Old Harford Road
Old Harford Road, one of the oldest continuously used rights-of-way in central Maryland, United States, is a southwest–northeast thoroughfare in northeast Baltimore City and eastern Baltimore County. Present-day Old Harford Road begins in the 6000 block of Harford Road in the Hamilton section of Baltimore City and continues nearly miles northeast through the Parkville and Carney areas of Baltimore County to near the Big Gunpowder Falls north of Cub Hill. Old Harford Road serves as an alternate route to both Harford Road (Maryland Route 147) and Perring Parkway (Maryland Route 41), and carries  between 10,000 and 16,500 vehicles per day. Old Harford Road, like Harford County, was named for Henry Harford (1758–1834), the son of Frederick Calvert, 6th Lord Baltimore, and the last Proprietary of Maryland prior to the American Revolutionary War. History. Old Harford Road follows a curving path along relatively high land bordering streams that feed the upper Chesapeake Bay, including Chinquapin Run. This suggests its likely origin as an Indian trail that subsequently was adopted by settlers to convey farm products from northeastern Baltimore County, Harford County, and southern Pennsylvania to the port of Baltimore in the late 18th century . The name "Old Harford Road" appears on area maps dating to at least 1850 (see, for example, map display in the Meeting Room of the Baltimore County Public Library in Towson, Maryland). In particular, the 1850 J. C. Sidney map indicates that today's Satyr Hill Road, Cromwell Bridge Road north of Satyr Hill, and Glen Arm Roads collectively were known as Old Harford Road. Four sections of the Sidney map, annotated to highlight the location of today's Old Harford Road with respect to area roads of today—and to the Old Harford Road of 1850—are provided below . Nineteenth century deeds to two notable properties in the area, obtained by Baltimore County historian John W. McGrain, substantiate Sidney's depiction of Old Harford Road. The "Shanklin House" (or "Forest Hall"), once located at present-day 8906 Satyr Hill Road, and "Serendipity", on present-day Glen Arm Road, north of Glen View, are both listed as being located on "The Old Harford Road". The Shanklin House once served as a tavern, and its 1845 deed notes that the property was located on "the well-traveled main road". Old Harford Road also appears on Robert Taylor's 1857 map of  Baltimore County (not shown here). The map depicts "Carroll's Factory", a woolen mill later converted to a flour mill, where the road crossed the south bank of Gunpowder Falls. Some of the structures of this property remain extant as a private residence along Cub Hill Road, just east of today's Cromwell Bridge Road (originally, Old Harford Road). The "Old" in Old Harford Road most likely dates to the period shortly after the completion of the Harford Turnpike by private road-building interests in 1816. Harford Turnpike, now known as Harford Road (Maryland Route 147), was constructed as a  more direct route between present-day Mt. Vista Road and what became the Hamilton section of Baltimore (i.e., to today's intersection of Harford and Old Harford Roads). Further evidence that today's Cromwell Bridge and Glen Arm Roads comprise part of the original Old Harford Road is provided by the 1829 edition of the "Laws of the Maryland General Assembly"; Chapter 224 describes the construction of a county roadway (likely today's Cub Hill Road) that was to extend from "... the Old Harford Road near Cromwell's Bridge (Gunpowder Falls) to the Harford Turnpike". A complicating bit of information  regarding the use of the moniker "Old", however, is provided by a genealogical reference to a tavern that was said to have been located on Old Harford Road "near the Long Green Valley" around 1776. Why the prefix "Old" would have been used at that early date is uncertain. If the reference is accurate, it could reflect that a displacement of the original Harford Road right-of-way already had been made prior to the construction of the Harford Turnpike in 1816. While the name "Old Harford" may be traced with certainty to only the first third of the nineteenth  century, the right-of-way itself is older. For example, the 1794 map of Maryland by Dennis Griffith (shown below) depicts a thoroughfare extending northeast from the central part of Baltimore City into Harford County, Maryland. This road is distinct from nearby roads that evolved into parts of today's Belair Road (U.S. Route 1), Philadelphia Road (Maryland Route 7), and York Road (Maryland Route 45). The shape and orientation of the unnamed right-of-way, in part, bears close resemblance to today's Old Harford Road. Anthony Finley's 1824 map of Maryland, schematically depicts a route of travel  extending north-northeast from Baltimore City to the Coopstown area of Harford County (near today's Jarrettsville, Maryland). Subsequent editions of his map and others show the route extending farther northeast to the Susquehanna River near McCall's Ferry, Pennsylvania (likely incorporating parts of today's Long Green Pike and Pleasantville