Colonial Road Trip

A few months ago, I stumbled upon a painting of the early days of the Pennsylvania Turnpike that stopped me in my tracks.  The painting is a fascinating glimpse into the way settlers and goods moved over the Pennsylvania countryside in colonial times.  On a recent car trip from Lancaster to Philadelphia on a Friday evening, my husband and I were bemoaning the fact that it took us almost three hours.  That's unusual.  The trip normally takes half that time, but it made me wonder about how long this trip would've taken in colonial times.

In the mid-1700's, a series of rough roads connected Philadelphia to the rich farmland in what is now Lancaster County.    The Conestoga wagon, manufactured in the Conestoga Valley near Lancaster, was the primary vehicle used to transport settlers, produce, whiskey, beer, butter, cheese, corn, flour, etc. back and forth between Lancaster and Philadelphia.  These early roads were often in terrible condition, full of large holes, ruts, and mud.

In 1791, the Commonwealth approved a state-wide transportation plan, a 62-mile (beginning at 34th St. in Philadelphia and ending at the Susquehanna River in Columbia, Pa) roadway made of broken limestone and gravel.  The toll road was named the Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike.  It was completed in 1795 at the cost of $450,000, and had 13 tollgates.  The tolls varied, being as high as 50 cents for larger wagons and coaches.

( Conestoga Wagon on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, Thomas Birch, 1816
Shelburne Museum, Shelburne, VT)

The image above is a painting by Thomas Birch, and English-born American painter more well-known for his maritime paintings.  Take a look at how our PA Turnpike looked in 1816.  The painting is called Conestoga Wagon on the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

What's going on in the image?
What time of year might this be?  What do you see that makes you say that?
What kind of day is it?  How would dry weather affect the riders' experience?
Describe the countryside.
Does the countryside seem familiar to those of you who live here in Lancaster County?

Also along the road were taverns to provide lodging, food, and water for the travelers and horses.  Here is an image of the Spread EagleTavern, fourteen miles from Philadelphia, by Carl Rakeman, from the Federal Highway Administration's website, www.fhwa.dot.gov.

At every mile, there was also a mile marker (you can see one in the image above).  This helped the travelers know where they were and also kept the tollgate operators honest!  Imagine how excited I was when last week, while driving along on Route 30, I noticed one of these granite stones incised with the number of miles to Philadelphia and to Lancaster!  It is just past the major intersection at Gap, on the north side in front of a large stone house.

The trip from Philadelphia to Lancaster often took up to three to four days, and was considered THE standout highway of the thirteen original states!   The Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike was eventually replaced by the canals, and then the railroads, in the late 1800's, and the turnpike we know today was built in large part by the WPA after the Depression.

Below is a print of a stock certificate of the Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike Company, showing the Conestoga Wagon and a toll house, from the website, www.certificatecollector.com