The way points of this bicycle route:
I have taken these cues from the "save a limb" ride website. No permission was obtained. See http://www.savealimbride.org/exec/save/history.cfm?publicationID=349&departmentID=1191 For more information. All text in quotes is from website above. " Oregon Ridge Park has always been a starting point for competitive cyclists and recreational weekend riders. Once you experience this beautiful part of the country and read about its rich history, it’s easy to see why. The land that Oregon Ridge Park sits on used to belong to Oregon Iron Furnace (1849). The abandoned iron ore pit on the property is always full of water and provides a supervised swimming hole during Maryland’s warm season. Shortly before the county acquired the property, the owner created a ski slope on the rather modest hillside. The Maryland climate provided an uncertain supply of snow, and Baltimore County’s hills were too low to provide much of a thrill. "
"You begin the ride by turning left onto Beaver Dam Road, which was named after the Beaver Dam Mill that was built around 1800. Beavers used to live in this area, and in some places, they have returned. If you were to travel south on Beaver Dam Road, you would ride past the marble quarrying town of Texas. The town of Texas acquired its name from the Texas Greens, a militia company that signed on for the Mexican War. Almost all the residents of Texas were Irish because the quarrying industry had started expanding at the same time that people were fleeing from Ireland during the 1847 potato famine. Vast quantities of marble are still extracted at Texas, much of it for industrial purposes. However, more than a century ago, the white stone was quarried for the Washington Monument and for the columns of other buildings in Washington, D. C."
"Ride through the intersection of Beaver Dam Road and Shawan Road. The name Shawan was derived from the Shawan Indians who lived in this region in the early 1700s. The Oregon Grill, built in 1849, is on the corner of Shawan Road and Beaver Dam Road and is the old stone company store of Oregon Iron Furnace. Before the building's restoration, the floor was littered with old bills for the delivery of hams and other produce, old company envelopes, and receipts."
"Continue to go straight onto Cuba Road, which is an extension of Beaver Dam Road. On the right is a large, rambling, sturdy but plain stone house called Stone Hall that belonged to the Gist family, according to the 1798 tax list. Its present dimensions are the same ones found in that 208-year-old tax list."
"On the left, you will see a village called Gentsville where most of the residents are African-Americans, apparently descendants of people who worked at Oregon Iron Furnace. Peter Gough, listed as the "ash man" in the furnace company's day books, was the founder of the small Gough’s Church perched on the hill on the left side of the road. Cuba Road crosses a stream called Western Run on a wrought-iron, through-truss bridge built in 1892-93. The bridge was fabricated in Canton, Ohio, and then shipped in kit form. The bridge has survived numerous floods. It has been thoroughly repaired in recent times. The whole area is considered the Western Run-Belfast National Register Historic District. Cuba Road ends across the road from the 1901 Breitenecker house (right). On the left is an estate called Spring Garden Tenant House, which belonged to Robert E. Lewis, a noted architect. "
"After you turn left onto Western Run Road, you will notice that this area traverses the valley. It was the scene of much agricultural prosperity around 1820. After a short distance, turn right onto Joyce Lane, a block-long side road named for the Joyce family."
"A right turn onto Belfast Road takes you along the hilly part of the valley slopes. The cluster of stone houses is old Davisville where Evan Davis ran a plough foundry in 1850. He advertised the Davis Plough in national farm publications. This long stretch on Belfast Road will take you past numerous stone farm houses dating from about 1820. At Wheeler's Road is the village of Belfast, which is located just before the turn onto Priceville Road. The village consists of stone houses, a former store, and a post office."
"Make a right turn onto Priceville Road. Priceville is a Quaker Community that met in the Gunpowder Meeting House. The present Meeting House was built in August of 1866 after a fire consumed the first structure in March of 1866. A large cemetery adjoins the property. The Society of Friends set the tone for sturdy but undecorated domestic architecture. The tour swings southwest along Priceville Road and then turns right onto Thornton Mill Road. Thornton Mill no longer exists."
"A left turn onto Gerber Lane will bring you into the area that used to be owned by the Bosley family. The great Bosley place, called Conclusion Farm, is on the left and has a three-story stone house in the Greek Revival style. The only Greek Revival elements are the small attic windows. This farm has been considerably beautified in the 1990s. The property once contained Cole’s Meeting House, a Methodist chapel, and a cemetery, none of which still exist."
