After decades of inaction on the part of the Virginia government in Richmond, the state finally acceded to demands from its western citizens and began to construct a turnpike into the interior. The road was initially authorized in 1826, and planned and laid out by the state engineer of Virginia, Claudius Crozet. It was not actually built until the 1840’s, however, with completion of the main roadway in 1848. This road, traveling over the high mountains near the birthplace of rivers, was an engineering marvel, and opened up large sections of western Virginia to settlement and commerce.

Address: PO Box 227,Beverly, WV 26253
Telephone: 304-637-7424
Website: http://www.spturnpike.org/