Part 1

BRADDOCK ROAD[1]

By JOHN KENNEDY LACOCK

On September 24, 1754, Major-General Edward Braddock was appointed by the Duke of Cumberland, captain-general of the British army, to the command of the British troops to be sent to Virginia, with the rank of generalissimo of all his Britannic Majesty's forces on the American continent. Before the expedition could start, however, many weeks had to be spent in extensive preparations, a delay which became so irksome to Braddock that he determined to wait no longer on the tardy movement of the transports. Accordingly, on December 21, 1754, accompanied by Captain Robert Orme, one of his aides, and William Shirley, his military secretary, he set sail for Virginia with Commodore Augustus Keppel, and on February 20, 1755, anchored in Hampton Roads. It was not till January 14, 1755, that the rest of the ships were actually under sail, and not till about March 15 that the entire fleet arrived at Alexandria, Virginia, where the troops were disembarked and temporarily quartered.[2]

Meanwhile General Braddock had been busy making the necessary preparations for the expedition against Fort Duquesne. As a matter of first importance, he had written to the governors of the several provinces asking them to meet him in council at Alexandria; and to the five who responded to his invitation on April 14 he submitted various proposals, to which they in turn made formal answer.[3]

Already, however, two days prior to the conference with the governors, the advance column of the army, after much delay caused by the lack of horses and wagons, had set out from Alexandria. The first objective point was Wills Creek,[4] to which the two regiments of the army proceeded by different routes, Sir Peter Halket's through Virginia via Rock Creek and Winchester, Colonel Thomas Dunbar's through Maryland via Fredericktown and thence across the Conogogee and into a road five miles north of Winchester. From this point both divisions seem to have marched over the same road to Fort Cumberland.[5] Still further delays were occasioned by the want of wagons and horses for transportation, as well as by the lack of provisions; but by the 19th of May practically all the forces were encamped at the fort, a total of some 2100 men. It had thus taken twenty-seven days to march from Alexandria to Fort Cumberland, a distance of 180 miles; and, one may remark in passing, all the delays up to this point had been occasioned by circumstances over which Braddock had practically no control. He did not reach Fort Cumberland himself till May 10.[6] Then he lost no time in giving his attention to the three matters which were of greatest significance to the success of his expedition,--(1) the Indian question, (2) the arrangements about wagons and provisions, (3) the construction of a road through Pennsylvania to serve as a means of connection with the base of supplies.

Of Braddock's relations with the Indians there are many conflicting stories; but a careful examination of the most trustworthy accounts will convince an impartial investigator that there is no basis in fact for the charge, often made, that his conduct toward them was impolitic and unjust. On the contrary, it is difficult to find a single fair criticism that can be made against him on this score. However one may account for the circumstance that but eight of them accompanied the expedition, it seems to be practically certain that this small number was not due to the fact that the Indians had not received every reasonable consideration from the English general.

In providing the horses, wagons, and supplies necessary for the undertaking, Braddock was ably assisted by Benjamin Franklin, whose extraordinary efforts, tact, and courage called forth his warm appreciation. "I desired Mr. B. Franklin, postmaster of Pennsylvania, who has great credit in that province," he wrote on June 5, "to hire me one hundred and fifty wagons and the number of horses necessary, which he did with so much goodness and readiness that it is almost the first instance of integrity, address, and ability that I have seen in all these provinces."[7]

In the solution of his third problem, that of constructing a road through Pennsylvania in order to have an adequate avenue for securing supplies, Braddock was less successful. He quickly recognized the importance of having the road cut west of the Susquehanna in order to intersect with the route of the army at a place called indifferently Turkey Foot, Crow Foot, or the three forks of the Youghiogheny (at what is now Confluence[8]); and he had the satisfaction of seeing the work of building this road prosecuted with great diligence by Governor Morris of Pennsylvania. Unfortunately for Braddock, however, it proved to be impossible to complete the road in time for it to be of any service to him in the expedition.[9]

From Fort Cumberland westward Braddock had to make a road for his troops across mountains divided by ravines and torrents, over a rugged, desolate, unknown, and uninhabited country. The history of the construction of this road and a description of its course it is the purpose of this paper to set forth; for the growing interest with which the routes of celebrated expeditions are coming to be regarded, and the confusion that attends the tracing of such routes after a lapse of years, make it altogether fitting that the road by which the unfortunate Braddock marched to his disastrous field should be surveyed, mapped, and suitably marked while it is yet possible to trace its course with reasonable definiteness.

