# Arkansas Highway 38

Arkansas Highway 38 (AR 38) is a designation for three state highways in Arkansas. One segment of 50.2 miles (80.8 km) runs from Interstate 57 (I-57) in Cabot east to U.S. Route 49 (US 49) south of Hunter. A second segment of 21.47 miles (34.55 km) runs from I-40 north of Widener east to Highway 147 west of Horseshoe Lake. A third segment of 0.8 miles (1.3 km) runs in West Memphis from US 70 north to I-40. All routes are maintained by the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD).

## Route description
### Cabot to Hunter

Highway 38 begins at I-57/US 67/US 167 in Cabot before intersecting Highway 367. The highway connects agricultural areas in Arkansas's Grand Prairie, including rice and soybeans as well as aquaculture. Passing east through Austin, where it has an intersection with Highway 319. The intersection is near the Sears House, an 1860 antebellum home in late Greek Revival-Italianate style listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). Continuing east, Highway 38 runs through unincorporated area in eastern Lonoke County, intersecting Highway 321 near Sylvania and Highway 31 near Butlerville before entering Prairie County.
Upon entering Prairie County, Highway 38 continues to pass through rural, agricultural areas with small settlements at intersections with other state highways. The highway intersects Highway 13 at Hickory Plains, Highway 86 at Hayley, and Highway 11 at Fourmile Corner. Highway 11 begins a concurrency with Highway 38 eastward toward Des Arc, the county seat for the northern district of Prairie County. Entering Des Arc, Highway 38 and Highway 11 intersect Highway 323 near the Lower White River Museum State Park. Highway 323 runs to the downtown business district, with Highway 38 turning northeast and bypassing most of the city. In northern Des Arc, the concurrency with Highway 11 ends, with Highway 11 turning due north toward the Bayou De View Wildlife Management Area and Searcy. This intersection also contains Highway 323Y, which is a short spur route providing access to downtown Des Arc. Highway 38 continues along the northern edge of Des Arc, passing the historic Oak Grove Cemetery, listed on the NRHP, and crossing over the White River on a 1970 steel through truss bridge. Highway 33 overlaps Highway 38 in eastern Prairie County until the Woodruff County line, when Highway 33 turns north toward Augusta, ending the concurrency.
Running east as a section line road, Highway 38 enters Woodruff County at Little Dixie and runs east to Cotton Plant. Serving as Main Street in Cotton Plant, the highway passes intersects Highway 306 before beginning a short overlap with Highway 17 through historic downtown Cotton Plant. East of the city, Highway 38 briefly dips into Monroe County and crosses Bayou DeView before terminating US 49 south of Hunter.

## History

The route from Des Arc to Cotton Plant was originally designated as part of Arkansas State Road B-7 in the original 1924 state highway plan. This route ran north from the Stuttgart area to Cotton Plant via Des Arc, roughly along present-day US 63, Highway 11 and Highway 38. During the 1926 Arkansas state highway numbering, the Highway 38 designation was assigned to the short connector highway between Des Arc and Cotton Plant. The route was extended west to Cabot in the late 1930s. A minor routing change west of Hughes involving a new bridge over Blackfish Bayou occurred in 1956.
Highway 38 was extended east in 1958 following the construction of a new US 79 alignment in Hughes. Highway 38 was extended east, creating an overlap with Highway 50 and terminating at Highway 147 near Horseshoe Lake. The area around Horseshoe Lake with Highway 38 and Highway 147 was renumbered in 1959 "for the convenience and guidance of the traveling public". This rerouting was changed in 1963 to "eliminate confusion" near Horseshoe Lake, resulting in the creation of Highway 131 and rerouting Highway 147.

