The old National Road and its western descendants: taverns, tollhouses, mountain crossings, and main streets built before the interstates.
Why take this road?
U.S. 40 rewards travelers who want to see how the country moved before limited-access highways. In the East it overlaps the historic National Road; farther west it crosses plains, Rockies, desert, and old resort corridors.
Signature chapters of the journey
- National Road landscapes in Maryland and Pennsylvania
- Wheeling’s river and bridge history
- Ohio and Indiana main streets and old road architecture
- Illinois and Missouri river crossings
- Kansas plains and Colorado mountain approaches
- Utah and Nevada desert history
- California’s older transcontinental-road connections
Roadside memory
Stone bridges, mile markers, taverns, tollhouses, diners, motor courts, and bypassed business districts show the road evolving from wagon route to automobile highway.
RV planning note
Modern U.S. 40 is fragmented and sometimes absorbed by other highways or interstates. Verify each historic segment, mountain pass, and town-center route for size and seasonal suitability.
Before departure: verify current closures, construction, wildfire or weather conditions, campground availability, vehicle restrictions, tolls, ferry rules, and attraction hours with the responsible agencies and operators.
Why U.S. Route 40 earns more than a quick pass
The scenery and character
U.S. 40 changes character repeatedly, from Appalachian crossings and river valleys to Midwestern main streets, prairie, Rocky Mountain approaches, and desert basins. It rewards travelers who enjoy seeing how geography changes the communities along a long-distance corridor.
The historical lens
The route carries the National Road story into the age of numbered highways. Taverns, tollhouses, bridges, courthouse squares, and old commercial strips reveal how a transportation corridor grew in layers instead of arriving fully formed.
Good reasons to choose it
- Travelers who want a coast-to-coast theme without following one uniform road surface.
- Architecture fans interested in bridges, taverns, service stations, and early automobile businesses.
- RV travelers who prefer regional chapters with practical resupply options and frequent town stops.
How to make it memorable
- Pair National Road landmarks with a local historical society or small-town museum.
- Plan a river-town pause in the eastern and central sections, then make western segments about landscape and distance.
- Check historic alignments carefully where modern U.S. 40 has been rerouted or absorbed into other roads.