Missouri Route 48

J. F. Roberts Octagonal Barn, located on Route 48

The route is located in Andrew and Gentry counties.[1] In 2015, Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) calculated as many as 876 vehicles traveling on Route 48 east of US 71, and as few as 527 vehicles traveling west of Route B. This is expressed in terms of annual average daily traffic (AADT), a measure of traffic volume for any average day of the year.[2]

Route 48 starts at the intersection of US 71 and County Road 43 (CRD 43) and travels eastward. The road passes by a school and travels through farmland, and turns northeastward at CRD 146. East of CRD 149, the route shifts southward and crosses over the One Hundred and Two River, the city limit of Rosendale. Traversing the northern edge of the city as Main Street, the road intersects Route C, also known as Lake Street. The road soon leaves the town, and begins travelling northeastward again. At CRD 127, the route travels eastward, and enters Rea at CRD 117 as Byers Street. Route 48 intersects four city streets before leaving the city.[1] The entrance to the J. F. Roberts Octagonal Barn, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is located past the intersection of Routes 48 and B.[3][4] The road then intersects the northern terminus of Route D, and crosses over the Platte River. Route 48 intersects CRD 198 and CRD 201 in the unincorporated area of Whitesville,[1] and crosses the Agee Creek past CRD 91 and CRD 200. The road continues through farmland and crosses the Crooked Creek.[5] Between CRD 226 and CRD 227, Route 48 intersects Routes M and P and shifts slightly southward. The road enters Gentry County past CRD 111 and CRD 235.[1] Past CRD 417, the route crosses over the Elm Grove Branch,[5] and the Third Fork after CRD 432.[1] Route 48 enters King City as Empire Avenue, west of its intersection with Route CC. The road continues into the city, intersecting multiple city streets and driveways. The route ends at the intersection with US 169, also known as Connecticut Street inside the city. The road continues as Route Z, which ends at Pattonsburg.[1]

The Route 48 designation first appeared on state maps in 1926, as an unimproved road starting from US 71 and ending at Route 4 in King City.[6] A bridge at the One Hundred and Two River that carried the route was built in 1929,[7] with a cost of $49,087.[8] A large section of Route 4 was designated as US 169 in 1931, including Route 48's eastern terminus, and the Route 48 sections in Gentry County and from US 71 to Rosendale in Andrew Country were improved and had new gravel laid down;[9][10] the paving costs were $101,176 (equivalent to $1,700,952 in 2019) and $150,282 (equivalent to $2,526,513 in 2019) respectively.[11][8] About two years later, gravel was laid down from Whitesville to the Andrew–Gentry county line.[12][13] The remaining section from Rosendale to Whitesville was laid down with gravel by 1936.[14][15] The first asphalt paving on the route began in 1938, where the Gentry County section was paved first,[16][17] with a cost of $38,861 (equivalent to $705,837 in 2019).[18] The rest of the route was paved in asphalt four years later.[19][20] Route 48 was resurfaced and shoulders were reshaped in 1974 from Rosendale to King City, which cost $435,278.46 (equivalent to $2,256,575 in 2019).[21] The bridge at the One Hundred and Two River was replaced by a new bridge in October 2014.[7]