The King's Highway was a roughly road laid out from 1650 to 1735 in the American colonies. It was built on the order of Charles II of England, who directed his colonial governors to link Charleston, South Carolina, and Boston, Massachusetts. The section north of New York City, laid out on January 22, 1673, became the Upper Boston Post Road.Map Guide to American Migration Routes, 1735–1815 by William Dollarhide, Heritage Quest, 1997, The road was finally completed in 1735. Much of the Post Road is now U.S. Route 1 and U.S. Route 20.
The King's Highway Historic District in New Jersey covers U.S. Route 206 and New Jersey Route 27, connecting Lawrenceville with Kingston through Princeton. In Pennsylvania, much of the route is now U.S. Route 13. (In Philadelphia, Route 13 becomes Frankford Avenue.) Through Maryland, the King's Highway largely follows U.S. Route 1. From Virginia southward, the modern U.S. Route 17 has many segments that follow the old King's Highway.
History
The Boston Post Road was a system of mail-delivery routes between New York City and Boston that evolved into the first major highways in the United States. Some routes followed trails in use by Native Americans long before Europeans arrived. Some of these important native trails had been used long enough that they were two feet below the surrounding woodland.Bourne, p.13
Following a trail known as the Pequot Path, the Upper Post Road was first laid out in 1673.Daughters of the American Revolution Magazine, January 1917, Vol. 50, page 386, Used by post riders to deliver the mail, it was later widened and smoothed so that horse-drawn wagons or stagecoaches could use it. During the 19th century, turnpike companies took over and improved pieces of the road. Large sections of the various routes are still called the King's Highway and Boston Post Road.
In 1761, Postmaster General Benjamin Franklin ordered milestones placed along the route from Boston to Saco, Maine, then to Machias, as a northern extension of King's Highway,"Mile Markers Along the Old King's Highway" - New England History Walks, May 29, 2013A History of Maine Roads: 1600-1970 , Maine Department of Transportation, State Highway Commission (1970), p. 4 a route which is now marked by the Presumpscot Falls Bridge in Falmouth, Maine, among other landmarks. As part of his duties, Franklin conducted inspections of the roads that were used for delivering mail as settlements along the coast increased. One method of charging for mail service was by mileage, so Franklin invented an odometer to measure mileage more accurately. The King's Highway, as a result, morphed into the Post Road.Nearaway Places: Driving to a Meal in Maine, Lois Stailing (2018), p. 22
Route Herman Moll's 1729 "Post Map" describes the route:
Boston, Massachusetts New Haven, Connecticut Fairfield, Connecticut Greenwich, Connecticut Rye, New York Kingsbridge, New York New York City, New York Newark, New Jersey Elizabeth, New Jersey Rahway, New Jersey Perth Amboy, New Jersey New Brunswick, New Jersey Princeton, New Jersey Lawrenceville, New Jersey Trenton, New Jersey Bordentown, New Jersey Burlington, New Jersey Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Chester, Pennsylvania Wilmington, Delaware New Castle, Delaware Baltimore, Maryland Annapolis, Maryland Alexandria, Virginia Fredericksburg, Virginia Bowling Green, Virginia King William, Virginia Williamsburg, Virginia Yorktown, Virginia Hampton, Virginia Norfolk, Virginia Suffolk, Virginia Edenton, North Carolina New Bern, North Carolina Wilmington, North Carolina Georgetown, South Carolina Charleston, South Carolina
Gallery
See also Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route Assunpink Trail King's Highway Historic District Frankford Avenue Bridge
References
External links King’s Road Locating the Old Wagon Roads Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route