Snicker's Gap Turnpike
Encyclopedia
The Snicker's Gap Turnpike was a turnpike road in the northern part
of the U.S. state
of Virginia
. Part of it is now maintained as State Route 7, a primary state highway
, but the road between Aldie and Bluemont (formerly Snickerville) in Loudoun County, via Mountville
, Philomont, and Airmont, is a rural Virginia Byway
known as Snickersville Turnpike (State Route 734), and includes the about 180-year old Hibbs Bridge over Beaverdam Creek (a tributary of Goose Creek
). This turnpike replaced, in part, the first toll road
in the United States, which consisted of two roads from Alexandria northwest into the Shenandoah Mountains
.
In the late 18th century, there were two roads over the Shenandoah Mountains
between Alexandria and Winchester, crossing the Shenandoahs at Snickers Gap
(now along State Route 7) and Keyes Gap
(State Route 9). The Virginia General Assembly
, in 1785, passed a law appointing nine commissioners (a non-profit turnpike trust
) and instructing them "to erect, or cause to be set up and erected, one or more gates or turnpikes across the roads, or any of them, leading into the town of Alexandria from Snigger's [Snickers] and Vesta's [Keyes] Gaps". This was not the first law authorizing a toll road in the United States, but was the first recorded turnpike in operation, opening by the end of 1786. Thomas Jefferson
, who was at least a moral backer of the enterprise, pronounced it a success. A 1793 for sale advertisement referred to one of the two roads as "the Turnpike Road, down which all the wheat, from an extensive and fertile Country, intended for the Alexandria Market, is conveyed".
However, the lack of maintenance caused by low tolls led to the wearing out of the southern route. The Little River Turnpike, a private corporation
chartered in 1802, realigned and improved the portion between Alexandria and Aldie. A similar charter for the northern route east of Leesburg was assigned to the Leesburg Turnpike in 1809, and in 1810 the Snicker's Gap Turnpike Company obtained a charter for the road from Aldie northwest over Snickers Gap and beyond to the Shenandoah River
at Snicker's Ferry. (The Berryville Turnpike later improved the road beyond the Shenandoah to Winchester.) When completed, the turnpike had three toll gates over a distance of about 17.5 miles (28 km).
The turnpike company continued to operate - at least over the gap - as late as 1915, and the road later became part of the state highway system - State Route 7 over the Shenandoah Mountains west of Bluemont, and secondary State Route 734 between Bluemont and Aldie. The state had plans to transfer SR 734 to the primary system as part of State Route 234, renumbering the short State Route 245 spurring off SR 7 at Bluemont as a portion of SR 234 in the 1940 renumbering, but instead transferred this short stub (Clayton Hall Road) to the secondary system in 1943 due to low traffic.
by the General Assembly in 1988. The 124 feet (37.8 m) long by 22 feet (6.7 m) wide (38 m by 7 m) stone double-arch
Hibbs Bridge (39.037332°N 77.72303°W) over Beaverdam Creek between Mountville
and Philomont, built ca. 1829, is in poor condition, but has not been bypassed due to local opposition. The bridge is named after the Hibbs Family that operated mill
s nearby, and has a posted - but often ignored - weight limit of 6 tons (5 metric tons). The Snickersville Turnpike Association, organized to prevent the replacing of the bridge, has more recently opposed other developments such as cellular towers, in addition to continuing to participate in matters related to the bridge.
The Virginia Department of Transportation
temporarily closed the bridge on May 24, 2007 for a more than nine month rebuilding. The deteriorated mortar
, and some of the stones, are being replaced, and the approaches are being rebuilt, but the bridge will remain in its original state.
Northern Virginia
Northern Virginia consists of several counties and independent cities in the Commonwealth of Virginia, in a widespread region generally radiating southerly and westward from Washington, D.C...
of the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. Part of it is now maintained as State Route 7, a primary state highway
State highway
State highway, state road or state route can refer to one of three related concepts, two of them related to a state or provincial government in a country that is divided into states or provinces :#A...
