Fall Line Road

United States   Migration    Trails and Roads    Fall Line Road

At the southeastern edge of the Piedmont is the (water)fall line, where rivers drop to the coastal plain. Towns grew at the fall line because cargo on boats had to be portaged around the waterfalls which also served as an important early source of water power. Mills built to harness this resource encouraged the growth of towns. The larger rivers were navigable up to the fall line, providing a trade route for those mill towns.

The Fall Line Road (or Southern Road) was the road built to connect most of those growing mill towns.

As roads developed in America settlers were attracted to nearby communities because the roads provided access to markets. They could sell their products at distant markets, and buy products made far away. If an ancestor settled near a road, you may be able to trace back to a place of origin on a connecting highway.

Historical Background
By 1735 the Fall Line Road forked off of the King's Highway at Fredericksburg, Virginia and continued south along the fall line, a geographic dropoff seperating the Tidewater from the Piedmont regions. The rivers above each waterfall or rapid were relatively easy to ford because they were not subject to ocean tides, or marshes. Connecting the river fords and nearby mill towns with overland roads was useful.

North Carolina law only required the building of roads from a town to the "nearest landing." So North Carolina was slow to develope roads between towns. The Fall Line Road was historically significant because it was the first into the interior away from the coast of Virginia and the Carolinas.

After several Indian removals from 1790 to 1826 the Fall Line Road was slowly further extended from Augusta to the west Georgia border for white settlers. In 1831 the final treaty was signed that allowed settlers to follow the road and settle along it as far as Montgomery, Alabama.

The length of the Fall Line Road is about 170 miles (274 km) from Philadelphia to Fredericksburg, and about 1030 miles (1658 km) from Fredericksburg to Montgomery.

Route
Towns on the Fall Line (Northeast to Southwest)

Some consider the start of the Fall Line Road to be Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It follows the same route from there to Fredericksburg, Virginia as the King's Highway. The Fall Line Road and Upper Road both spit off from the King's Highway at Fredericksburg. Most but not all towns on the Fall Line are connected by the Fall Line Road.
 * Trenton, NJ: Delaware R.
 * Philadelphia, PA: Schuylkill R.
 * Wilmington, DE: Brandywine Creek
 * Baltimore, MD: Patapsco R.
 * Georgetown, DC: Potomac R.
 * Fredericksburg, VA: Rappahannock R.
 * Richmond, VA: James R.
 * Petersburg, VA: Appomattox R.
 * Roanoke Rapids, NC: Roanoke R.
 * Smithfield, NC: Neuse R.
 * Fayetteville, NC: Cape Fear R.
 * Cheraw, SC: Pee Dee R.
 * Camden, SC: Wateree R.
 * Columbia, SC: Congaree R.
 * Augusta, GA: Savannah R.
 * Milledgeville, GA: Oconee R.
 * Macon, GA: Ocmulgee R.
 * Columbus, GA: Chattahoochee R.
 * Tallassee, AL: Tallapoosa R.
 * Wetumpka, AL: Coosa R.

Counties or Independent Cities on the Fall Line Road


 * Pennsylvania: Philadelphia, Delaware
 * Delaware: New Castle
 * Maryland: Cecil, Harford, Baltimore, Baltimore City, Anne Arundel, Howard, Prince George's
 * District of Columbia: Georgetown
 * Virginia: Arlington, Fairfax, Prince William, Stafford, Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania, Caroline, Hanover, Richmond, Henrico, Chesterfield, Petersburg, Dinwiddie, Brunswick
 * North Carolina: Warren, Franklin, Wake, Johnston, Harnett, Cumberland, Hoke, Scotland
 * South Carolina: Marlboro, Chesterfield, Kershaw, Richland, Lexington, Aiken
 * Georgia: Richmond, McDuffie, Warren, Hancock, Baldwin, Jones, Bibb, Crawford, Taylor, Talbot, Muscogee
 * Alabama: Russell, Lee, Macon, Tallapoosa, Elmore, Montgomery

Settlers and Records
No lists of settlers who used the Fall Line Road are known to exist.