@ DHRi Vrrgini, Dep,rtmort of Histo,i, Resom-ees

PRELIMINARY INFORMATION FORM (PIF) for HISTORIC DISTRICTS

Purpose of Evaluation Please use the following space to explain briefly why you are seeking an evaluation of this property.

Although Loudoun' s rural network pre-dates the 17 57 founding of the County, this historic asset has remained in continuous use in Loudoun's rural west. With Loudoun's continued shift away from its origins as a fanning community, there is the need to document the network and plan for its future survival with the hopes that the don't succumb to demands of modem, high-speed travel.

Loudoun County's 2019 Comprehensive Plan acknowledges the importance of the county's historic roads as a contributing resource to the "character of the rural landscape." The Plan also recognizes the importance of continued use stating that in addition to vehicular travel, the rural road network "provides opportunities for recreational use such as hiking, biking and equestrian sports." 1 Local elected leaders have written in support of preservation of the roads. Letters are attached as an appendix to this PIF.

America's Routes, a local group of engaged citizens, is dedicated to documenting Loudoun's Rural Road network as a means to educate the public as to the roads' historic significance. American's Routes believes that with education, there will be more public interest in preserving this unique historic asset. For more information, please see hllps://amcricasmutes.com

Are you interested in applying for State and/or Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credits? Yes _No x Are you interested in receiving more information about DHR's easement program? Yes No_x_

1. General Information District name(s): Western Loudoun Rural Road Network Main and/or Routes: --all- ---- Village or Hamlet: Middleburg, Unison, Bloom.field, Bluemont, Woodgrove, Hillsboro, Loudoun Heights. Lucketts. Taylorstown, Wt LI isvi ll e, St Louis, Loudoun Heights . .. and more

Name of the Independent City or County where the property is located: __L_ o_u_d_o_u_n_C_o_u_n...... ,ty____ _

2. Physical Aspects Acreage: 260 miles (estimate)

Setting (choose only one of the following): Urban __ Suburban ___ Town -'"x=-_ Village _x_ _ Hamlet -'"x.C....-_ Rural_x_

Briefly describe the district's overall setting, including any notable landscape features:

Western Loudoun' s pastoral landscape is composed of expansive view sheds across agricultural fields interspersed with rural villages, knit together by a rural road network. This rural road network is a distinctive hallmark of western Loudoun County, their winding contributing as much to the experience as the destination.

Department of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 2 Rev. January 2018 5/6/2020 3. Architectural/Physical Description Architectural Style(s): ____v.,__, e=rn=a=c=u=la=r______

If any individual properties within the district were designed by an architect, landscape architect, engineer, or other professional, please list here: Luten Company, York PA

If any builders or developers are known, please list here: ___N'----"----=/ A-=------

Date(s) of construction (can be approximate): --"1~7_5~7_-_1_9_6~2 ______

Are there any known threats? Suburban development/ changes in use (See photo 19)

NARRATIVE DESCRIPTION AND INTEGRITY

Loudoun's vast network of rural roads retains it historic integrity.

Design elements include roadway width, parallel drainage ditches, and alignment. Loudoun's rural roads, as originally designed, were quite narrow in width, roadbeds ranging from 12' - 14' (for single ) to 18' - 20' feet (for dual lane.) Parallel drainage ditches mark the outside edge of the roadway. The road width remains unchanged, evidenced by steep banks, testimony to centuries of maintaining the original width.

1 It was common for mid to late 18 h century roads to follow the most direct route or a surveyed boundary line, resulting in remarkably straight alignment, even crossing difficult terrain such as a steep hill or soft bottomland. Many roads, as evidenced by parallel stonewalls, retain their original alignment. [See Photo 4 - Millsville Road and Photo 5 - Ebenezer Road]

With the advent of the automobile, the original design of right-angled crossroads evolved to S­ curves in order to accommodate higher speed travel. Often the traces of the original crossroad remain abandoned in place, marking the original route. [See Photo 1- Middleburg Training Center]

Secondary resources such as bear the mark of simple but ingenious design, testimony to their rural context. Luten - designed bridges are the most prevalent and many remain in place. The poured-, single-span arch was perfect for rural settings. Many Luten bridges were installed as early as 1916 and 1918, marking the arrival of the motor vehicle. [See Photo 16 - Limestone School Road.] The low water bridges, another secondary resource, demonstrate vernacular design of gentlemen engineers. Many low water bridges were made by coupling steel culverts together, originally faced in fieldstone and later parged with concrete. [Photo 2 - Newlin Mill Road] There is a single example of a steel truss bridge [DHR 053-0131] at Catoctin Creek on Featherbed Road. This example of engineered design was originally installed on Route 7/ Leesburg Turnpike and later moved to its current, rural location. [See Photo 14 - Feather Bed Lane.]