, but the road between Aldie and Bluemont (formerly Snickerville) in Loudoun County, via Mountville
Mountville, Virginia
Mountville is an unincorporated community in the Loudoun Valley of Loudoun County, Virginia. The village is situated on Snickersville Turnpike halfway between Aldie and Philomont at the intersection of Mountville road....
, Philomont, and Airmont, is a rural Virginia Byway
Virginia Byway
A Virginia Byway is a scenic road designated by the U.S. state of Virginia as one that can introduce tourists to alternate destinations. According to the Virginia Department of Transportation , there are over 3,000 miles of scenic roads in Virginia, many of which have been designated as...
known as Snickersville Turnpike (State Route 734), and includes the about 180-year old Hibbs Bridge over Beaverdam Creek (a tributary of Goose Creek
Goose Creek (Potomac River)
Goose Creek is a tributary of the Potomac River in Fauquier and Loudoun counties in northern Virginia. It comprises the principal drainage system for the Loudoun Valley.-Course:...
). This turnpike replaced, in part, the first toll road
Toll road
A toll road is a privately or publicly built road for which a driver pays a toll for use. Structures for which tolls are charged include toll bridges and toll tunnels. Non-toll roads are financed using other sources of revenue, most typically fuel tax or general tax funds...
in the United States, which consisted of two roads from Alexandria northwest into the Shenandoah Mountains
Shenandoah Mountains
Shenandoah Mountain is a mountain ridge approximately long in Virginia and West Virginia. The steep, narrow, sandstone-capped ridge extends from northern Bath County, Virginia to southern Hardy County, West Virginia...
.
History
Shenandoah Mountains
Shenandoah Mountain is a mountain ridge approximately long in Virginia and West Virginia. The steep, narrow, sandstone-capped ridge extends from northern Bath County, Virginia to southern Hardy County, West Virginia...
between Alexandria and Winchester, crossing the Shenandoahs at Snickers Gap
Snickers Gap
Snickers Gap, originally William's Gap, is a wind gap in the Blue Ridge Mountain on the border of Loudoun County and Clarke County in Virginia. The gap is traversed by Virginia State Route 7. The Appalachian Trail also passes across the gap...
(now along State Route 7) and Keyes Gap
Keyes Gap
Keyes Gap or Keyes' Gap is a wind gap in the Blue Ridge Mountain on the border of Loudoun County, Virginia and Jefferson County, West Virginia. The gap is traversed by Virginia State Route 9/West Virginia State Route 9. The Appalachian Trail also crosses the gap.-History:Originally known as...
(State Route 9). The Virginia General Assembly
Virginia General Assembly
The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the oldest legislative body in the Western Hemisphere, established on July 30, 1619. The General Assembly is a bicameral body consisting of a lower house, the Virginia House of Delegates, with 100 members,...
, in 1785, passed a law appointing nine commissioners (a non-profit turnpike trust
Turnpike trust
Turnpike trusts in the United Kingdom were bodies set up by individual Acts of Parliament, with powers to collect road tolls for maintaining the principal highways in Britain from the 17th but especially during the 18th and 19th centuries...
) and instructing them "to erect, or cause to be set up and erected, one or more gates or turnpikes across the roads, or any of them, leading into the town of Alexandria from Snigger's [Snickers] and Vesta's [Keyes] Gaps". This was not the first law authorizing a toll road in the United States, but was the first recorded turnpike in operation, opening by the end of 1786. Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
, who was at least a moral backer of the enterprise, pronounced it a success. A 1793 for sale advertisement referred to one of the two roads as "the Turnpike Road, down which all the wheat, from an extensive and fertile Country, intended for the Alexandria Market, is conveyed".