"Farther along Gerber Lane, you will make a right turn onto a different segment of Western Run Road. On the right, the road crosses Tanyard Road. The Scott family operated a tanyard at this location and had a large gristmill called the Hebron Mill. The old barn of the tanyard property can be seen on the east (right) side of Tanyard Road. The Scott family had a complete array of stone farm outbuildings: meat houses, granaries, and dairies. A 1879 photograph showed all the outbuldings on this property. Farther north on Tanyard Road was a quarry where stone was extracted in about 1815 for Baltimore's Washington Monument. You will pass more stone houses on Western Run Road. After crossing the modern steel bridge, you will enter the fringes of Butler village, where a historic ice house has been converted into a splendid-looking home. Dr. England’s mill stood near the bridge in the 19th century."
"When you turn right onto Falls Road, the village of Butler proper begins. This site has a country store, a saddle shop, a former hotel, and the elegant stone Black Rock Baptist Church, which was the birthplace of the Hard-Shelled Baptists who were also called the Primitive Baptists. After you pass the church, Falls Road takes you into Worthington Valley, named for one of the first families that settled in this region in the 1700s. This is still the land of horse farms. To the left is the area where the Grand National Steeplechase is held. The race is run across privately owned meadows and is watched from the hillsides by hundreds of admirers of horseflesh. When you reach Butler Road, turn left."
"At a triangular intersection with a slab-sided log house, bear right onto Dover Road, which is close to the small stone and stucco Dover United Methodist Church. Four different Dover Roads once converged at the mill and tanyard village of Dover, but people renamed these roads when they began to use the automobile."
"After a long stretch through horse country, turn right onto Mount Zion Road, the Big Sky Country of Baltimore County. Mount Zion Road leads through rich farming country. You might catch a glimpse of a herd of llamas or alpacas."
"As you make a left onto Blackrock Road, the small brick Mount Zion United Methodist Church comes into view. At one time, a black rock existed along this road, but it was blasted away in the early 1900s. Trenton Road leads to the sturdy stone Trenton Mill built in 1861, but you pass this road to turn right on Pleasant Meadow Road."
"Make a left onto Mount Carmel Road (State Route 137), which is named for a nearby church. A short ride takes you across Peggy’s Run; then turn right onto Gunpowder Road. Gunpowder Road is very hilly and quite twisty. It is named after Gunpowder Falls, a fairly large stream with several branches. The origin of the name is unknown; no gunpowder mills were ever located on the stream."
"Eventually you will come to a village of about seven houses called Beckleysville, named after Daniel Beckley’s paper mill. The mill town was flooded when Prettyboy Reservoir was built in 1933. The Beckley house is the large, restored brick structure with a long rear wing and second-floor porches. This crossroads once had a hotel, but it is now a private residence. The route passes into the watershed of the reservoir and crosses the upper part of the lake."
"Turn right onto Kidds Schoolhouse Road. Kidds School House was a one-room school that was used in the 19th century. It was on the 1877 atlas and was labeled as School No. 9, Election District 6. In 1932, it was sold as surplus for $206 after schools consolidated and were served by buses."
"A right turn onto Spooks Hill Road will take you past areas that were said to be haunted. Citizens claimed that mysterious events occurred along this road—a ghost was reported in the county paper in 1891and travelers said that strange lights followed them at night. The odd name is found on the 1910 topographic map of the county. The road does a hairpin turn and follows the valley of Frog Hollow, a flooded stream bed where a 19th century paper mill used to be located. Another hairpin turn leads to a scenic overlook and then to a right-angle bend at Spook Hill."
"After you turn left onto Armacost Road and make another left onto Molesworth Road, you will turn right onto Middletown Road, a heavily traveled route that leads to Pennsylvania. The road crosses over Interstate-83 and passes a handsome stone house on a slope called the Frederick House. The Frederick Road in this area is named after a family, not for Frederick, Maryland. It is the back road that leads to the train stop town of Parkton, where Maryland’s oldest stone arch bridge still carries local traffic."
"Just past Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church, Middletown Road ends. Turn right onto York Road, the old turnpike route to York, Pennsylvania. Conestoga wagons traveled on this road to bring grain to the port of Baltimore before trains were used to transport goods. The wagon drivers smoked two-for-a-cent cigars that were called "stogies" because of the wagons that they drove"
"As you head south on York Road (State Route 45), you will see the Wiseburg Inn, an enormous brick tavern with a complex of well-restored outbuildings. The inn was also called the Half Way House, because it marked the halfway point between Baltimore and York. Political rallies and Fourth of July militia events used to take place at the inn. The route turns left alongside the great barn that is still part of the inn property and follows Wiseburg Road eastward. On the north side of the road (left) is a former school house and the Wiseburg United Methodist Church. "
"Make a sharp right onto Bernoudy Road, which was named after the Bernoudy family. The Bernoudy house is on the left. It is a Federal-style, clapboarded farm house that is nicely restored."