Location The location ofLoudoun's rural road network was largely dictated by the pattern of connecting mills to markets. Throughout all of Loudoun, the location of the early roads was chosen in response to a petition to connect a mill to a wider transportation network, such as a turnpike or ferry. Within the rural road network, the location of the roads largely remains original, as evidenced by sunken travel ways, drainage ditches, or stonewalls.

Department of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 3 Rev.January 2018 5/6/2020 Setting Loudoun's road network can be defined by its unique cultural and environmental setting:

The cultural setting remains the much same as during the Period of Significance. Historic villages - such as Taylorstown in the north; Waterford and Hillsboro in the center; and Unison, Middleburg and Philomont in the South- align with the road network's 30' right of way and contribute to the network's historic cultural setting. [See Photo 7, Village ofWoodgrove]

The environmental setting also remains the largely same as during the Period of Significance. Open, agricultural vistas, outside of the 30' boundary, remain. Many are in conservation easement, protected for perpetuity. Witness trees, which have grown into the 30' boundary, have become an integral part of the roadway. In other places, century old tree roots form the wall of the sunken lane, becoming an integral part of the road. [See Photo 12 - Quarter Branch Road]

Materials Loudoun's rural roads have a 'living finish' - no different than lime mortar, which undergoes continued repointing; a roof, which changes through time from shakes, to tin, to pre­ painted metal; or weatherboard, which receives continued lime washes. Materials are much the same as during the Period of Significance.

Originally, Loudoun's rural road network was 'unimproved'2 meaning no additional surface material was applied. In the late 1700s and early 1800s, road construction consisted of clearing undergrowth and trees to the specified width, and in some cases, slightly crowing the surface and digging parallel drainage ditches. The roadway 'material' was an earthen surface, which changed with weather patterns and use - mud in the spring and evolving into rammed earth over time. By the early 20Lh century, some mral roads were graded and graveled; the same methods and materials still used today. In places, bedrock shows through, allowing the original level of the road to appear.

Today, VDOI uses A-21 gravel, which is primarily crushed limestone sourced locally from Clarke County. A-21 gravel is designed as a construction base for laying roads, but not as a road smface. 4 This type of gravel disintegrates with wear, turning into dust in the summer and mud in the winter, altering the state of the road 'material' between seasons.5 Typically, rather than gravel fully covering the , sprinklings of gravel remain at the crown with the bulk of the gravel washing out at ditches. Today's roadbed is more likely packed earth than gravel, and ironically, a strikingly authentic surface. [See Photo 8 - Bell Road]

Workmanship Many ofLoudoun's rural roads follow sunken lanes, evidence of workmanship of laborers repeatedly digging out the road surface in an attempt to reach a stable base. Often the road labor was that of the enslaved and these sunken lanes appear more frequently in southwest Loudoun where slave labor was more common. The parallel drainage ditches, also dug by hand, are evidence oflaborers' workmanship. [See Photo 3 - Welbourne Road and Photo 5 -Ebenezer Road]

Other associated secondary resources, inside the 30' right of way, which bear the workmanship of vernacular construction techniques, are dry stacked stone retaining walls. Locally trained masons originally built these walls and these walls have evolved over time, many having been pointed with concrete. [See Photo 13 - Furnace Mountain Road]

Property Types The National Task Force for Historic Roads (NTFHR), part of the Rural Heritage Program of the National Trust, has established three classifications of historic roads: cultural routes, engineered routes, and aesthetics routes. Department of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 4 Rev.January 2018 5/6/2020 Cultural Routes are legacies handed through necessity or tradition, developed without engineering, such as a path or migration route. Loudoun's cultural routes developed from paths dictated by geography or paths following a property survey line.

Turnpikes Loudoun's original cultural routes were dictated by the distinct geography of mountain passes. Loudoun's first roads were Native American connecting mountain passes in the Blue Ridge through gaps in the Catoctin and Bull Run. These routes appear as early as the 1751 Jefferson and Frye Map. By the 1830s, Loudoun's cultural/ migration routes were evolving into Turnpikes, or engineered routes. Although some of these routes retain their historic integrity, many have been paved and are outside of this survey. Bell Road, is an exception, and was originally part of Williams Gap Turnpike. Bell Road remains unpaved. [Photo 8 - Bell Road]

Planter Roads Planter roads served as the 'connectors' or secondary roads, connecting the large farms and their associated mi lls in southwest Loudoun to turnpikes. In the first quarter of the 19th century, large antebeJlum estates established by the Tidewater Planter were industrial/ agricultural centers within themselves. Roads were established to transport agricultural products from farms to turnpikes. Typically, these road followed hi stori c boundaries of Fairfax grants, following in straif ht, surveyed lines wi th ljttJe regard to topography. These roads, such as Welboume Road, were the local routes~ connecting Upperville to Middleburg avoiding tolls along turnpikes. [See Photo 3 - Welbourne Road]

Engineered Routes are roads designed for a specific transportation goal, such as the movement of goods. Engineered routes have a documented authorization and construction date and provide insight into a community's economy. Loudoun's highly developed road network is a physical testimony to its 18th and early 19° 1 century mill-centered economy and complex social patterns The network is also an example of engineered routes.

