[6] The route passes through a residential area inside the town, and intersects Old US 61 near Downtown Arcola.

[10][11] By 1960, a county-maintained gravel road in Sunflower County was added to MS 438, connecting the route to US 49W in Inverness.

[11][12] The county road became paved and state-maintained by 1967,[13][10] and a $1,709,403 (equivalent to $15,620,054 in 2023) project to grade the route and other improvements started.

[14] Due to budgetary issues,[15] MS 438 was proposed to be decommissioned and returned to county maintenance twice: Once in 1968 after the route became poorly conditioned,[16] and in 1969 to prioritize another road that needed paving in Greenville.

[17] A project to improve five miles (8.0 km) of MS 438 in Washington County started in 1969, costing $1,327,260 (equivalent to $11,027,579 in 2023).