Description: This image of the Y-Bridge in Zanesville, Ohio, shows a view of the bridge's Y-junction looking toward the northeast and the Muskingum River. The Y-Bridge is located at the confluence of the Muskingum and Licking rivers, connecting Zanesville with Natchez and West Zanesville. Here the historic National Road (Cumberland Road) crossed the confluence of the Licking and Muskingum Rivers. The first Y-Bridge was opened to the public in 1814 but collapsed into the river in 1818. A second, stronger bridge (1819-1832) was built on the same site, but it was condemned thirteen years later when twelve-inch-thick ice in the river weakened the superstructure. The third Y bridge (1832-1900) stood until 1900. On January 4, 1902, the fourth Y bridge (1902-1979) was opened for foot passengers. Ten days later, streetcars and wagons began to cross the bridge. In 1979, the fourth Y bridge was judged unsafe. A fifth bridge opened on November 9, 1984. The Y-Bridge is on the National Register of Historic Places. This image of the Y-Bridge was among the photographs produced by the Federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) between 1935 and 1943. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06388
Subjects: Bridges--Ohio; Cumberland Road--History; United States. Work Progress Administration; Transportation--Ohio--History; Zanesville (Ohio); Federal Writers' Project; American guide series; National Register of Historic Places
Places: Zanesville (Ohio); Muskingum County (Ohio)
 

Description: This aerial view of the Y-Bridge in Zanesville, Ohio, shows its location at the confluence of the Muskingum and Licking rivers. The bridge, which connects Zanesville with Natchez and West Zanesville, is part of the historic National Road (Cumberland Road), the first federally planned and funded interstate highway. The National Road linked older eastern communities with the emerging frontier settlements of the Northwest Territory. From 1825 to 1838, the National Road was extended across Ohio. The first Y-Bridge was opened to the public in 1814 but collapsed into the river in 1818. A second, stronger bridge (1819-1832) was built on the same site, but it was condemned thirteen years later when twelve-inch-thick ice in the river weakened the superstructure. The third Y bridge (1832-1900) stood until 1900. On January 4, 1902, the fourth Y bridge (1902-1979) was opened for foot passengers. Ten days later, streetcars and wagons began to cross the bridge. In 1979, the fourth Y bridge was judged unsafe. A fifth bridge opened on November 9, 1984. The Y-Bridge is on the National Register of Historic Places. This image of the Y-Bridge was among the photographs produced by the Federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) between 1935 and 1943. One of the best-known WPA programs, the Federal Writers Project, published the American Guide Series, travel guides to the existing 48 states and for the District of Columbia. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06389
Subjects: Bridges--Ohio; Cumberland Road--History; Transportation--Ohio--History; Zanesville (Ohio); United States. Work Progress Administration; National Register of Historic Places
Places: Zanesville (Ohio); Muskingum County (Ohio)
 

Description: United States Road handbill, 1819. The notice is a request for bids from contractors interested in working on the National Road (also called the Cumberland Road or the U.S. Road), the first federally sponsored roadway. The notice states that David Shriver, Jr., superintendent of the National Road, is accepting bids for construction of the road segment that would link Uniontown and Washington, Pennsylvania. The U.S. Congress commissioned the National Road in 1806 as a conduit to the West, linking the Potomac River and Cumberland, Maryland, to St. Louis, Missouri, and the Mississippi River. The road opened Ohio and the Northwest Territory to settlement and trade with the eastern U.S. By 1838 the Cumberland Road had reached Springfield, Ohio; three years later it reached Vandalia, Illiinois, where construction stopped due to a funding shortfall. By this time the railroads attracted travelers and business shipping away from the National Road, and the project was abandoned. A century later the advent of the automobile made the National Road popular once again. The National Road bisected Ohio along what is now U.S. 40. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05817
Subjects: Cumberland Road--History; Transportation--Ohio--History; Roads--United States--History; Shriver, David, 1769-1852; Handbills, Advertising
Places: Cumberland (Maryland); Allegany County (Maryland);
 

Description: A toll house along the National Road in Pennsylvania. In this image, three young children stand in front of a picket fence that runs along the front of the toll house. The National Road (also called the Cumberland Road or the U.S. Road) was the first federally sponsored roadway. The U.S. Congress commissioned the National Road in 1806 as a conduit to the West, linking the Potomac River and Cumberland, Maryland, to St. Louis, Missouri, and the Mississippi River. The road opened Ohio and the Northwest Territory to settlement and trade with the eastern U.S. In 1835, when the federal government gave the states control over the National Road, Pennsylvania made its segment a toll road. The toll house in this image was one of six in Pennsylvania. By 1838 the Cumberland Road had reached Springfield, Ohio; three years later it reached Vandalia, Illiinois, where construction stopped due to a funding shortfall. By this time the railroads had attracted travelers and business shipping away from the National Road, and the project was abandoned. The advent of the automobile in the twentieth century renewed the popularity of the National Road's route. The National Road crossed the state of Ohio along what is now U.S. 40. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05818
Subjects: Cumberland Road--History; Toll roads--Pennsylvania--History; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
Places: Pennsylvania
 