In late 18th and early 19th centuries, roads were established from 'petitions' where citizens would petition the local court to build a road. Following a petition, the court would appoint citizen surveyors to establish the 'most convenient ways' and would identify 'road hands' i.e. a private task force to construct the road. In Loudoun, engineered routes can be classified as the 'mill to market network' and 'meeting house network.'

Mill to market network Most ofLoudoun's rural roads were established to connect the farm to mill and mill to market. Mills were located near a reliable falling water source, not necessarily in close proximity to a market or wheat field. This created the need to connect the farm to the mill and the mill to the markets. Road orders from 1757 to 1800 document that request for a new road to and from a mill was the most common reason for an engineered route. 7 Often these roads carried the name of the mill. Many historic mills villages - such as Waterford, Taylorstown and Hillsboro - have a road network branching outward from the village mill.

Meeting House network Centrall y placed meetinghouses served the communities settled by European immigrants who came to via Pennsylvania in the mid to late l 8u1 century. Rural roads radiate from these community centers to the rural countryside. Centrally located churches and meetinghouses served as social centers for farmsteads. Notable examples are Lincoln, Unison and Lovettsville.

Depru:ll:nent of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 5 Rev.January 2018 5/6/2020 HISTORY AND SIGNIFICANCE

Loudoun's Rural Road network was built over a period spanning two centuries and can be divided into five thematic periods:

Settlement and Growth (1757 - 1810) At the end of the American Revolution, national attention focused on investment in the agricultural economy and expansion westwards. Improved transportation connected the agriculturally rich to the metropolitan markets of Washington D. C. and the ports of Alexandria. According to Anne Miller, research historian with VDOT, "by the last half of the 18 111 century, Loudoun County was already one of the most populous and economically important counties in and contained major east-west and north-south transportation routes."8

'Local' rural roads were feeder roads to the Turnpikes and were the responsibility of local communities. Conscripted labor was derived from all 'tithables' or taxpayers who lived near the road to be constructed. All tax paying males were either required to work on the road themselves or lend 'road hands,' or farm labor, to contribute to road work. Loudoun's roads were built by 'petition' or 'road order;' the local government would respond to a stated citizen need, appointing 'gentlemen' engineers to locate and align the road. For example in 1772, Gibson's Mill near Upperville was completed in 1772 on its water source but not near a trade route. In 1774, Loudoun County Courts recognized the need to provide a connection to the Turnpike, so that flour could reach markets in Alexandria:

"Thomas West, Thomas Owley, James Lewis, and William Robinson [the appointed Gentlemen engineers] or any three who being first duly Qualified before some Magistrate for the said County, do Drew [sic} the most Convenient Way for a Road to be cleared from or near Ashby Gap to John Gibson Mill andfrom thence unto the Road leading to Alexandria [the Turnpike, today's Route 50] and that they Report to the Court the onvenientcies [sic} and inconveniences that may attend to the same. "9

Once roads connected to the turnpikes, travel remained difficult, as the condition of the roads was a seasonal problem. Nicholas Cresswell pointed out on his first American visit in 1774, where he noted that they were "torn to pieces by wagons" and were repaired by saplings placed over the bog_gy patches (i.e. 'corduroying' the road). 10

Loudoun's roads also bear the mark of the 'gentleman road engineer' - local farmers without training who surveyed routes for road construction. These roads bear the mark of an amateur, with roads marching along the straightest route possible, wjthout consideration for grade changes 1 or low areas. Loudoun' s 18th and l 9 h century roads are remarkably straigh foregoing all obstacles - and road petitions reflect the direct cost to farmers of poorly designed roads:

"For several years, I have been obliged to employ two teams to haul the same amount of flour from the mill to the Turnpike that required but one team [along a better route.] "11

This imperfect system of' amateur engineers' and 'community funding' led to complete frustration. Farmers, millers, and merchants lost profitability because transporting produce to markets was unreliable. This frustration would lead to the next era ofLoudoun's road development.

Turnpike and Expansion 1810-1860 During the peaceful days of the Republic in the early 19th century, road building was a public priority. Charles Fenton Mercer, one ofLoudoun's Department of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 6 Rev.January 2018 5/6/2020 representatives to Virginia's General Assembly, lobbied for centralized funding, which evolved into the Board of Public Works and the Fund for Internal Improvement, both which supported technological innovation and provided (some) financing for (relatively) large-scale, overland transportation projects, such as the Turnpikes.