In any discussion of this subject three things should be borne clearly in mind: (1) the irregular topography and mountainous nature of the country through which the road had to be built, for there were as many as six ranges of the Alleghanies to be crossed, besides other mountain elevations and passes that presented as great and serious difficulties; (2) the wooded character of the country; (3) the fact that the road had to be constructed by the soldiers of the army. It is noteworthy that the road which Braddock made followed very closely the course of the so-called Nemacolin Indian trail,[10] and that it was used as a pioneer road as far west as Jumonville until late in the first quarter of the nineteenth century.

On May 30 a detachment of six hundred men commanded by Major Russell Chapman set out to clear a road twelve feet wide from Fort Cumberland to Little Meadows, twenty miles away; but in spite of some work previously done on Wills Mountain, just west of the fort, they had so great difficulty in passing the elevation that on the first day they got but two miles from the starting-place. In the process, moreover, three of their wagons were entirely destroyed and many more shattered.[11]

Of the road from old Fort Cumberland to the foot of Wills Mountain no trace can be found today, but it seems probable that its course lay along what is now Green Street in Cumberland. There is, however, just as good and as direct a route from the camp by way of Sulphur Spring Hollow, past the present Rose Hill cemetery, with an easy, ascending grade to the ridge of the spur of Wills Mountain, and so on to a point at or near the intersection of the Sulphur Spring, Cresaptown, and Cumberland roads.[12] Something might be said in support of this route. Nevertheless, the former was the direct way to reach the fording at Wills Creek, the old trading-post at this point; and it was the way best known to the Indians.

At the foot of the mountain the road proceeds westerly, parallel to the Cumberland Road but ninety feet north of it, to a point opposite the old Steel House.[13] At this spot the first depression or scar of the Braddock Road can be seen today.

A short distance farther on, the road enters the wooded part of Wills Mountain. At a distance of about four hundred feet westward it veers away to the north from the old Cumberland Road, following to the top of the mountain a succession of absolutely straight lines, no one of which varies more than five degrees from the preceding line. Thence the course bears to the south and joins the Cumberland Road opposite the old Steiner House (now owned by Frederick Lang) in Sandy Gap,[14] about a mile and a half from the junction with the Cresaptown road. To this point the route may be traced with very little difficulty. From Sandy Gap it follows the present course of the old Cumberland Road for about seven-tenths of a mile,[15] crossing the George's Creek and Cumberland Railroad and the Eckhart branch of the Cumberland and Pennsylvania Railroad, to the house now occupied by Edward Kaylor, 380 feet from the latter railroad crossing. Here the line leaves the old Cumberland Road and runs due west four-tenths of a mile, passing under the front or southwest corner of the new house recently built by William Hendrickson, then fording Braddock Run in Alleghany Grove south of Lake View Cottage, thence running through Alleghany Grove to the Vocke road 440 feet south of its intersection with the National turnpike and 700 feet north of the now abandoned part of the old Cumberland Road, and keeping on still in the same straight line 1100 feet westward to the turnpike.

So great was the difficulty experienced by the advance party in passing this mountain that General Braddock himself reconnoitered it, and had determined to put 300 more men at work upon it when he was informed by Mr. Spendelow, lieutenant of the seamen,[16] that he had discovered a pass by way of the Narrows through a valley which led round the foot of the mountain.[17] Thereupon Braddock ordered a survey of this route to be made, with the result that a good road was built in less than three days, over which all troops and supplies for Fort Cumberland were subsequently transported.[18]

Every endeavor of the writer and his party to locate this new road through the Narrows and round Wills Mountain proved fruitless. Of approaches from Fort Cumberland to the Narrows over which an army with baggage trains could pass, four, and only four, were possible.[19] (1) One could cross Wills Creek at the ford or bridge near its mouth;[20] and then go up the left or eastern bank of the stream;[21] (2) one could pass down the decline back of the present Alleghany Academy to the creek, and then follow the shore on either side, fording at the most convenient point; (3) one could go down the sloping ground northward from the fort, reaching the creek about where the cement mill now stands, and then go up the creek as in the second route;[22] (4) one could follow Fayette street and Sulphur Spring valley to the cemetery, and thence turning abruptly to the right go down a little valley to the Narrows, where a crossing of the creek would be immediately necessary. A high bluff, or "stratum," running down to the very water's edge of the creek on the right bank of the stream at the eastern entrance to this gap makes it almost unquestionable that the beginning of the pathway through the Narrows was on the left, or eastern, bank of Wills Creek.[23] The question is, did this pathway follow the left bank of the stream through the entire length of the gap, recrossing the creek near the month of Braddock Run; or did it recross it in the Narrows near the present location of the bridge over Wills Creek on the National turnpike, and thence follow the course of the turnpike to the western terminus of the Narrows? Judged by present conditions, the latter view seems the more probable; but it is impossible to do more than make a shrewd guess, for the construction of three separate railroads through this narrow valley has completely altered the banks of the creek and obliterated all traces of the road. In favor of the former contention it should be said that, within the memory of some of the older and more trustworthy citizens of Cumberland, there has been opportunity for the easy construction of a road on the left, or eastern, bank of Wills Creek.[24] Furthermore, at the entrance of the Narrows from the western end the stratum of hard white sandstone formerly extended to the waters of the creek.