Description: Buggies, an automobile, and a wagon on the National Road. the National Road (also called the Cumberland Road or the U.S. Road) was the first federally sponsored roadway. The U.S. Congress commissioned the National Road in 1806 as a conduit to the West, linking the Potomac River and Cumberland, Maryland, to St. Louis, Missouri, and the Mississippi River. The road opened Ohio and the Northwest Territory to settlement and trade with the eastern U.S. By 1838 the Cumberland Road had reached Springfield, Ohio; three years later it reached Vandalia, Illiinois, where construction stopped due to a funding shortfall. By this time the railroads had attracted travelers and business shipping away from the National Road, and the project was abandoned. The National Road crossed the state of Ohio along what is now U.S. 40. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05819
Subjects: Cumberland Road--History; Toll roads--Pennsylvania--History; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
 

Description: This photograph is a view of a horse-drawn buggy seen from the back. The buggy is traveling along a badly rutted section of the National Road. Ahead of the buggy, on the right, is a low building (or cluster of buildings). Telegraph poles and wire fencing line both sides of the land bordering the road. The National Road (also called the Cumberland Road or the U.S. Road) was the first federally sponsored roadway. The U.S. Congress commissioned the National Road in 1806 as a conduit to the West, linking the Potomac River and Cumberland, Maryland, to St. Louis, Missouri, and the Mississippi River. The road opened Ohio and the Northwest Territory to settlement and trade with the eastern U.S. By 1838 the Cumberland Road had reached Springfield, Ohio; three years later it reached Vandalia, Illiinois, where construction stopped due to a funding shortfall. By this time the railroads had attracted travelers and business shipping away from the National Road, and the project was abandoned. The National Road crossed the state of Ohio along what is now U.S. 40. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05820
Subjects: Cumberland Road--History; Toll roads--Pennsylvania--History; National Road; Transportation--Ohio--History; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
 

Description: This photograph shows a work crew crushing rock on the National Road. Six men are clearly visible; one appears to be a foreman because he's watching the others, his arms akimbo, and he's not holding any tools. Wire fencing and utility poles line the sides of the road. The National Road (also called the Cumberland Road or the U.S. Road) was the first federally sponsored roadway. The U.S. Congress commissioned the National Road in 1806 as a conduit to the West, linking the Potomac River and Cumberland, Maryland, to St. Louis, Missouri, and the Mississippi River. The road opened Ohio and the Northwest Territory to settlement and trade with the eastern U.S. By 1838 the Cumberland Road had reached Springfield, Ohio; three years later it reached Vandalia, Illiinois, where construction stopped due to a funding shortfall. By this time the railroads had attracted travelers and business shipping away from the National Road, and the project was abandoned. The National Road crossed the state of Ohio along what is now U.S. 40. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05821
Subjects: Cumberland Road--History; Toll roads--Pennsylvania--History; National Road; Transportation--Ohio--History; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
 

Description: This image is a photograph of an illustration showing a work crew spreading a macadam surface on the National Road. A caption under the image reads: "1906-Bituminous macadam experiments." A macadam surface consists of a layer or layers of crushed rock of a fairly uniform size laid over a leveled road bed. The rock layer is bound together by a crust that forms a driving surface and that also sheds water. In this image the driving surface is made of bitumin (also called asphalt). The National Road (also called the Cumberland Road or the U.S. Road) was the first federally sponsored roadway. The U.S. Congress commissioned the National Road in 1806 as a conduit to the West, linking the Potomac River and Cumberland, Maryland, to St. Louis, Missouri, and the Mississippi River. The road opened Ohio and the Northwest Territory to settlement and trade with the eastern U.S. By 1838 the Cumberland Road had reached Springfield, Ohio; three years later it reached Vandalia, Illiinois, where construction stopped due to a funding shortfall. By this time the railroads had attracted travelers and business shipping away from the National Road, and the project was abandoned. The National Road crossed the state of Ohio along what is now U.S. 40. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05822
Subjects: Cumberland Road--History; National Road; Transportation--Ohio--History; Roads; Macadam; Roads--Design and construction; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
 

Description: Postcard showing the bridge where the National Road crossed the White River in Indianapolis, Indiana. A history of the bridge is provided on the reverse side. The National Road was one of the first paved roads (constructed of compacted gravel) to cross the Appalachian Mountains. Congress authorized construction of the National Road in 1806, and in 1811, awarded contracts to private builders to begin construction. The War of 1812 prevented work from beginning until 1815, when construction began in Cumberland, Maryland, and the contractors completed the road to Wheeling, Virginia (modern-day West Virginia), in 1817. Eventually, the federal government extended the road to near St. Louis, Missouri. Modern-day U.S. Route 40 follows the National Road's original route. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV119_B01_F10_13
Subjects: National Road; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development; Cumberland Road--History; Roads--United States--History; Bridges
Places: Indianapolis (Indiana);