In 1810, legislation authorizing public-private partnerships heralded Virginia's turnpike era, when a frenzy of private investment was channeled into road construction. Loudoun's earliest turnpikes such as the Snickers Gap Turnpike (Bluemont to Aldie) and the Ashby's Gap Turnpike (Paris to Aldie) followed existing Native American migration routes and appeared as early as 175 ·1. 12 Loudoun improved on these migration routes witJ1 paving' (packed gravel) with funding from these speculative public-private partnerships. Later turnpikes included the Leesburg Turnpike (adopted 1832), the Hillsborough and Harpers Ferry Turnpike Road (1852), the Berlin Turnpike (185?), Despite these achievements, transportation remained difficult. The turnpike 'partnerships' were not always profitable. The trend eventually ended with the start of the Civil War but not before Loudoun boasted nine13 turnpikes, more than any other Virginia County.

Loudoun's Yardley Taylor Map shows an elaborate overland network of rural roads in place by 1853. In Taylor's 'Memoir of Loudoun County,' published as a compendium to his 1853 map, Taylor describes these settlement patterns defined by geography and ethic heritage:

Northern Loudoun and crossings: Lovettsville, Lucketts Lovettsville, Taylorstown, and the Lost Corner14 European settlers, primarily Germans (knows as Dutchmen) migrating from Pennsylvania, settled Northern Loudoun west of the Catoctin Mountains. Typically, these farms were small, as Europeans did not use slave labor. As described by Taylor, these farms were prosperous, "well -cultivated and land rntes hi gh" but where infrastructure was ignored. 15 A road network evolved connecting mills to river crossings but was not well maintained. Roads, as described by Taylor, did not receive 'great investment' and reflected utilitarian values; alignment was dictated by geography of mountain passes or river crossings.

Tidewater second sons settled the east side of the Catoctin Mountain, a fertile area that was prosperous for farming. These areas were initially accessed by ferries crossing the Potomac. Early roads were designed to connect ferry crossings to major markets including Leesburg and Waterford. Roads crossed flood plains, reflecting the open flood plains. [See Photo 15 - Spinks Ferry Road]

Central Loudoun Lincoln, Waterford, Hillsboro Quakers, also coming from Pennsylvania, settled the central portion of Loudoun. Taylor describes a society, which farmed with only free labor but made great investments in their buildings, noting ' ... land rates [were] higher than elsewhere.' 16 Quakers were prolific millers, religiously devout and developed their road network accordingly. Road networks were well thought-out, radiating outward from a central mill or meeting house into the surrounding countryside.

Southwest Loudoun Upperville, Middleburg, Unison The Virginia Tidewater 'second sons,' also settled southwest Loudoun, primarily as speculative investments. Farms were larger, typically cultivated by slave labor. Often, farm boundary lines followed the perpendicular and parallel lines of Fairfax surveys, marking early grants. Road patterns evolved along this pattern often following Department of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 7 Rev.January 2018 5/6/2020 remarkably straight alignment of the survey lines. Stone walls and sunken lanes are more common in this corner of Loudoun as slave labor allowed more frequent road maintenance. [ See - Photo 3, Welbourne Road and Photo 8 - Bell Road

Civil War and Reconstruction 1861-1906 Much of the Civil War played out in Northern Virginia not only because it was a boarder state, but also because of the developed transportation network. At the time of the Civil War, Virginia had the largest network of overland transportation - both roads and railroads - in the Confederacy, much of this concentrated in Loudoun. Within existing road networks, armies were able to move relatively easily.

Civil War diaries highlight the roads' impact on battle decisions; high stonewalls dictated routes and points of engagement. Stonewalls were dismantled to allow escape or were used to shield as in the infamous Battle at Furr Farm, where the Confederate Army shielded themselves behind the stonewalls lining Snickers Gap Turnpike when the confederates preying upon advancing Union armies.

During the Reconstruction era, only limited funds were available for roads. With the destroyed local economy, both public and private funds were drained. The limited public budget was reserved for building the new public school system. What was left over for roads was directed to rebuilding bridges, which were destroyed during the War. Public funds could only stretch so far and construction dollars were ultimately sourced from a quasi public-private partnership. In 1870, the Loudoun BOS ordered the repair of Goose Creek Bridge. The County paid for $1,000 of repairs and solicited the community for the other half of the needed funds. 17

As the post-War economy rebuilt itself, the perennial pursuit of mill to market resumed. In 1868, petitioners requested to connect Mr. Newlin's mill to the Blue Ridge Turnpike. A plat describes the preferred route, crossing Mr. Dulany's private road. However, access was never granted. 18

In this period following the War, County funds were allotted to road maintenance by Township - Leesburg, Lovettesville, Jefferson, Broad Run, Mt Gilead, and Mercer. In 1870, the County total budget for all road repairs was $4,000. 19 Road funds were collected a variety of ways -tolls houses were still in use or a levy would be imposed for a particular project. Also in 1870, there is the first mention of a 'chain gang' assigned to roadwork.20

Automobile 1906-1962 Obviously, the automobile had the most profound impact on Loudoun's road network. By 1906, the Board of Supervisors required motor vehicles be registered with the County21 and marking a point when the automobile became more than just a rare oddity. This same year, 'the BOS also authorized a ' bridge tax' or 5 cents on every $100 of assessed value of real and personal property and following, the BOS approved the repair of ten bridges, 22 more than any other in previous years. It can be concluded that automobiles did not fare as well crossing fords, justifying the increase in bridge maintenance and construction. In 1907, the BOS records debts payable to the 'York Bridge Company' for crossing at Waterford. Presumably these are Luten Bridges, which became common site in rural Loudoun.23

In 1925 with the Rural Free Delivery Program in Loudoun, some roads began to gain favor over others. Not all roads were adopted by VDOT. Many crossroads, no longer suitable for the automobile, were abandoned in favor of an S-Curve. Often, the traces of the former crossroads remain in place.