## Major intersections

Mile markers reset at some concurrencies.
| County | Location | mi | km | Destinations | Notes |
| Lonoke | Cabot | 0.0 | 0.0 | I-57 / US 67 / US 167 – Beebe, Little Rock | Western terminus; exit 21 on I-57 |
| Lonoke | Cabot | 0.6 | 0.97 | AR 367 – Cabot, Austin, Beebe | Former US 67 |
| Lonoke | Ward | 3.0 | 4.8 | AR 319 north – Ward | Southern terminus of AR 319 |
| Lonoke | ​ | 5.0 | 8.0 | AR 321 south | Northern terminus of AR 321 |
| Lonoke | ​ | 8.2 | 13.2 | AR 31 – Beebe, Lonoke | |
| Prairie | Hickory Plains | 16.3 | 26.2 | AR 13 – Beebe, Carlisle | |
| Prairie | Hayley | 21.1 | 34.0 | AR 86 east | Western terminus of AR 86 |
| Prairie | Fourmile Corner | 26.7 | 43.0 | AR 11 south – Hazen, Wattensaw Wildlife Management Area | Western end of AR 11 concurrency |
| Prairie | Des Arc | 29.3 | 47.2 | AR 323 south – Des Arc Business District, Lower White River Museum State Park | Northern terminus of AR 323 |
| Prairie | Des Arc | 29.8 | 48.0 | AR 11 north to AR 323 – Searcy, Des Arc Business District, Lake Des Arc | Eastern end of AR 11 concurrency; access to AR 323 via AR 323Y |
| Prairie | ​ | 30.7– 30.9 | 49.4– 49.7 | Bridge over the White River | Bridge over the White River |
| Prairie | ​ | 32.7 | 52.6 | AR 33 south – Biscoe | Western end of AR 33 concurrency |
| Prairie–Woodruff county line | Little Dixie | 39.4 | 63.4 | AR 33 north – Augusta | Eastern end of AR 33 concurrency |
| Woodruff | Cotton Plant | 45.5 | 73.2 | AR 306 east | Western terminus of AR 306 |
| Woodruff | Cotton Plant | 45.6 | 73.4 | AR 17 south – Brinkley | Western end of AR 17 concurrency |
| Woodruff | ​ | 0.0 | 0.0 | AR 17 north – Patterson | Eastern end of AR 17 concurrency |
| Monroe | No major junctions | No major junctions | No major junctions | No major junctions | No major junctions |
| Woodruff | ​ | 4.6 | 7.4 | US 49 – Fair Oaks, Brinkley | Eastern terminus |
| Gap in route ||||||
| St. Francis | ​ | 0.00 | 0.00 | CR 419 | Continuation north |
| St. Francis | ​ | 0.21 | 0.34 | I-40 – Memphis, Little Rock | Exit 247 on I-40 |
| St. Francis | ​ | 0.53 | 0.85 | US 70 – Memphis, Madison | |
| St. Francis | Widener | 2.44 | 3.93 | AR 50 west | Western end of AR 50 concurrency |
| St. Francis | ​ | | | AR 75 north | Southern terminus of AR 75 |
| St. Francis | ​ | 0.00 | 0.00 | AR 50 east to AR 149 – Wildwood | Eastern end of AR 50 concurrency |
| St. Francis | Hughes | 11.26 | 18.12 | US 79 south – Marianna | Western end of US 79 concurrency |
| St. Francis | Hughes | 0.00 | 0.00 | US 79 north – West Memphis | Eastern end of US 79 concurrency |
| St. Francis | Hughes | 0.55 | 0.89 | AR 149 north (Blackwood Street) | Southern terminus of AR 149 |
| Crittenden | ​ | 7.77 | 12.50 | AR 147 (Horseshoe Circle) | Eastern terminus |
| Gap in route ||||||
| Crittenden | West Memphis | 0.0 | 0.0 | US 70 (Broadway Avenue) | Southern terminus |
| Crittenden | West Memphis | 0.3 | 0.48 | I-55 (US 61 / US 64 / US 78 / US 79) – Little Rock, Memphis | Exit 4 on I-55 |
| Crittenden | West Memphis | 0.8 | 1.3 | I-40 – Little Rock, Memphis | Northern terminus; exit 280 on I-40 |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi Concurrency terminus ||||||