Blog: Indiana and the National Road

Indiana and the National Road by Candace Hudziak, MA, QP

With this year marking the 250^th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, it reminds us to celebrate our nation’s history and Indiana’s own early statehood history. Reliable transportation routes were the key component of westward expansion and Indiana is home to some important ones. For instance, if you have ever driven on U.S. 40 through central Indiana, you’ve traveled on our country’s first interstate highway. Originally called the National Road, its role in the explosive westward growth of our nation in the early 1800s cannot be overstated.    

Begun in 1811 in Cumberland, Maryland, the National Road’s planned western terminus was the Mississippi River. Construction was painfully slow, however, and the project took years longer than planned (in that regard, not much has changed for Americans). It wasn’t until 1827 that the Indiana leg of the National Road finally broke ground in Wayne County. Contrary to popular belief, the road wasn’t built in a linear fashion through Indiana, but rather in segments, with the Indianapolis section (also known as Washington Street) reaching completion before the rest of the state was finished. Construction of the National Road continued westward into Illinois in 1834, but when a nation-wide financial crisis hit in 1837 the National Road’s funding ran out and roadwork came to a halt in central Illinois at Vandalia.

When completed, the National Road was a marvel—it was wide enough to allow for wagon trains, safe enough to bring entire families west in one trip, and convenient enough with the numerous inns and taverns that popped up quickly along the route to encourage easterners to come west in droves. A number of Indiana cities owe their existence largely due to their location on the National Road, which was usually called Main Street through most of the towns it traveled as a marker of its significance.

At first the National Road was only a dirt road, but unlike other dirt roads of the time, it included culverts and side ditches to minimize flooding. Small streams were spanned with stone arches and larger streams were spanned with wooden bridges. Over time the roadway’s surface was upgraded to planked wood and then with gravel. When the automobile became increasingly affordable during the 1920s, Americans began to pressure Congress to fund the paving of roads to make them accessible for cars. Priority was given to transcontinental roadways like the National Road, and, by 1923, the entire roadway between Cumberland, Maryland, to Indianapolis had been paved. It was soon renamed U.S. 40 as part of a new systematic road numbering system undertaken by the government. By 1930, U.S. 40 was adapted to the new American pastime of driving for business and pleasure. All along its roadside were motels, rental cabins, diners, tourist attractions, and gas stations—not to mention the dozens of billboards, directional signs, and eye-catching neon signs scattered along the highway to accommodate mobile Americans.

With the creation of Interstate 70 in the postwar years, highways like U.S. 40 experienced less through traffic, and thus many roadside businesses were forced to close. Today only a few relics of motels and cabins from the 1930s and 40s still exist along U.S. 40. As businesses flocked to the interstate interchanges, downtowns along U.S. 40 fell into decline and many long-standing businesses closed their doors forever in the 1970s and 80s. Loss of historic commercial buildings spurred the formation of many local historic preservation groups in the 1980s and 90s, and today most National Road communities in Indiana capitalize on their history through revitalized historic downtowns and tourism.

The State of Indiana designated the historic National Road as a scenic byway in 1996, and in 1998 it was designated as a National Scenic Byway. In 2002, Indiana petitioned with other National Road states such as Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia to earn the All American Road designation for U.S. 40, the highest national designation given. The Indiana National Road Association was formed in 1994 to create awareness of the National Road’s cultural legacy and historic impact, and the group has worked across the state to create interpretive panels and gateway signs, brochures and audio tours, and statewide events like antiques and car shows along the road.