During this period, many of the more well-travelled roads were 'paved.' A 1909 specification for the road from Peaonian Springs to Waterford (Clark's Gap) describes laying stone " ... The road Department of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 8 Rev.January 2018 5/6/2020 was 20' in width with central strip of 14' wide and 6" deep. The stone was amphibolite. Paid for with private subscription under 'money aid law. ' 24

1932 marks the Byrd Act, when funding was moved from the local to state level. Road planning and construction migrated from amateur status to professional work of civil engineers. Private individuals no longer applied for reimbursement for repair to roads and professionals were hired to oversee road construction and maintenance. The 1932 report from Mr. Yellott, resident engineer, sounds eerily familiar to today's conditions, describing surface treating conditioning and surfacing gravel roads. 25 In special cases, funds were rajsed at the local level (known as District Levys) to cover overdrafts.

Virginia 'spay-as-you-go mantra for road building slowed the effort to pave Loudoun 's rural roads. .

Western Loudoun, 1929

The year 1962 marks a watershed change in overland transportation in Loudoun and marks the end of the Period of Significance. Dulles Airport opened, and a year later, Sterling Park, Loudoun' s first planned community was established. These two events heralded the suburbanization of J ,oudoun and vastly transformed eastern Loudoun, largely paving over it's road network. Once mostly farmland, the area around Dulles was quickly converted to suburbia, providing housing for government workers. Transportation needs changed from agriculture-use to high-speed commuting to D.C.

Associated secondary resources within the Rural Road Network

There are several types of secondary resources associated with the rural road network:

Truss Bridges The Catoctin Creek Bridge Bridge [DHR 053-0131], spanning Catoctin Creek from Featherbed Lane, is an example of Pratt Truss design and is the only example of truss bridge engineering the district. To date, more than 90 percent of Virginia's metal truss bridges have been replaced26 and this is one oflast truss bridges in northern Virginia. VDOT has agreed to restore this bridge in place, keeping it in use, an increasing rarity. The bridge is individually listed on the National Register.

Luten Bridges Historically, there were numerous Luten bridges along Loudoun's roads, but increasingly, these bridges can only be found on rural roads. Daniel Luten, one of the nation's most influential bridge builders, patented several designs for this single-span, poured concrete bridge design, which made this design particularly applicable to rural uses The Luten Bridges [DHR 053-6087-0091 and 053-6087-0093] dating to 1916 and 1919 are recognized in the Unison Battlefield Historic District [DHR 053- 6087] and are significant in their own right.

Depattment of Historic Resoutces Pteliminary Information Form 9 Rev. January 2018 5/6/2020 Low-Water Bridges There are at least two low-water bridges in the district. These 'bridges' sit below the level of the roadway. The low profile allows water to flow over the 'bridge' during high water. Low-water bridges are typically a vernacular design - typically large steel culverts assembled together with fieldstone. Later, concrete and parging were introduced. Low water bridges in Virginia are becoming an increasing rarity.

Culverts Culverts vary from a single pipe to multiples laid side by side. Culverts typically are corrugated steel although there are a few remaining in cast concrete. Originally, culverts were secured in place with fieldstone and many have been later modified with concrete parging. [See Photo 11]

Fords Fords were prominent before the early 20th century. The thin tires and poor motors of automobiles preferred bridges and therefore many fords were abandoned. The last remaining - along JEB Stuart Road south of Philomont- remains in use as its sandy bottom provides a sturdy base, even two centuries later. [ See Photo 6]

Retaining walls Retaining walls were built to allow a road to cut into the hillside. Walls were originally built of dry-stacked stone. Many have been modified with concrete mortar. [See Photo 13]

Road markers Road markers are rare and those that have been documented are made of poured concrete. There are three known markers and all are along Trappe Road.

Comparative Analysis: Loudoun and adiacent Counties

Adjoining counties - Fairfax to the east and Prince William to the south - have several miles of unpaved roads, not near the hundreds of miles of remaining in Loudoun. Much of their 'road heritage' has been paved and re-routed. Adjoining counties - Clarke to the west and Fauquier to the south - have remaining miles of rural roads, but these counties did not have the vibrant commercial milling economy and rich cultural diversity, which created Loudoun's intricate road network. 27

Statement of Significance

Western Loudoun's Rural Road network is significant at the local level under Criteria A and C:

Criteria A Western Loudoun's rural road network is locally significant under Criteria A for its association with the broad patterns of settlement in Northern Virginia. Western Loudoun's rural road network is a tangible representation of Virginia's l81J1 and 19111 century frontier development, its unique mill-centered rural economy, and the of European, Tidewater and Quaker settlement. This single resource, composed of unique and interconnecting parts retains is physical and historical integrity, fully representing the range of complexities, which contributed to the broad patterns of development in Northern Virginia.

