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 169
Length in Iowa: 235 miles/378 kilometers
Northern terminus: Minnesota state line south of Elmore, MN
Southern terminus: Missouri state line south of Redding
Entrance photos

Counties: Kossuth, Humboldt, Webster, Boone, Dallas, Madison, Union, Ringgold
Cities along route: Lakota, Bancroft, Algona, Humboldt, Fort Dodge, Harcourt, Boxholm, Ogden, Minburn, Dallas Center, Adel, De Soto, Winterset, Lorimor, Afton, Arispe, Mount Ayr, Redding

NHS: From the Minnesota state line to IA 92 in Winterset
Commercial and Industrial Network: From US 18 in Algona to IA 141 in Dallas County
Freeway segments: None
Expressway segments: 6 miles, from IA 7 on the outskirts of Fort Dodge to the US 20 interchange
Multiplexes:
  • 6 miles with IA 9 in northern Kossuth County
  • 4 miles with IA 175 in Webster County, north and east of Harcourt
  • 4 miles with US 30 west of Ogden
  • 5 miles with US 6, between Adel and I-80 at De Soto
  • 2 miles with IA 92 west and north of Winterset
  • 6 miles with US 34 east of Afton
  • 2½ miles with IA 2 west of Mount Ayr
  • History
    Designated: October 23, 1930, replacing IA 16 (I).
    Paving history: At the time of designation, these segments were paved: IA 9 to Algona, the Humboldt/Webster county line to Fort Dodge, a point south of US 20 to IA 91 (now 175), the split with IA 17 (now 141) near Bouton to IA 7 (now 44) north of Adel, and from US 34 in Union County (including the multiplex) to the Union/Ringgold county line
  • 1931: Paved from IA 7 to Adel and from Winterset to US 34
  • 1932: Paved from IA 91 to US 30 (including the multiplex) at Ogden
  • 1933: Paved from the city of Humboldt to the Humboldt/Webster county line and from US 20 to a point south of Fort Dodge (on a new diagonal alignment)
  • 1935: Paved from Algona to the Kossuth/Humboldt county line
  • 1936: Paved from the Kossuth/Humboldt county line to Humboldt and from the North River crossing in Madison County to Winterset
  • 1938: Paved from the Union/Ringgold county line to Mount Ayr
  • 1940: Paved from the Minnesota state line to IA 9 (on a new alignment, creating IA 91 (II) to serve Ledyard; the old alignment also followed what is now County Road P50 between Ledyard and IA 9). It was also paved from County Road G (now E57) south of Ogden to IA 141.
  • 1947: Paved from De Soto to the North River crossing
  • 1951: Paved from Adel to De Soto on a straightened alignment that included a new bridge across the Raccoon River. (The old alignment followed what is now 323rd Place and 330th Lane north of the river, and part of Overton Place south of the river. The old bridge was removed.)
  • 1955: Last segment, from IA 2 west of Mount Ayr to the Missouri state line, paved
  • Major alignment changes:
  • November 18, 1960: Re-routed to the west of Fort Dodge (it had run into the city center); the old segment was redesignated as IA 413 and an extended IA 320.
  • December 1976: Re-routed south of IA 92 along a new two-lane road that ended south of the junction of County Road G61. The old route south of Winterset is now County Road P71.
  • June 3, 1977: Bypass to the west and south of Winterset (with IA 92) opened, taking US 169 off 1st Street (John Wayne Drive).
  • November 19, 1990: Expressway segment between Webster County Road D20 and the relocated US 20 completed, connecting it with an existing segment between there and IA 7.
  • For alignment changes in Fort Dodge that are not listed here, see Jeff Morrison's Fort Dodge Highway Chronology page.
  • Business US 169
  • Fort Dodge: The second of two business US routes in Fort Dodge was designated along parts of IA 7 (2nd Avenue South and South 8th Street) and US 20 (Kenyon Road) after the US 20 expressway opened and IA 7 was truncated in 1990. AASHTO officially approved the Business US 169 designation on April 21, 1996. Designated as IA 926 until the Transportation Commission approved the transfer of jurisdiction to the city of Fort Dodge on November 4, 2014, it shares about two of its three miles with Business US 20 heading out of downtown Fort Dodge. After the city took over jurisdiction of Business US 169, the Cross-Town Connector Project shifted it from 2nd Avenue to 1st Avenue a block to the north. (Terminus photos)

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    © 1997-2021 by Jason Hancock / Last updated September 21, 2021