Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike
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The Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike was built in Virginia during second quarter of the 19th century to provide a roadway from Staunton and the upper Shenandoah Valley to the Ohio River at Parkersburg. Engineered by Claudius Crozet through the mountainous terrain, it was a toll road partially funded by the Virginia Board of Public Works. Control of it became crucial during the American Civil War. Much of the former route is now a National Scenic Byway in West Virginia.
[edit] Colonial Virginia and antebellum period
The area of the present United States which was once considered Virginia was much larger during the Colonial Period, extending west to include much of the other current states of Kentucky, Indiana, and Illinois, as well as parts of Ohio and Pennsylvania before the American Revolutionary War. During the next 75 years, as part of the United States, the area which is now West Virginia had also been part of Virginia. The American Civil War changed that. On June 20, 1863, West Virginia officially became a separate state.
[edit] Early transportation
For the settlers in the Virginia Colony, which preceded statehood (1607-1776), commerce and travel followed navigable waterways and old Native American (American Indian) trails. The natives had long sought the routes of greatest ease, and the newcomers did likewise.
- For more details on this topic, see Jamestown, Virginia.
Jamestown was selected for establishment of the first permanent English settlement in the Colony based upon its strategic location on the James River, a priority which came at the expense of swampy and inhospitable conditions of the land which nearly wiped out the settlement during is first five years, especially during the Starving Time in 1609-10. However, after a successful strain of tobacco was cultivated by colonist John Rolfe, the product emerged beginning in 1612 as a profitable export crop for the colony. Soon plantations with wharfs were located along both sides of that river and others in the coastal plain region of the eastern part of the state. As development spread westward, above the fall line, early turnpike and canals were built to cross areas where waterways and areas were not navigable. This was easier done in the less rugged coastal plain of the Tidewater region and Piedmont terrain generally east of the Blue Ridge Mountains, which formed a formidable barrier to the west.
Settlement of the Shenandoah Valley, between the Blue Ridge Mountains and the eastern edge of the Appalachian plateau and Ridge and Valley province of the Allegheny Mountains came south from Maryland and Pennsylvania via the head of the Potomac River and the valley of the Shenandoah River , rather than across the Blue Ridge. The Valley Turnpike ran along part of this corridor, largely following the route of an old American Indian trail.
[edit] Trans-Allegheny region of Virginia
The area now known as West Virginia was referred to in antebellum times as Virginia’s Trans-Allegheny region. Transportation-wise, it presented much greater challenges and less rugged portions of the state. However, there was a goal on the western side. There, at and beyond the western edge of the Appalachian plateau, and terrain became less hilly and navigable waterways like the Kanawha River and theOhio River led to the Mississippi River, and thence to the Gulf of Mexico. After the Louisiana Purchase from France in 1803, an acquisition by the United States of most of the land along the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers, about 530,000,000 acres (828,000 sq mi or 2,100,000 km²) of territory, the portions of this area along navigable waterways were settled by Americans moving west and immigrants, mostly English and other northern Europeans, gradually squeezing out the Native Americans in the process.
Although the eastern Virginians often were not supportive of infrastructure improvments in the Trans-Allegheny region, many easterners all along the coastal areas of the Atlantic Ocean and points inland wanted transportation for commerce as this area was developed. However, the regions with mountains were the biggest area where navigable waterways were unavailable and canals impractical. Wheeled vehicles in the form of wagons and later railroads and motor vehicles needed to pass through with passengers as freight. This support for improvements could gain the broad support needed in the state government.
[edit] Building and funding improvements: tolls
Toll ferrys and toll bridges had long been established as ways to cross obstacles such as waterways, and recover from user fees. The investments needed to build the infrastructure and operating expenses to maintain them Turnpikes were among the earlier solutions to crossing the land areas where canals where not practical, such as the mountains. Turnpikes followed the same basic financial model as canals and toll bridges by collecting tolls for passage. Such facilities were totally or partially privately funded by private individuals or groups.