Loudoun's rural road network is also locally significant under Criteria A for its association with commerce. In the late 1700s, Tidewater planters abandoned their traditional crop of tobacco, adopting the Quakers' agricultural expertise growing wheat. Loudoun's rolling hills and abundant Department of Historic Resources Prelimina:cy Information Form 10 Rev. Janua:cy 2018 5/6/2020 waterways provided the opportunity for milling and thus, Loudoun's unique 19th century mill­ centered rural economy developed. Mills, located on inland waterways or streams, were not necessarily in close proximity to major transportation routes or markets. Loudoun's two primary overland thoroughfares, Snickersville Turnpike and Ashby's Gap Turnpike, were aligned with mountain passes and connected to markets in Alexandria, but were not connected to the mills. As a result, Loudoun farmers developed a complex road network connecting farms to mills and mills to markets.

Two and a half centuries later, this historic road network remains largely unchanged and still in use, a unique vestige ofLoudoun's rich history.

Criteria C Western Loudoun's rural road network is locally significant under Criteria C for its architectural and engineering integrity, largely unaltered since the mjd-20t11 century. Miles of roads remain in their original alignment, marked by sunken lanes carved by centuries of travel along the same road trace. Materials and methods remain the same, rammed earth and some gravel for most of the year, changing to mud during the spring and fall seasons. Many roadways retain their historic view-shed across open hay fields and the historic context of associated features such a village, chapel, cemetery, stonewalls, ice pond or road marker.

The Period of Significance extends from 1757 when Loudoun was formed as a self-governing entity to 1962 with the construction of Dulles Airport heralding the changing pattern ofland use from agriculture to suburban.

GeograpJ1ical Data

The boundaries include the Blue Ridge and the Clarke County line to the west, the Potomac River to the north and northeast, the Bull Run Mountains to the southeast, and the Fauquier County line fo the south.

Photo Log - All photographs are by Jane Covington except where noted

Photo 1 Millville Road, facing north Original traces of crossroads remain. Many intersections, designed as crossroads, evolved into S­ curves with the advent of the automobile. Today, the roadway is shared with an exercise rider, who uses the public road on his way to a morning gallop at the Middleburg Training Center. Large 'witness tree' is testimony to age of original crossroads. Millville was part of original 1740 Charles Green land grant.

Photo 2 Newlin Mill Road, facing north The low water bridges, an example of a secondary resource, demonstrates vernacular design of gentlemen engineers. Many low water bridges were made by coupling steel culverts together, originally faced in fieldstone and later parged with concrete. The low water bridge is an evolved version of the culverts. See photo 11.

Photo 3 Welbourne Road, facing west Many ofLoudoun's rural roads follow sunken lanes, evidence of workmanship oflaborers repeatedly digging out the road surface in an attempt to reach a stable base. Often the road labor was that of the enslaved and these sunken lanes appear more frequently in southwest Loudoun where slave labor was more common. By comparison, see Photo 17, John Wolford Road, north of Waterford, located in an area settled by Quakers who did not own slaves. Here, Welbourne Road,

Department of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 11 Rev. Januai:y 2018 5/6/2020 the original road between Middleburg and Upperville, is laid along the 1740 Amos Janney - Fairfax land grant.

Photo 4 Millsville Road, facing west Photographer: Doug Graham It was common for mid to late 18th century roads to follow the most direct route or a surveyed boundary line, resulting in remarkably straight alignment, even crossing difficult terrain such as a steep hill or soft bottomland. Millsville Road originally was the local road, linking Upperville to Middleburg, avoiding the tolls of the Turnpike [today's Route 50]. The configuration of the road played a part in the Battle of Upperville June 21, 1863. So as to avoid skirmishes along the Turnpike, Confederate Brigadier General Grumble Jones and Colonel John Chambliss flanked Union troops, travelled west along Millsville.

Photo 5 Ebenezer Road, facing west, Photographer: Doug Graham Drainage ditches, evidence of workmanship oflaborers, are visible in this photo.

Photo 6 Jeb Stuart Road, facing northeast, Photographer: Dou~ Graham Fords were prominent before the automobile arrived in the early 2ot century. This ford across Beaverdam Creek remains no different than when troops crossed during the Civil War.

Photo 7 south end of Williams Gap Turnpike, village of Woodgrove, facing east Photographer: Doug Graham The cultural setting remains the much same as during the Period of Significance. The early 19th century front porch encroaches within the 30' right of way and becomes part of the roadway. Woodgrove is a late 1700s/ early 1800s village, which had its heyday before the 1830 era of the Turnpike. Photographed here is the last remaining gravel portion of Williams Gap Turnpike; the north end of Williams Gap was paved in 2018.

