State Highway 22 was authorized in 1920 from St. Peter to
Paynesville. In 1934, it was extended south to the Iowa state line, and its northernmost section between Eden Valley and Paynesville became part of
State Highway 55. The section of Highway 22 between
Mankato and
St. Peter follows the original route of
U.S. Highway 169. When the parallel route west of the
Minnesota River was first completed in the late 1950s, it originally carried the
Highway 22 designation for a few years until it was redesignated
U.S. 169 and Highway 22 reverted to its original alignment. From 1934 to 1961, the northern terminus for Highway 22 was at its
intersection with
State Highway 55 in
Eden Valley. The Highway 22 designation was extended north to
Richmond in 1961. Highway 22 will be redone from Mapleton to CO RD 90 just south of Mankato starting March 27, 2017, with the project finalizing in 2019. It will be a 3 part project, with the first stage being Mapleton to Beauford in 2017. In 2018 from Beauford to CO RD 90. Finally in 2019 the Victory Drive Memorial will be finished. Highway 22 was paved in its entirety by 1953. The new alignment section of Highway 22 on the southeast side of
Mankato to
U.S. Highway 14 was constructed . ==Major intersections==