McCulloch's Path

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McCulloch's Path was an early colonial route through Western Maryland, referenced by George Washington in his diary in September 1784. [1]

Western Maryland

Western Maryland is the portion of the U.S. state of Maryland that typically consists of Washington, Allegany, and Garrett counties. The region is bounded by the Mason-Dixon line to the north, Preston County, West Virginia to the west, and the Potomac River to the south. The Washington metropolitan area is generally considered to be its eastern border, though some organizations stretch the region further east.

George Washington 1st president of the United States

George Washington was an American political leader, military general, statesman, and Founding Father who also served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. He led Patriot forces to victory in the nation's War of Independence, and he presided at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 which established the new federal government. He has been called the "Father of His Country" for his manifold leadership in the formative days of the new nation.

Contents

Washington's account

Washington's Map of the Country between the Potomac and Youghiogheny Rivers 1784 Washington's Map of the Country between the Potomac and Youghiogheny Rivers 1784.png
Washington's Map of the Country between the Potomac and Youghiogheny Rivers 1784

In September, 1784 George Washington traveled into the Ohio basin in the interest of a commercial union between the Great Lakes and the Potomac River. In his diary he wrote,

Great Lakes System of interconnected, large lakes in North America

The Great Lakes, also called the Laurentian Great Lakes and the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of interconnected freshwater lakes primarily in the upper mid-east region of North America, on the Canada–United States border, which connect to the Atlantic Ocean through the Saint Lawrence River. They consist of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, although hydrologically, there are four lakes, Superior, Erie, Ontario, and Michigan-Huron. The connected lakes form the Great Lakes Waterway.

Potomac River river in the mid-Atlantic United States

The Potomac River is located within the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and flows from the Potomac Highlands into the Chesapeake Bay. The river is approximately 405 miles (652 km) long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles (38,000 km2). In terms of area, this makes the Potomac River the fourth largest river along the Atlantic coast of the United States and the 21st largest in the United States. Over 5 million people live within the Potomac watershed.

Archer Butler Hulbert's study of the records at the law office at Annapolis in 1905 [1] show that there were two McCullough's paths, an Old Path and a New Path; they are remembered, though the bold pioneer whose name they bore is quite forgotten. The names McCulloch and McCullough were common in northwestern Virginia. [2]

Archer Butler Hulbert American historical geographer

Archer Butler Hulbert, FRGS, historical geographer, writer, and professor of American history, son of Rev. Calvin Butler Hulbert and Mary Elizabeth Woodward, was born in Bennington, Vermont. His father later became President of Middlebury College. Hulbert was married twice. On September 10, 1901 he married Mary Elizabeth Stacy, who died in 1920. On June 16, 1923 he married Dorothy Printup. He had two daughters by each wife.

Historical Map

The landscape of western Virginia and western Maryland in 1751 is depicted in A Map of the most inhabited part of Virginia containing the whole Province of Maryland with Part of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and North Carolina drawn by Joshua Fry and Peter Jefferson in 1751 and printed in 1755 [3]

Virginia State of the United States of America

Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States located between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" due to its status as the first English colonial possession established in mainland North America and "Mother of Presidents" because eight U.S. presidents were born there, more than any other state. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are shaped by the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Chesapeake Bay, which provide habitat for much of its flora and fauna. The capital of the Commonwealth is Richmond; Virginia Beach is the most populous city, and Fairfax County is the most populous political subdivision. The Commonwealth's estimated population as of 2018 is over 8.5 million.

Province of Maryland English, from 1707, British, possession in North America between 1664 and 1776

The Province of Maryland was an English and later British colony in North America that existed from 1632 until 1776, when it joined the other twelve of the Thirteen Colonies in rebellion against Great Britain and became the U.S. state of Maryland. Its first settlement and capital was St. Mary's City, in the southern end of St. Mary's County, which is a peninsula in the Chesapeake Bay and is also bordered by four tidal rivers.

Pennsylvania State of the United States of America

Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state located in the northeastern, Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The Appalachian Mountains run through its middle. The Commonwealth is bordered by Delaware to the southeast, Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, Lake Erie and the Canadian province of Ontario to the northwest, New York to the north, and New Jersey to the east.

Map drawn by Joshua Fry & Peter Jefferson in 1751 Kitfry-1-.jpg
Map drawn by Joshua Fry & Peter Jefferson in 1751

See also

Notes and references

  1. 1 2 3 Washington, George; Hulbert, Archer Butler (1905). Washington and the West, Being George Washington's diary of September, 1784 and a commentary upon the same by Archer Butler Hulbert (Author of Historic Highways of America, etc). The Century Company. pp. 65–75.
  2. ↑ Withers, Alexander Scott; Draper, Lyman Copeland (1895). Reuben Gold Thwaites, ed. Chronicles of Border Warfare, or History of Settlement by the Whites, of North-Western Virginia, and of the Indian Wars and Massacres in that section of the State (7 ed.). Cincinnati: Stewart & Kidd Company Publishers.
  3. ↑ Fry, Joshua; Jefferson, Peter (1755), A map of the most inhabited part of Virginia containing the whole province of Maryland with part of Pensilvania, New Jersey and North Carolina. Drawn by Joshua Fry & Peter Jefferson in 1751, London: Thos. Jefferys
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