway 2 Iowa Highway 2 (Iowa 2) is a state highway which runs across the southernmost tier of counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. At no point along its route is Iowa 2 more than from the Missouri state line, except for a small section near its ea ...

; that road was renumbered in 1939 ;Current Iowa 3 (as routed in 1920) : No. 12 – Westfield to Akron : No. 27 – Akron to Le Mars : No. 5 – Le Mars to near Aurelia :Gap between Aurelia and Pocahontas : No. 10 – Pocahontas to Strawberry Point : No. 13 – Strawberry Point to near Edgewood :Gap between Edgewood and Luxemburg : No. 20 – Luxemburg to Dubuque ;Designated Iowa 3 on May 15, 1945 :Extended to SD 50 in 1949 :Overlapped by Iowa 5 until 1969 :Rerouted through Dubuque due to reconstruction of US 61/US 151 ;Dubuque changes :SW Arterial constructed :US 52 rerouted :Iowa 3 ends at NW Arterial This is the second state highway to be designated Iowa 3. The first Iowa 3 existed from 1920 to 1941, and was an east–west route across the southern part of Iowa, beginning at

Fort Madison Fort Madison is a city and a county seat of Lee County, Iowa, United States along with Keokuk. Of Iowa's 99 counties, Lee County is the only one with two county seats. The population was 10,270 at the time of the 2020 census. Located along the ...

and ending at the western border of Iowa near

Nebraska City, Nebraska Nebraska City is a city in Nebraska, and the county seat of, Otoe County, Nebraska, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 7,289. The Nebraska State Legislature has credited Nebraska City as being the oldest incorporated ...

. The current Iowa 3 route was designated in 1945. Originally extending from Iowa 12 in

to Dubuque, Iowa 3 was co-signed with Iowa 5 from Akron to near

. In 1949, Iowa 3 was extended along Iowa 12 from Akron to its current western end at the

. Prior to the building of a four lane US 61 / US 151, the eastern end of Iowa 3 was at the intersection of Bluff Street and

U.S. Route 20 U.S. Route 20 or U.S. Highway 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that stretches from the Pacific Northwest east to New England. The "0" in its route number indicates that US 20 is a major coast-to-coast route. S ...

, Dodge Street.

Major intersections

References

External links

*{{cite web , last1=Morrison , first1=Jeff , title=End of Iowa 3 , url=http://www.iowahighwayends.net/ends/ia3.html , website=www.iowahighwayends.net

003 003, O03, 0O3, OO3 may refer to: *003, fictional British 00 Agent *003, former emergency telephone number for the Norwegian ambulance service (until 1986) *1990 OO3, the asteroid 6131 Towen * OO3 gauge model railway *''O03 (O2)'' and other related ...

Transportation in Dubuque, Iowa Transportation in Franklin County, Iowa