Forbes Road

United States   Migration    Trails and Roads    Forbes Road

Historical Background
Forbes Road was also called the Raystown Path, or Old Trading Path. Forbes Road was built as a result of the French and Indian War under the leadership of British General Edward Forbes. His goal was to cross the Appalachian Mountains with an army large enough to repel French forces at Fort Duquesne in what is now Pittsburgh on the Ohio River. General Forbes' men constructed the road in 1758 from Carlisle, Pennsylvania to Fort Duquesne, connecting Philadelphia to Pittsburgh. After the French were forced out, and the War ended, Forbes Road became an important route over the mountains to the Ohio Valley and what became the old Northwest Territory.

Trail Route
Counties Philadelphia, Chester, Delaware, Lancaster, Lebanon, Dauphin, Cumberland, Franklin, Fulton, Bedford, Somerset, Westmoreland, and Allegheny.

Settlers
.

Internet Sites
.