However, the lack of maintenance caused by low tolls led to the wearing out of the southern route. The Little River Turnpike, a private corporation
Corporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
chartered in 1802, realigned and improved the portion between Alexandria and Aldie. A similar charter for the northern route east of Leesburg was assigned to the Leesburg Turnpike in 1809, and in 1810 the Snicker's Gap Turnpike Company obtained a charter for the road from Aldie northwest over Snickers Gap and beyond to the Shenandoah River
Shenandoah River
The Shenandoah River is a tributary of the Potomac River, long with two forks approximately long each, in the U.S. states of Virginia and West Virginia...
at Snicker's Ferry. (The Berryville Turnpike later improved the road beyond the Shenandoah to Winchester.) When completed, the turnpike had three toll gates over a distance of about 17.5 miles (28 km).
The turnpike company continued to operate - at least over the gap - as late as 1915, and the road later became part of the state highway system - State Route 7 over the Shenandoah Mountains west of Bluemont, and secondary State Route 734 between Bluemont and Aldie. The state had plans to transfer SR 734 to the primary system as part of State Route 234, renumbering the short State Route 245 spurring off SR 7 at Bluemont as a portion of SR 234 in the 1940 renumbering, but instead transferred this short stub (Clayton Hall Road) to the secondary system in 1943 due to low traffic.
Current status
The road between Aldie and Bluemont, now known as Snickersville Turnpike after the former name of Bluemont, remains a rural road, designated as a Virginia BywayVirginia Byway
A Virginia Byway is a scenic road designated by the U.S. state of Virginia as one that can introduce tourists to alternate destinations. According to the Virginia Department of Transportation , there are over 3,000 miles of scenic roads in Virginia, many of which have been designated as...
by the General Assembly in 1988. The 124 feet (37.8 m) long by 22 feet (6.7 m) wide (38 m by 7 m) stone double-arch
Arch bridge
An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side...
Hibbs Bridge (39.037332°N 77.72303°W) over Beaverdam Creek between Mountville
Mountville, Virginia
Mountville is an unincorporated community in the Loudoun Valley of Loudoun County, Virginia. The village is situated on Snickersville Turnpike halfway between Aldie and Philomont at the intersection of Mountville road....
and Philomont, built ca. 1829, is in poor condition, but has not been bypassed due to local opposition. The bridge is named after the Hibbs Family that operated mill
Gristmill
The terms gristmill or grist mill can refer either to a building in which grain is ground into flour, or to the grinding mechanism itself.- Early history :...
s nearby, and has a posted - but often ignored - weight limit of 6 tons (5 metric tons). The Snickersville Turnpike Association, organized to prevent the replacing of the bridge, has more recently opposed other developments such as cellular towers, in addition to continuing to participate in matters related to the bridge.
The Virginia Department of Transportation
Virginia Department of Transportation
The Virginia Department of Transportation is the agency of state government responsible for transportation in the state of Virginia in the United States. Headquartered in Downtown Richmond, VDOT is responsible for building, maintaining, and operating the roads, bridges and tunnels in the...
temporarily closed the bridge on May 24, 2007 for a more than nine month rebuilding. The deteriorated mortar
Mortar (masonry)
Mortar is a workable paste used to bind construction blocks together and fill the gaps between them. The blocks may be stone, brick, cinder blocks, etc. Mortar becomes hard when it sets, resulting in a rigid aggregate structure. Modern mortars are typically made from a mixture of sand, a binder...
, and some of the stones, are being replaced, and the approaches are being rebuilt, but the bridge will remain in its original state.
Newspapers
See also
Other early U.S. turnpikes- Mohegan Road and Greenwich Road (1792, Connecticut)
- Turnpike roads in Baltimore County (1793, Maryland)
- Philadelphia and Lancaster TurnpikePhiladelphia and Lancaster TurnpikeThe Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike, first used in 1795, is the first long-distance paved road built in the United States, according to engineered plans and specifications. It links Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and Philadelphia at 34th Street, stretching for sixty-two miles. However, the western...
(1794, Pennsylvania)