[edit] Virginia Board of Public Works
- For more details on this topic, see Virginia Board of Public Works.
The Virginia Board of Public Works created in 1816, to oversee the state investments in transportation infrastructure. It was a governmental agency that oversaw and helped finance the development of Virginia's internal transportation improvements. In that era, it was customary to invest public funds in private companies, which were the forerunners of the public service and utility companies of modern times.
Of the many people who help build Virginia's transportation infrastructure, it is likely that the most important individual was a French-born civil engineer Claudius Crozet (1789-1864). Crozet had served in the military forces in France under Napoleon, and had emigrated to the United States with his wife. Also an educator, he helped found Virginia Military Institute (VMI).
During two periods of major development, Crozet served as Principal Engineer and later Chief Engineer for the Board of Public Works. He was involved with the planning and construction of many of the canals, turnpikes, bridges and railroads in Virginia, including the area that is now West Virginia. Almost all potential projects were carefully planned and surveyed for feasibility and cost estimates by Crozet and his staff. This work is well documented in the archives of the Library of Virginia in Richmond, with some items including maps available for viewing online.
Of his many projects, Crozet is probably best remembered for his engineering in the mountains. The famous Blue Ridge Tunnel complex which carried the Virginia Central Railroad (later the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway) through the Blue Ridge Mountains at Rockfish Gap.
Most of the projects of the Board of Public Works occurred before the American Civil War, which decimated Virginia financially and literally split it into two separate states, creating (West Virginia). One of the projects completed before the war with engineering and financial investments from the Board was the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike.
[edit] Gaining authorization and funding to build the Turnpike
Once problem with the Board of Public Works was that it often ignored request for projects in the Trans-Allegheny region in favor of eastern projects. [1] However, politicians and local authorities succeeded in getting the State to authorize a study for a road from Staunton to Parkersburg by the Board of Public Works. Beginning around 1826, Crozet was given the formidable task of determining a potential route for a turnpike from Staunton in Augusta County in the Shenandoah Valley to Parkersburg in Wood County on the Ohio River.
There was considerable interest in the communities in the region in between these points to be included along the route, and financial incentives to the cost were authorized by some to help to influence a favorable location. Historic Beverly, West Virginia website
However, it took many more years to get the authorization to procede. Finally, during the Acts of Assembly in 1838, the Virginia General Assembly authorized the Board of Public Works to invest in and assist with construction of the road.
Among the specifications set forth were :
- “It shall no where exceed a grade of four degrees, nor shall be more than :twenty feet wide, nor less than fifteen feet “ 1838 Bill of Virginia General Assembly
[edit] Building the turnpike
The original planning had been done in 1826. After funding was authorized to build the turnpike 12 years later, Crozet reviewed the earlier plans and revised some portions. The following year, after some adjustments in the routing, Crozet estimated that the “distance from Staunton to Parkersburg will be probably between 220 and 230 miles. “ excerpt of Crozet’ Report through the Board of Public Works to the Virginia General Assembly in 1939
The route finally selected by Crozet passed west of Staunton through the tiny village of Monterey, in Highland County, Virginia’s least-populated county which is called "Virginia's Switzerland," in reference to the steep mountains and valleys. It crossed into what is now Pocahontas County, West Virginia at Buffalo Gap. As the route winds through the mountainous terrain, there are many switchbacks and loops designed by Crozet as he attempted to meet the 4% maximum grade standard. In this area, the road passes near modern attractions such as the Green Bank National Observatory and Cass Scenic Railroad, and the communities of Bartow, Frank, and Durbin.
West of Bartow, it crossed the Greenbrier River, and wound up the eastern slope of Cheat Mountain, At the top, it crossed the nearly flat plateau typical of the region’s mountaintops. (In the 21st century, much of this land is part of the Monongahela National Forest). The turnpike descended Cheat Mountain into the valley of the Tygart River, and follows it mostly northerly to the town of Beverly, the original county seat of Randolph County.
