Two-hundred and twenty miles of the National Road run through my state and a stone marker on the north side of every mile told travelers how many miles they were from Cumberland, Maryland, the beginning point of the highway. To date, over 83 of these stone markers remain along the original routes of US 40.
The United States Congress required that there be distinguishing marks at regular intervals to aid travelers. The milestones were set at 1 mile intervals on the north side of the road. Congress did not specify the appearance of the markers, so each state was free to select its own milestone design.
Here the markers were a square column with a rounded head. Each is marked at the head with the distance to the eastern point of the road at Cumberland, Maryland. Below, the square base is set at an angle to the road, with exposed sides showing the distance to the nearest city or village for the east- or west-bound traveler. As originally built, the markers were 5' tall and set directly into the ground, leaving 3' exposed.
At the top of the Mile Marker is the town name Cumberland and under that is a number. Cumberland was the beginning of the National Road. The number tells a travel beginning their journey in Cumberland how far they had traveled. Below that are several other town names.
The one above shows that it is located 250 miles from Cumberland, Maryland; 120 miles from Wheeling, West Virginia and 7 1/2 miles from Columbus, Ohio. And that the traveler has 48 miles before reaching the Village of Lewisville.
Approximately 80 original sandstone markers remain in the state, although many are not in their original locations due to the reconstruction or realignment of the road over time. During the early days of the National Road, an average day for cross-country travelers would mean they would only travel about 10 miles. This was the average distance between the Pike towns, inns and taverns along the road.