Although the ground between these two obstructions to the Narrows on its right bank might have afforded a good roadbed, yet undoubtedly they proved to be obstacles that Braddock's engineers, with the appliances which they had at hand, could not easily surmount. It is well known to the older residents of Cumberland that as late as 1873 the mass of boulders at the eastern end of the gap, lying along the right bank of the stream, were in their primitive condition when a wagon road was constructed by George Henderson, Jr., to join the Cumberland road on that side of Wills Creek. On the contrary, the left bank presented no such difficulties in the way of road-building; and a careful examination of the ground through the entire length of the gap cannot fail to convince one that in Braddock's day there was opportunity for the easy construction of a road on that side.

After leaving the gap the road turned into the valley of Braddock Run; but the difficulty of finding present traces of it at this point seems almost insuperable on account of the character of the valley itself. The methods employed by Braddock's engineers in laying out the road indicate that its course was probably that afterwards followed by the National turnpike to a point near the northwest corner of the Alleghany Grove Camp Ground,[25] just beyond which and south of the turnpike is a distinct hollow or trench. The neighborhood of Alleghany Grove was unquestionably the place of the first encampment, Spendelow Camp.[26]

From the point of intersection with the National turnpike, one-fourth mile west of Alleghany Grove, the Braddock Road keeps north of the turnpike on somewhat higher ground to escape swampy land; thence, in order to avoid the point of a hill (or perhaps it would be more accurate to say a spur of Piney Mountain), it crosses the turnpike to the southward, and after running parallel to it for about 150 yards recrosses it to the northward at or near the point where the present trolley line intersects it. Here there is a well-preserved scar for almost a mile to the point where the road joins the National turnpike near the six-mile post. The route then follows along the north side of the turnpike, crossing Braddock Run, a little to the north of the bridge;[27] thence running westerly north of the Six Mile House, it recrosses Braddock Run, and a few rods beyond passes between the house and barn of Charles Laber. On this farm there is a copious spring of excellent water, locally known as Braddock Spring,[28] situated about 175 feet south of Braddock Road, and according to local tradition marking the site of Spendelow Camp. That this theory is altogether unlikely, however, is shown not only by the fact that the tradition does not harmonize with the best authorities, but also by the topography of the country and the lack of sufficient and suitable ground for an encampment. That an advance party may have spent the night at or near this fine spring is not improbable, but the natural place for the camp was in the neighborhood of Alleghany Grove Camp Ground.[29]

Less than a quarter of a mile west of Charles Laber's house Braddock Road again crosses Braddock Run; thence turning almost due south in order to avoid a rocky ascent over which no road could be built, it comes into the National turnpike about a mile west of the old toll-house. From this point it coincides with the turnpike for 225 feet; then it veers away to the north for some rods and turns west, crossing the county road known as the Short Gap road about fifty yards north of its junction with the turnpike, and passing the house now owned by John Laber. A short distance west of this point it crosses the turnpike and the Eckhart branch of the Cumberland and Pennsylvania Railroad in order to avoid a very deep hollow, and joins the pike again four hundred feet farther on. After following the old turnpike for about one hundred feet it veers away again to the north of it at Spruce Bridge for about three-quarters of a mile, passing Smith's Big Rocks, and joining the turnpike again less than quarter of a mile east of Clarysville. From Alleghany Grove Camp Ground to Clarysville there are only a few short stretches where traces of the road cannot be distinctly seen, and in some places the scar is nearly ten feet deep.