At Beverly, the turnpike turns almost due west once again, passing through Elkins and Buckhannon. Weston, Troy, and Burnt House. The final western stretch generally follows the route of the Little Kanawha River to reach its goal of Parkersburg on the western bank of the Ohio River.
A number of bridges along the turnpike were built by Lemuel Chenoweth. The best known of these us the Philippi Covered Bridge, which survives into modern times after several rebuilding projects, and continues to carry U.S. Rt. 250 traffic. It is the nation's only covered bridge serving a federal highway.
[edit] Operation on the turnpike
Turnpike operations included through and local traffic. Toll houses, always manned, were established at intervals, so as to collect from both types of traffic. Toll house Sites were selected at points where it would be difficult to take an alternate routing and escape paying the toll.
[edit] Region conflicts divide Virginia
- For more details on this topic, see History of West Virginia.
Most historians are in agreement that slavery was the biggest issue of conflict in the United States which led to the American Civil War (1861-8165). However, Virginia at the time was the largest and most-populated states, and had abnormally large regional differences within it than most other states.
The social conditions in western Virginia were entirely unlike those existing in the eastern portion of the state. The population was not homogeneous, as a considerable part of the immigration came by way of Pennsylvania and included Germans, Protestant Ulster-Scots, and settlers from the states farther north. During the American Revolution, there was movement to create a state beyond the Alleghenies, and, in 1776, a petition for the establishment of "Westsylvania" was presented to Congress, on the grounds that the mountains made an almost impassable barrier on the east. The rugged nature of the country made slavery unprofitable, and time only increased the social, political and economic differences between the two sections of Virginia.
However, the conflicts between regions were never resolved within Virginia, nor separate state formed, until the American Civil War broke out. Eastern Virginians voted to secede and join the Confederate States of America. However, almost all western counties wanted to remain in the Union. In 1861, only nine of the forty-six delegates from the present state of West Virginia voted in a special session of the Virginia General Assembly to hold a public referendum on secession.
Almost immediately after the adoption of the ordinance, a mass meeting at Clarksburg recommended that each county in north-western Virginia send delegates to a convention to meet in Wheeling on May 13, 1861. It was decided that if the referendum favored secession (of which there was little doubt), another convention including the members-elect of the legislature should meet at Wheeling in June.
As anticipated, at the election on May 23, 1861), secession was ratified by a large majority in the state as a whole, but in the western counties 40,000 votes out of 44,000 were cast against it. The Second Wheeling Convention met as agreed on June 11 and declared that, since the Secession Convention had been called without the consent of the people, all its acts were void, and that all who adhered to it had vacated their offices. An act for the reorganization of the government was passed on June 19, and a provisional government loyal to Union was set up initially based at Wheeling. Francis H. Pierpont was chosen governor of Virginia and other officers were elected.
The pro-northern government authorized the creation of the state of Kanawha, consisting of most of the counties that now comprise West Virginia. A little over one month later, Kanawha was renamed West Virginia. These actions were formally approved by the public by wide margins.
After President Lincoln issued a proclamation admitting the state effective June 20, 1863, officers for the new state were chosen, and Governor Pierpont moved his capital to Alexandria from which he asserted jurisdiction over the counties of Virginia within the Federal lines, since the disposition of eastern Virginia as part of the Confederacy or Union had yet to be resolved. Following the end of hostilities, most of the portion which had been considered itself part of the Confederacy Virginia rejoined the Union, with the exception of two northern counties which chose to join West Virginia in 1866. .
[edit] American Civil War
- For more details on this topic, see Battle of Rich Mountain.
During the American Civil War, some of the earliest campaigns of the Civil War was fought for control of the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike, as well as the adjacent portion of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O).