Road; e.g., see the 1856 Thomas Cowperthwait and Company map shown below). Through the first half of the twentieth century, various published maps—including state-issued topographic maps (see example below)—indicate that the portion of today's Cub Hill Road between Old Harford Road and Cromwell Bridge Road / Glen  Arm Road was known as "Old Harford Road". This naming convention appears to have been relatively short-lived, likely reflecting transition from the use of "vernacular", nineteenth-century roadway names to those officially conferred by municipal authorities following the introduction of automotive transportation. Available records suggest that at least parts of Old Harford Road, like similar roads in the region, likely remained gravel-covered (macadamized) as late as World War I, with asphalt pavement most likely introduced in the Hamilton and Parkville sections beginning in the 1920s. The "Second Report on the Highways of Maryland," included as part of Volume  4 of the 1902 "Report of the Maryland State Geological Survey" (see //https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=mMVMAQAAMAAJ&hl=en&pg=GBS.PP1) notes that the Ninth District of Baltimore County spent $1124 to "top-dress" part of Old Harford Road with gravel stone in 1901. Comparable or greater amounts were also spent the same year on Hillen Road, Arlington Avenue, Hamilton Avenue, and Roland Avenue. In 1921, on the part of Old Harford Road that by that time had come to be known as Glen Arm Road, what generally is accepted to be the nation's first train-actuated railroad  crossing signal was installed at the crossing of the Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad in the community of Glen Arm. The signal device was designed and installed by the short line railroad's noteworthy Superintendent of Signals, Charles Adler, Jr. The approach of a train activated a double stop sign that turned toward the road twenty seconds before the arrival of a train. Adler later designed early traffic-actuated traffic lights for the City of Baltimore, and also invented the system of flashing warning lights used on aircraft. Present-day sections of Old Harford Road have never been part of the  highway system administered by the Maryland State Highway Administration (SHA). However, around 1910, parts of existing courses of the road—namely, today's Cub Hill Road and parts of Glen Arm Road—were considered for possible inclusion in the state system by SHA's forerunner, the Maryland State Roads Commission (see, for example, https://archive.org/details/annualreportsofs1912mary/page/54/mode/2up?q=cub+hill). The State Roads Commission at the time was examining existing roadways to serve as connecting routes and/or partial alternatives to today's Belair Road (U.S. Route 1) that links Baltimore City with the city of Bel Air, Maryland. Ultimately, the right-of-way of the former  Harford Turnpike from Parkville north to Benson (just south of Bel Air) was selected as the primary alternative; this route was designated Maryland 147, a designation that continues today. Structural development along Old Harford Road through the years largely has mirrored that experienced along other major roads in the region. From the late 18th century through much of the following one, "development" consisted primarily of the well-appointed homes of merchants and other wealthy individuals who conducted business in Baltimore. For example, the estates of both Revolutionary War hero General Samuel Smith, and Baltimore benefactor Johns Hopkins were located on  that part of today's Harford Road near Hillen Road. Interspersed between these and other, lesser estates were the truck farms that supplied fruit, vegetables, and dairy products to Baltimore City. The term "truck" referred to the fact that the farm products quickly had to be moved to avoid spoilage. By the late 1800s, truck farming had come to dominate growth and development patterns in the region. Villages arose along (Old) Harford Road as well as along the nearby York, Belair, and Philadelphia Roads to support the growing needs of the farmers. Beginning with the extension of streetcar service from  Herring Run to Hamilton in 1898, and its subsequent extension to Carney in 1904, the southernmost portions of Old Harford Road saw development as a "streetcar suburb" during the first three decades of the 20th century. The earliest of these were situated on acre or near acre-size lots. But by the 1920s, developers subdivided the truck farms and other larger properties into smaller lots, onto which were built many "bungalow"-style homes that were within easy walking distance of the extended streetcar line (see first black-and-white image below). Such construction spread as far north along Old Harford as  the Harford Park community near Taylor Avenue (see http://www.harfordpark.org/). The next major surge in development occurred in the two decades following World War II. During this period, much of the remainder of today's Old Harford Road experienced the post-war building boom in the form of moderately-priced ranch and two story homes (see images below). A limited amount of modern "in-fill" construction continues today north of Joppa Road in Carney (e.g., the "Old Harford Ridge" subdivision near Proctor Lane). Post-war suburban development brought substantial traffic increases to Old Harford Road, especially in the Parkville-Carney area . The completion of Parkville High School in 1958 and the Perring Plaza Shopping Center in 1962, in particular, spurred commercial development along Old Harford near its intersection with today's Putty Hill Avenue. Major improvements (including widening, resurfacing and construction of curbs/sewers) along Old Harford occurred over various segments in the following years: 1971 (north of Joppa Road), 1972 (north of Taylor Avenue), 1975 (north of Proctor Lane), 1979 (intersection with Joppa Road), 1981 (near Summit Avenue), 1984 (Northern Parkway to Alvarado Square), 1990 (Satyr Hill Road to Joppa Road), and 2000–2001 (Taylor Avenue to Putty Hill Avenue). Construction  of an overpass at the Baltimore Beltway (Interstate 695) in 1961 resulted in relocation of the roadway about west of the original right-of-way. This reconstruction also eliminated an existing "y" intersection with Satyr Hill Road. The relationship of present-day Old Harford Road with neighboring streets and highways is depicted in the sectional SHA map shown below. The SHA recently completed widening of Interstate 695 Baltimore Beltway between Perring Parkway and Harford Road. This project included replacement of the original (1961) Old Harford Road - Interstate 695 overpass. Old Harford Road remained open during the reconstruction. The east half  of the new overpass opened to traffic on June 1, 2016; the project was completed in June 2017. The enlarged overpass was made 85 feet longer and 4 feet higher than the existing span to accommodate auxiliary lanes and possible future expansion of the Beltway. The three lanes of traffic on Old Harford Road include through lanes in each direction and a third for left turns onto Satyr Hill Road. The bridge also provides shoulders for bicycles and ADA-compliant sidewalks on both sides; several views of the new overpass appear below. On November 21, 2014, during the early stages  of the construction project, the original Old Harford Road overpass was struck by a backhoe being carried by a westbound flatbed truck on the Beltway. The incident caused no injuries but required temporary closing of both the Beltway and Old Harford Road so that damage to the bridge could be inspected. Mass transit. At present, no scheduled, public transportation exists along Old Harford Road. However, for more than 30 years, two branches of the Maryland Transit Administration's Route 19 bus line operated along parts of Old Harford Road. The 19A line, introduced in 1973, originated at the Carney Park -and-Ride lot at the intersection of Harford Road (Maryland Route 147) and Joppa Road. This line replaced a route originated by the former McMahon Transportation Service Company. Like its predecessor, the line followed Old Harford Road from Cub Hill Road south to Moore Avenue/Oakleigh Road, before continuing to downtown Baltimore via Taylor Avenue, Burke Avenue, Stevenson Lane, and Charles Street. The express-type service included single morning and evening trips. The line was renamed Route 105 in 2000 before being discontinued due to low ridership in 2005. Another branch of Route 19, referred to as the "Joppa Heights  line, operated along Old Harford Road between Taylor Avenue and Satyr Hill Road. It was introduced in early 1976 and enjoyed moderate ridership in its earlier years, providing service between the Joppa Road/Perring Plaza shopping areas and downtown Baltimore several times a day. This route, however, also suffered declining ridership in more recent years, and was discontinued in 2009. Points of interest. Several sites of historical interest exist along Old Harford Road. The first four have been placed on the Baltimore County Landmarks List and include: A marker that formed part of the Atlantic Base Line" of the United  States Coast and Geodetic Survey's (USCGS) transcontinental triangulation survey of the United States was established on the Cub Hill House property in 1844. At the time, the property was known as the Finlay Farm, and the survey marker was located about 250 feet west-northwest of the farm's blacksmith shop. An 1896 USCGS update on the triangulation effort noted that the site's neighboring survey markers located in Kent and Queen Anne's counties on Maryland's Eastern Shore could no longer be found. Those markers, on Swan Point and Kent Island, respectively, also had been established in  the 1840s. By 1896, however, the sites had become submerged by the rising waters of the Chesapeake Bay (due to the long-term subsidence of tidewater land in the Bay region). Numerous places of worship, schools, and business areas are located on Old Harford Road. These include (listed from south to north): Major intersections. Major intersections with commercial and/or institutional development along Old Harford Road include (listed south to north):