Photo 8 Bell Road, facing west The materials of the rural road network are a 'living finish,' remarkably similar to original. The rural road is packed earth, with gravel etched in places from travel along the single-track roadway. Although the authentic gravel pieces no longer remain, the methods and material remains consistent. Materials vary with season; packed earth becomes mud in the spring. Bell road, another remarkably straight road, follows the west boundary line from Fairfax to John Coville in 17 40. Bell Road was originally part of Wil Uams Gap Road between Leesburg and Williams Gap, before the early 19th century extension of the Leesburg Turnpike.

Photo 9 Foundry Road, Photographer: Doug Graham Like many Quaker roads, Foundry Road radiates outward from the village center Lincoln. Quaker Roads were not lined with stonewalls as Quakers did not use slave labor. Named for Richard Henry Taylor's foundry east of Lincoln, which made plows and bells in the late 1860s and 1870s. Today, the road provides a haven for Loudoun's valued agricultural traditions.

Photo 10 Harpers Ferry Turnpike at Loudoun Heights, facing south This portion of the original 1852 Hillsboro and Harper's Ferry Turnpike was never paved. Today, the old turnpike serves as an access road to the Loudoun Heights neighborhood. The newer, double-lane Route 671 to Harpers Ferry follows the abandoned railroad bed, which was laid parallel to the original turnpike. (seen on the left side of this photograph)

Photo 11 Dutchmans Creek

Department of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 12 Rev.January 2018 5/6/2020 Culverts vary from a single pipe to multiples laid side by side. Culverts are typically corrugated steel and some are concrete. Culverts were originally secured in place with fieldstone. Many have been later modified with concrete parging.

Photo 12 Quarter Branch Road In some places, century old tree roots form the wall of the sunken lane, contributing to the environmental setting.

Photo 13 Furnace Mountain Road, facing southwest, Photographer: Doug Graham Other associated secondary resources, inside the 30' right of way, which bear the workmanship of vernacular construction techniques, are dry stacked stone retaining walls. Locally trained masons originally built these walls and these walls have evolved over time, many having been pointed with concrete

Photo 14 Featherbed Lane, facing northeast, Photographer: Doug Graham This is a single example of a steel truss bridge [OHR 053-0131] and is an example of engineering design in a rural context. This structure was originally installed for the Leesburg Turnpike (today's Route 7) over Broad Run The bridge was later moved and repurposed for its current location.

Photo 15 Spinks Ferry Road, facing south Tidewater settlers moving west settled the east side of the Catoctin Mountains along the fertile banks of the Potomac. Spinks Ferry, originally known as Clapham's Ferry [DHR 053-0071] started operating in 1757. The roads connecting ferry crossings to Leesburg are some of Loudoun's oldest roads. The roads in this area reflect the open terrain, crossing flood planes.

Photo 16 Limestone School Road, facing northwest The poured in-place, single-arch brjdge demonstrated the vernacular ingenuity of the gentleman engineer. Luten bridges, as shown here, were installed in Loudoun in the early 20th century with the advent of the automobile. The bridge today remains a single lane; cars must yield to on­ coming before proceeding.

Photo 17 John Wolford Road, Photographer: Doug Graham Quakers did not own slaves and the typology of their rural roads is very different from the Tidewater roads. Many roads remain at grade and were not flanked by stonewalls.

Photo 18 Dunlop Mill Road Doug Graham, a photographer and his dog.

Photo 19 Williams Gap, facing north, Photographer: Doug Graham Paving Over history. Williams Gap, Loudoun's last unpaved turnpike, is paved.

Bibliographical Ref e1·ences

Kimball, Lori; "Early Roads in Loudoun County 1758 - 1800," Research paper for history of Virginia (HIS 281) November 2005

Miller, Ann Criteria for National Register Eligibility Department of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 13 Rev.January 2018 5/6/2020 Miller, Ann Cultural Management Considerations Miller, Ann Most convenient ways, history of Roads in Virginia Miller, Ann, Survey of Road markers Miller, Anne and Patricia B Duncan. Historic Roads of Virginia: Loudoun County Road Orders, 1783 - 1800. VCTIR 2015

Scheel, Eugene "Beaverdam Historic Roadway District, Loudoun County Virginia," Prepared for the Goose Creek Association, March - July 1999 Scheel, Eugene. Loudoun Di scovered Volumes 1-4 Scheel, Eugene. "The Guide to Loudoun: A survey of the Architecture and History of a Virginia County," Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development and Tourism Committee, Independent Bicentennial Committee; 1975

Taylor, Yardley Memoir of Loudoun County Virginia to Accompany the Map of Loudoun County, Thomas Reynolds, Publisher, Leesburg 1853

Virginia Transportation Research Council (A Cooperative Organization Sponsored Jointly by the Virginia Department of Transportation and the University of Virginia); "A Brief History of Roads in Virginia, 1607-1840," Heritage Books, 2011

Presentations Hoppe, Edward, Material Specifications for Gravel Roads, Virginia Transportation Research Council, December 18, 2019

National Register Nominations Homestead and Ranch School Era Roads and Trails of Los Alamos New Mexico, 2003 Multiple Property Listing.

