(233: January 7, 1931-December 26, 1989)
NORTH End of 330/EAST End of 233: Stop sign, IA 14, Marshall County
(Unnumbered paved county road continues east; I suggest naming it E23)
Facing east on 233, but heading north on 330 (2004)
Facing east on 233, but heading north on 330 (2007)
In the desire to have a fast route to Waterloo, I'd like to see 330 continue east on this paved road to T29, then go on a new diagonal near Gladbrook and Reinbeck to meet US 63 near Hudson. Once upon a time the Iowa Highway Commission had plans for such an alignment. However, with the state of road construction as it is today, and a traditional aversion to diagonals, this dream shall probably never see fruition. Travelers to Waterloo take 14 north to use either 96 and 63 or 20, all of which are straight roads. (And as someone from Traer, I encourage the former. :-)
Facing east, but heading north, on 330 (2008)
Another bottom "End"...[shakes head]
Facing north on 14
Facing north on 14
Conrad is used on LGSs between Grundy Center and Marshalltown, despite it not being on the route proper (it even had its own spur, IA 185).
Facing north on 14
Facing south on 14
I think Des Moines should be added as a third line on this LGS.
Facing south on 14
I have no idea what the closed sign behind this assembly is for; a similar one appears on westbound IA 96 at US 63.
*Inaugural Highway End*
Temporary NORTH end of 330 (1995 only): Intersection, S75, Marshall County
Facing northeast, but heading north, on 330
Facing west, but heading south, on 330
Just north of Albion, S75 leaves the secret multiplex with 330 (a road it had to itself before 1989). Heading west/south on 330, the state highway curves left while the county road goes straight ahead, complete with "^ Liscomb 5" LGS. Heading east/north, that mileage along with "^ To 14 5" (in top picture, far right) does double duty as the leaving-town LGS. A real leaving-town LGS on the south side of Albion ("Melbourne 14") disappeared when temporary parts of road were built for reconstruction of a route that intersects instead of crosses a railroad bridge. If it ever reappears I think Des Moines should be added. Without that sign, IA 330 joins IA 96 as a state highway that goes through a town but has no leaving-town LGSs on the entire route.
So what does that have to do with an intersection north of Albion being a temporary end? When IA 14 was closed for a complete resurfacing in 1995 it was closed between IA 96 and US 30, with a detour along 330, S75, and E18. (See the IA 311 page for additional info.) Since the road was closed and there wasn't anywhere for 330 to go after the detour, an "End 330" sign was placed along with the detour signage at the S75 junction. This situation was a bit like IA 32 during its extension in 2002.
WEST End of 233: George Street, Albion, Marshall County
Sometimes it's nice that atlases aren't updated. Street Atlas 4.0 still includes 233 on the map, as a duplex with 330 from Albion. The 233 designation ends at George Street, in about as close to "downtown" as you can get.
Facing south on 330, but heading west on 233
The first painted yellow stripe in the foreground would have been the last one on 233 before the road reverted to S75 (which is a hidden multiplex on the north-south stretch from old 330 to just north of here). The width of the road does change slightly past this intersection. Unless you can tell me otherwise, Street Atlas says 233 ends here and so do I.
Facing north toward the same intersection
Where the asphalt shoulder ends, 233 begins. According to Jason Hancock's research: "The June 19[, 1989, Des Moines] Register ran a story on how Albion benefited being 'on the beaten path' between Des Moines and Waterloo. Rumor had it that the local Casey's was the second-best selling store in the chain, but a spokesman denied it, saying it was just a 'good average store.'" Since these pictures were taken a new Casey's (brick, with three sets of pumps) has opened a block to the south. (The move kinds of lends credence to the productivity comment.)
Between November 29 and December 8, 2001, a new bridge over the Iowa River opened and the old one blocked off and removed. Now there's a nice set of curves to get to the bridge and then back to the original blacktop, which immediately turned right to rise over the railroad tracks and go into Albion. Since early December 2002, though, a new road leaving Albion before the bridge has been built beside the old one. This one intersects the railroad tracks instead of crossing over them. By early January 2003 the bridge was gone and the land leveled out.
When this 330 was born in 1947, taking over US 30's route through Marshalltown west of 14, its east end was on old 30 but NOT the Lincoln Highway; the Lincoln was two-three blocks north on Main and Church. The route of 330 out of Marshalltown became synonymous with the Lincoln nine blocks west, as it turned south on 9th Street. It continued on the Lincoln's route until just west of S75, where the Lincoln (now E41) went west and 330 went southwest to intersect 30 at an interchange that has been around since 1963 - an interchange that, with more four-laning in three directions, is now somewhat inadequate.
Old NORTH End (1947-mid-1980s): Stoplight, IA 14/Center St., Marshalltown, Marshall County
Left: 1981 / Right: 1986
I am pretty certain that 330's route did not change west of Center Street since its inception; it is 14 that went through changes. Until between 1974 and 1977, the east-west portion of 14 was split on Linn (east/northbound) and Church (west/southbound) but both were on Linn by 1977. Between 1983 and 1986, 14's route was changed to using Anson St. for the east-west segment and going north on 3rd Ave. south of the railroad tracks. (Street Atlas in 1997 and MapQuest today still show the old route; Google splits the difference and shows 14 on both routes.) Because of this, 330 was extended one block north and three blocks east to still end at 14.
Facing east on Boone
If the car turned right, it would start on 330. The viaduct begins south of this intersection.
Facing mainly north; street sign with view of courthouse
Old NORTH End (Mid-1980s-December 26, 1989): Stoplight, IA 14/3rd Ave., Marshalltown, Marshall County
Facing east on Linn
Notice that the 14 and double arrow still stand; there are also "North 14" and "South 14" signs on the road at the intersection, lending more proof that this was the last north end before the current one. (Oddly enough, all three "north" ends face east.) However, this is a one-way street. If this was the situation in the 1980s, as I believe it was, SB 330 started a block north on Church Street, went west on Church to Center, turned south, and met NB 330 at the intersection of Center and Linn, a block north of the original end, where 14 originally turned east. A 14 shield just north of the intersection of 3rd and Church may confirm this.
Photo by Neil Bratney
The Marshall County Courthouse was in danger of demolition in the 1970s before a restoration project. If my one-way split theory is true, SB 330 traffic would drive past the courthouse with this view.
To the current IA 330 South end (with IA 117 North)
To the previous IA 330 South end (just south of current end)
Sixteenth picture by Neil Bratney: 3/23/02
Pictures by me: First, 9/7/04; third, 8/10/08; second and fourth-eighth, 7/15/07; ninth, 7/29/04; tenth and eleventh, 5/21/03; twelfth, 11/29/01; 13th-15th, 3/23/02
Page created 11/24/01; last updated 12/22/08