The Battle of Rich Mountain took place on July 11, 1861. Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan had assumed command of Union forces in western Virginia in June 1861. On June 27, he moved his divisions from Clarksburg south against Lt. Col. John Pegram's Confederates, reaching the vicinity of Rich Mountain on July 9. Meanwhile, Brig. Gen. Thomas A. Morris's Union brigade marched from Philippi to confront Brig. Gen. Robert S. Garnett's command at Laurel Hill. On July 11, Brig. Gen. William S. Rosecrans led a reinforced brigade by a mountain path to seize the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike in Pegram’s rear. A sharp two-hour fight ensued in which the Confederates were split in two. Half escaped to Beverly, but Pegram and the others (including the "Sydney Boys", a regiment formed from the students of Hampden-Sydney College) surrendered on July 13. Hearing of Pegram’s defeat, Garnett abandoned Laurel Hill. The Federals pursued, and, during fighting at Corrick's Ford on July 13, Garnett was killed. On July 22, McClellan was ordered to Washington, and Rosecrans assumed command of Union forces in western Virginia.
The Union victory at Rich Mountain gave the Union Army control of the S-P turnpike, of the Tygart's Valley, the covered bridge at Philippi, and of all of the territory of western Virginia to the north and west, including the B&O railroad. Union General George McClellan’s victory brought him promotion to command the Army of the Potomac.
The Federals then established fortifications at the summit of Cheat Mountain, and the Confederates dug in at Bartow and Allegheny. There they faced each other over the turnpike through the fall 1861 and over the winter. General Robert E. Lee’s attempt to attack Cheat Summit Fort, and Federal attempts to attack Camp Bartow and Camp Allegheny, all failed to dislodge the enemy.
However, apparently the harsh winter conditions in the mountain climate convinced the leaders of both armies to move on, and they were soon involved in Stonewall Jackson’s Shenandoah Mountain campaign. The region essentially remained under Union control for the remainder of the War.
[edit] Conflict over debt of Virginia Board of Public Works
Following the end of the Civil War, and the Reconstruction period, Virginia faced a massive debt problem. Much of this had originated in investments made by the Board of Public Works, including improvements which were now located in West Virginia. To add insult to injury for the Virginians, in addition to contemplating payment of debts for these improvements, much of what had been built the same way and for which there was still debt in the remaining part of Virginia had been destroyed by the War.
The recovering state did not have adequate income to pay all these debts and fund needed additional improvements such as schools, especially those to provide education for the newly freed slaves. Sharp political divisions in Virginia on this issue resulted in creation of a third major political group led by former Confederate General and railroad executive William Mahone.
In 1877, Mahone became the leader of the Readjuster Party, a coalition of Democrats, Republicans, and African-Americans seeking a reduction in Virginia's prewar debt, and an appropriate allocation made to the former portion of the state that constituted the new State of West Virginia. Mahone led the successful effort to elect the Readjuster candidate William E. Cameron as the next governor, and he himself was elected to served as a Senator in the U.S. Congress from 1881 to 1887, when he lost his seat to Democrat John W. Daniel. Although out of office, the seemingly tireless Mahone continued to stay involved in Virginia-related politics until he suffered a catastrophic stroke in Washington, D.C., in the fall of 1895. He died a week later, aged 68.
Although Mahone was not to live to see the outcome, for several decades, Virginia and West Virginia disputed the new state's share of the Virginia government's debt. The issue was finally settled in 1915, when the United States Supreme Court ruled that West Virginia owed Virginia $12,393,929.50. The final installment of this sum was paid off in 1939.
[edit] Past its heyday
By the end of the 19th century, virtually every hollow in West Virginia was covered by railroad lines. These served the lumbering and coal industries, bringing with them new jobs and prosperity. While through traffic along the turnpike became less important than in the past, to local needs it remained an important thoroughfare.
Beginning primarily in the boom years of the 1920s, many highways were paved to provide for automobiles. Although there were some re-routing improvements, considerable sections of the original turnpike remained the best available route. Much of it east of Beverly to Staunton became U.S. Route 250.
[edit] National Scenic Byway
The portion of the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike was named a National Scenic Byway in 2005. Many resources to assist travelers and tourist attractions have been developed for visitors by various means and with a wide range of interests. The best news for shunpikers, in addition to many local amenities close by, there are no tolls on the turnpike these days.
