I-70 and the National Road cling to each other for 18 miles between Morristown and Old Washington in eastern Ohio. Sometimes the two roads parallel each other closely; other times, they’re the same road. On this map, the blue line is the National Road. (Thanks to fellow National Road fan Christopher Busta-Peck for creating it; go here to see it on Google Maps.) As you can see, it’s often hard to tell where the National Road stops and I-70 begins.
I followed as much of the old road as still exists. Overall it was a pleasant drive, for where the forlorn National Road remains, it is peaceful. I encountered not a single soul as I explored these miles.
But this portion of my trip took some determination as the road frequently disappeared into I-70’s fill, as in the photo below. I backtracked twice to cross over I-70 and return to the road on the other side, and once I had to take a wide detour on rough gravel roads.
But along the way I encountered the only S bridge that was, at the time, still open to traffic on the entire National Road. I’ll share photos next time.
Lots of old National Road bits have been left behind over the years. Check out this one in Maryland, and this one in Indiana.
I’ve driven the National Road from its beginning in Baltimore, MD to its end in Vandaila, IL. To read everything I’ve ever written about it, click here.
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