Archival Maps Jefferson and Fry, "A map of the most inhabited part of Virginia containing the whole province of Maryland with part of Pensilvania [sic], New Jersey and North Carolina." (1751) Yardley Taylor, (1854) Loudo[u]n County, Virginia LOC (1861) Gilbert Thompson, Loudoun County Civil War Maps, LOC ( 186?) Harper's Ferry (1893) Map of Piedmont Hunt Country (1910) Berryville Virginia (1914) Rural Delivery Routes, LOC (1925) and LC GIS (1926) Loudoun County areal photography (1937) USGS Bluemont VA (1948) Loudoun County areal photography (1957) Loudoun County Virginia showing Primary and Secondary Highways, Department of Highways, Richmond Virginia ( 1967) Scheel, Eugene, Mosby Area Heritage Map (2002) "Unpaved Roads" Loudoun County, VA (no date)

Summary of Identification and Evaluation Methods The roads were well traveled. Every mile was driven, ridden, hiked or biked throughout snow, rain, sun, and sleet with dust or mud under foot.

Depart:m.ent of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 14 Rev.January 2018 5/6/2020 Archival Material Road Cases, Clerk of the Court, Archives, Loudoun County Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Minutes

Appendix Letters of endorsement: • Delegate Gooditis (33 District, including western Loudoun County), • Supervisor Buffington (Blue Ridge District of Loudoun County, • Director Langhan (VDHR)

Department of Historic Resom:ces Preliminary lnfom,1:11.io.u Form 15 Rev. Januai:y 2018 5/6/2020 5. Property Ownership (Check as many categories as apply): Private: _ Public\Local x Public\State x Public\Federal

6. Applicant/Sponsor (Individual and/or organization sponsoring preparation of the PIF, with contact information. For more than one sponsor, please list each below or on an additional sheet.) name/title: Mitch Diamond America's Routes

In the event of organization sponsorship, you must provide the name and title of the appropriate contact person. Contact person: Emily Houston Daytime Telephone: 571-2 I 5-2234

Applicant Information (Individual completing form if other than applicant/sponsor listed above) name/title: Jane Covington organization: Jane Covington Restoration & number: ___P~O~B~o=x~7 ~4~1----~=~---~ city or town: Middleburg state: VA zip code: 201 J8 e-mail: [email protected] telephone: 434-960-4678

7. N otiflcation In some circumstances, it may be necessary for OHR to confer with or notify local officials of proposed listings of properties within their jurisdiction. In the following space, please provide the contact information for the local County Administrator, City Manager, and/or Town Manager. name/title: Tim Hemstreet, County Administrator ) locality: Loudoun County street & number: PO Box 7000 city or town: Leesburg state: VA zip code: 20177 telephone: 703-777-0100 )

Department of Historic Resources Preliminary Information Form 14 R~TT llln1Mnr ?()1 R 1°Cresswell, Nicholas, Journal of Nich las Creswell : 1774-1777 (Travel in America) 11 L udoun oun ty archives road pctil.ion 12 Jefferson undFryeMap, 175 1 13 Ashby Gap, Little River, nickers Gap, Williams Gap, Berlin, Leesburg, Hillsboro and Harpers Ferry, and???. 14 Because the area between Lhe Potomac River and the Catoctin Moun tains was · mewbat di connected from the rest of Loudoun, the area became locally known as 'Lost Comer.' 15 Yardley Taylor Compendium, 1854, 16 Yardley Taylor Compendium, 1854, page 7 17 BOS notes, 1870

18 19 by comparison, Lhe 2020 road budget for LoudolUl County is .... 20 BOS minutes 1870, page 21 21 19 lO marks Virginia first motor vehicle registration and licensing law 22 list brid ,es 23 BO,· 1907. Luten Bridges were designed in York PA. Not all bridge bear a date; the Green Garden bridges are dated 1916 and 1919. 24 B0S .. 25 BOS, 1932 26 https://picdmontvirginian.com/bridgcs-lo-lhc-past/ Originally located on Route 7, crossing Goose Creek Dismantled and moved in 1932 27 h Itp;; ://www.washinglonpost.com/locnl /loudoun-wanls-to-kccp-its-historic-potholed-gravcl-ro1.1ds­ unpove

Depai:tment of Historic Resouxces Pxeliminai:y Information Form 17 Rev. Januai:y 2018 5/6/2020

Dunlop Mill Road

Jeb Stuart Road

Millville Road

Furnace Mountain Road

Limestone School Road

Foundry Road

Featherbed Lane