The National Road

An original National Road milemarker in Eastern Licking County (L is for Linnville, B is for Brownsville)

Zanesville

Picture on left - Ohio Historical Marker for the Y Bridge
Picture on right - County placard for the reopening of the Y-bridge in 1984

Photo of the Y-Bridge, looking SW

Zanesville started it's own streetscape program in 2001(?). Part of that program included painting this mural on the history of the National Road on the side of a building (along US 40 naturally). On the west end of the business district, looking east.

Black text on a yellow background (not FHWA standard) with a streetscene above the name on a Zanesville streetsign.

Entrance arch to Greenwood Cemetery on the eastside of Zanesville

S-Bridge Park

Sign on right announcing the park. Original National Rd milemarker on left. This is located between New Concord and Cambridge (though closer to the latter).

Ohio Historical Placard about S-bridges at the park, placed in 1953.

On the east end of the "S-Bridge" looking west across it to present day US 40-22.

Looking at a cross section of the "S-Bridge."

Close up of the bridge (looking east from the NW corner of it), alot of the brick roadway is still present.

Cambridge Area

Ohio 723 is the name of the connector from I-70 to US 22/40 on the west side of Cambridge (map). It is one of Ohio's shortest state highways at 0.78 mile (see its entry on this page - Need Acrobat Reader to view it) and is marked minimally (and not identified on signs on I-70).

Statue remembering those who've parished for us (in front of the Courthouse)

Ramps formerly used as part of detour of I-70 between Old Washington and Cambridge (along US 40) due to sinkholes, from abandoned coal mines, discovered along I-70 6-7 years ago. The ramps were NOT part of the National Road at any point!

WB I-70 just east of Oh 285.

Disapearing US 40

Between Hendrysburg and Morristown, the original path for the National Rd and US 40 got paved over by I-70 (map below).The road to the right of Oh 800 (south of I-70) is the original routing for Oh 8 from Old US 40. The split between the two ends is roughly a mile.

Photo above - Here, the west end ofold US 40 narrows down and becomes part of a pre-existing local road beyond the trees (not visible). The westbound lanes (right) have been abandoned and only the old eastbound lanes still carry traffic (on the Hendrysburg side).
Photo below - old US 40 simply stops dead at the embankment of I-70 and current US 40 (on the Morristown side).

Also at the east end is this abandoned medium tension wire pole. How it got left behind in this pond is beyond me (no others as far as the eye can see near this spot) [A contributor to this site mentioned that it may have been associated with a nearby strip mine - MGF]

Mystery road - This goes east just north of the I-70 overpass. Current US 40 is visible on the left.

This follow information is courtesy of Malcolm Spence:

"That is part of the original National Road that was replaced in the 1930s/40s by the road to the left. Both the original and 'new' 4 lane sections were called 'Lady Bend Hill.'

Local legend has it that a ghost woman often rode a white horse up and down the hill looking for her lost lover."

Blaine-Bridgeport (Ohio suburbs for Wheeling, West Virginia)

Blaine "S-bridge" rehab

This bridge was being rehabed (2000-1), so access was cut short. Looking east from eye level with the bridge.

East side again but looking north at the side of the bridge.

Another view of the bridge from the east end (in the shadow of the US 40 bridge)

Double red traffic lights? Did someone hang the light upside down? And both red lights go on and off at the same time.
US 40 and a service road to I-70 in Bridgeport

Overview of a collection of signs and memorials at the NW corner of US 40-250 and access road to Oh 7.
(from left to right) An Ohio historical placard, a cannon, route directions, a statue, a monolith, and some stairs.

Picture on left - Bracketed by route markers, memorial for fallen soldiers.
Picture on right - Placard about the history of Bridgeport (for the state bicentenial), founded by Ebenezer Zane

Other Regional National Road websites

Brian Powell - Blaine Hill reconstruction Project
If you wish to follow the National Road on roadfan.com, you can continue west to Licking County or east to Wheeling, W.Va

Map of US 40/I-70 from DeLormes Maps

Page created on December 3, 2002/Last updated on April 30, 2004 (Minor revision June 27, 2005)

Questions, comments, and submissions can be directed to Sandor Gulyas

Return to SE Ohio Page or the National Road in Ohio Index Page