Maysville Road Turnpike
Maysville, Mason County, Kentucky
Marker Inscription
Maysville Road. Built by "Maysville and Washington Turnpike Company," incorporated January 29, 1829. First four-mile stretch, Maysville to Washington, was earliest macadamized road in Kentucky and country west of the Alleghenies. Completed November 7, 1830. The road, Lexington to Maysville, was opened to travel in 1835 with thirteen tollhouses and six covered bridges.
Erected by Kentucky Historical Society
The Story
Chartered in 1829, the Maysville and Washington Turnpike laid down the first macadamized road in Kentucky—and reputedly the first anywhere west of the Alleghenies—when its opening four-mile stretch was completed in 1830. By 1835 the improved road ran all the way from Maysville to Lexington, threaded with thirteen tollhouses and six covered bridges. It carried the Bluegrass region's goods and travelers over a smooth, engineered surface that muddy frontier tracks could never match.
Why it matters
The Maysville Road stood at the center of a fierce national debate over federal funding for internal improvements, and its stone-paved lanes helped usher the West into the transportation age.
Plan your visit
NearbyMake a day of it — museums, food, and places to stay near this marker.
Museums & culture
- National Underground Railroad Museum0.9 mi away
- Kentucky Gateway Museum Center1.0 mi away · 215 Sutton Street, Maysville, KY
- Aberdeen–Huntington Township Museum1.6 mi away
- Albert Sidney Johnston House2.2 mi away
- Harriet Beecher Stowe Slavery to Freedom Museum2.3 mi away · 2124 Old Main Street, Maysville, KY
- Ohio Tobacco Museum7.1 mi away · 703 South 2nd Street, Ripley, OH
Food & drink
- McDonald's0.3 mi away
- DeShā’s0.3 mi away
- The Hogs Trough0.4 mi away
- Caproni's on the River1.0 mi away · 320 Rosemary Clooney Street, Maysville, KY
- Delite's1.1 mi away · 222 Market Street, Maysville, KY
- Crowe Bar1.1 mi away · 220 Market Street, Maysville, KY
Places to stay
- Days Inn by Wyndham Maysville Kentucky0.3 mi away · 484 Moody Drive, Maysville, KY
- Quality Inn0.9 mi away · 1428a KY 10
- Hampton1.0 mi away · 503 Market Place Drive, Maysville, KY
- Super 8 by Wyndham Maysville KY1.3 mi away · 550 Tucker Drive, Maysville, KY
- McCann’s Motel1.5 mi away
- Browns Motel1.5 mi away
Places data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Hours and details change — call ahead.
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Themes & tags
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