At Clarysville the road turns into the valley of Flaggy Run, apparently following the west bank of the stream,[30] along which there is a deep depression formed by an old mill race that might easily be mistaken for the road itself. About half a mile southwest of Clarysville the road turns almost at a right angle, keeping approximately the course of the present county road for three-quarters of a mile up Hoffman Hollow. Here again, running parallel to the present road, is an old tramway roadbed which might readily be taken for Braddock's path. A short distance beyond the Hoffman coal mines, on the north side of the road, is a very deep scar, which is probably a part of Braddock's roadbed. At the top of the hill the road turns northward at almost a right angle in order to avoid what was formerly a very wide swamp, and then passes over the ridge and down through Layman's orchard, where there is a deep scar. Near the end of this ridge, overlooking Frostburg and about five miles from Spendelow Camp, is the site of the second encampment, Martin's Plantation.[31]

From here the road crosses first the headwaters of the eastern branch of George's Creek, next the Cumberland and Pennsylvania Railroad, and then runs southeast of Frostburg into the premises of James Grose, and on through the Sheatz, Taylor, and William Tiley properties to Braddock Park. About 350 feet north of this park is an old milestone, which is supposed by some writers to have been set up by Braddock.[32] Leaving Braddock Park the line follows the Midlothian road for about four hundred feet; but, soon entering a lane, it crosses the western branch of George's Creek east of an old spring-house standing near the ruins of the old Musselman farmhouse, and bearing the inscription "C. & S. Musselman, May 30th, 1806." At this point, one-fourth mile west from Braddock Park, the ascent of Big Savage Mountain begins. Although there are some level spots on the western slope of the mountain, the ascent of more than two miles is very steep and rocky, and the cut is several feet deep in places.[33] The descent for a half mile or more is also very rugged and in places extraordinarily steep.[34] On the east and west slopes the traces of the route are very distinct.

At the foot of the mountain the road unites with a highway a little to the east of Andrew Jackson Moore's stone house, and continues with it for nearly half a mile, when it apparently turns into a private or secondary road for about another mile to a point where there is a favorable place for fording Savage River, the last water that empties itself into the Potomac.[35] Near a schoolhouse on the north bank of Savage River and a short distance west of the mouth of Carey Run the road begins a very steep ascent of Little Savage Mountain. From this point to the Henry Blocher farm, a little over a mile westward, the course of the road follows closely that of a private way, on either side of which there are for short intervals very clear signs of the location of Braddock Road. From various indications it seems reasonable to conclude that the farm of Henry Blocher, with the adjoining one of George Blocher, marks the location of Braddock's third encampment, Savage River Camp.[36] There is a local tradition that about five hundred yards west of the Henry Blocher farm a skirmish with the Indians took place, and that near a clump of trees east of Blocher's house some British soldiers were buried.[37]

From the Henry Blocher farm the line follows the general course of a private road westward for about a mile, crosses Mudlick Run to Read Anderson's house, and thence leads up a rather formidable hill, on which Braddock's engineers appear for the first time to have made use of a winding path as a means of ascent. From this hill the road runs by very favorable ground in a nearly straight line to the corner of a wood, and then on through the woods to a township road, which it crosses at a point about a quarter of a mile from the National turnpike. Proceeding in the same straight line westward less than quarter of a mile, it reaches and crosses the turnpike to the north. It was at or near this intersection that the first brigade probably encamped on June 15.[38]

From this point to some woods less than a quarter of a mile westward there is no trace of the road, but through these woods there is a well-marked scar for over half a mile to Two Mile Run. Near this stream are the renowned "Shades of Death," once a deep forest the tops of whose towering trees intertwined.[39] From the "Shades of Death" the road passes up Red Ridge, crossing another road a few rods to the north of a house now occupied by Henry Meerbach;[40] thence it runs to Wolf Swamp and Red Run,[41] and on to the foot of Meadow Mountain.[42] On the east and west slopes of this mountain the cuts, from six to ten feet deep, are for long distances clearly perceptible. On the western slope the beautiful estate of Little Meadows, now owned by D. F. Kuykendall, of Cumberland, marks the location of the fourth encampment.[43]

A short distance from Little Meadows the road crosses Chestnut Ridge. Thence proceeding westwardly, it intersects the National turnpike about one mile east of the Little Crossings bridge over the Castleman River, runs through the farm of Eli Stanton, where there is a very clear scar, and then crosses the Jennings Brothers' railroad.[44] A quarter of a mile farther westward it intersects the National turnpike near Stanton's old mill; but, after following the turnpike very closely for a few rods, it veers off to the south, crossing the Castleman River about three hundred yards above the Little Crossings bridge, near a point locally known as Hickory Hole. On the west side of the river the road veers away to the southwest, and a few rods from the fording enters some woods, in which the scar is well marked. Thence turning westward it passes about a quarter of a mile south of Grantsville, and continues in an approximately straight line to Shade Hill, which shows a scar as deep as any on the mountain ranges previously mentioned.[45] At the foot of the western slope of this hill the road crosses Big Shade Run; and a short distance westward, near Little Shade Run, it passes the house and barn now owned by John P. Miller. This was the place of the fifth encampment.