Indiana definitely has some cool old alignments of the National Road and US 40, all of which I shared on Monday. But if there were an old-alignment contest on the National Road, Ohio would win. When the road was new in the early 1800s, especially in the rough, hilly terrain east of Zanesville, it had little choice but to snake its way along. But in the 20th century’s middle years, the road was leveled and straightened. It left a whole bunch of old alignments behind.
This one is known locally as Peacock Road, and it’s just a short distance west of Old Washington. These bricks were laid in 1918 to make the National Road suitable for military transport. More than 75 continuous miles of brick was laid on Ohio’s National Road, making it the longest brick road in the nation at the time. The road is 16 feet wide with six-inch concrete curbs on each side. But you can hardly tell – thanks to being bypassed for decades now, Mother Nature is slowly taking over.