"Turn left onto Big Falls Road, another road named for the meandering Gunpowder Falls. The road soon crosses the hike-and-bike trail that used to be the Northern Central Railroad. At the south end of the trail is the old railroad town of White Hall. A paper mill was once operated in White Hall, but it is no longer open. The town had a large feed mill, but it was set afire by the north county's notorious family of barn-burners. Across the tracks, Big Falls Road becomes Hunter Mill Road. The enormous wooden Hunter Mill, built in 1863, is on the right past a stream called First Mine Run. The first brick structure past the mill is a 19th century house that belonged to the prosperous miller."
"A right turn onto McComas Road leads you into the 10,000-acre colonial survey called My Lady's Manor, which was Lord Baltimore's gift to his wife, not that the notable lady ever came here to inspect it. The Calvert family leased the Manor to various tenants until the State seized British-owned assets during the American Revolution."
"When McComas Road ends, turn right onto Troyer Road. A number of African-Americans whose ancestors worked on the Manor farm still live in the area. Many of these residents own prime patches of real estate. You will then pass two 19th century African-American churches on the left: Union Chapel and Mount Joy."
"After a mile on Troyer Road, turn right onto Shepperd Road (Mile 41), which is still inside the grounds of My Lady's Manor. On the left is a white, Federal-style brick house called Bellefield that belongs to a famous but retired TV personality; it has a long rear wing, numerous outbuildings, a private chapel called St. Margaret's, and a pond. At the terminus of Shepperd Road is a very tall Federal-style house in red brick called Fruitful Valley. The village of Monkton is hidden by a steep slope past the red brick Monkton United Methodist Church and past the Isaiah Baptist Church, which is a former two-room school house. You will avoid that hill by making a sharp left onto Monkton Road (Mile 43.9)."
"When McComas Road ends, turn right onto Troyer Road. A number of African-Americans whose ancestors worked on the Manor farm still live in the area. Many of these residents own prime patches of real estate. You will then pass two 19th century African-American churches on the left: Union Chapel and Mount Joy."
"The first interesting place on Monkton Road is the Monkton-Manor Mill and its dwelling house, which are on the right side of the road. Both are undergoing restoration. The brick mill dates from about 1859 and is perched on the very old foundation of an earlier mill. Its water power comes from Charles Run. A few years ago, the mill was an antique shop. Monkton Road soon meets Falls Road (completely distinct from the Falls Road at Butler). After a right turn onto Falls Road, you will notice that the bends in the road follow the curves of the Gunpowder Falls. On the opposite bank of the falls is the Victorian village of Corbett. Almost every house is built of frame and clapboard and is decorated with brackets, finials, and pendants in the Gingerbread Gothic style. "
"You will avoid crossing the falls and turn left onto Corbett Road at Merryman Park. About 2,400 feet south of the bridge, the tour leaves My Lady’s Manor and crosses into another great colonial land survey called Clynmalira, a 2,000-acre tract acquired by the Carroll family in 1705. Clynmalira is a name transplanted by the Carrolls who were from southeastern Ireland. The tour misses Henry Carroll's great mansion called Clynmalira (built in 1824), which was splendidly restored a few years ago."
"After a right turn onto Carroll Road (Mile 52), make another right turn onto Glencoe Road. This road will take you past some elegant estates, the first being Filston Farm (right), which is the mansion of a former dairy farmer. Then comes the campus of Oldfields School (right), a private boarding school for girls, and the Gothic Revival church in stone, Immanuel Protestant Episcopal Church (left). Glencoe Road passes the elegant Glencoe mansion, an Italian villa perched on the hill east of Gunpowder Falls. The mansion was the home of Peter Mowell, a 19th century iron manufacturer who developed a summer resort at this site, complete with a lake and big-frame hotel. Early in the 20th century, Henry Perky, manufacturer of the first shredded wheat breakfast food, bought the town and also Filston farm to develop an agricultural college but died before he could finish the project. The hotel eventually burned down. The train depot, across the falls and over the bridge, is now a private residence."
"Across the bridge, the road splits into Upper Glencoe Road and Lower Glencoe Road. Turn left (Mile 55) onto Lower Glencoe Road, which follows the west bank of the falls, a rather placid stretch of water. The road passes Sparks Park, named after the Sparks family, and terminates at York Road (State Route 45) (Mile 56). Opposite the road terminus was once the Elias Matthews Mill; some of the Matthews' farm houses that were built of stone can still be seen. An old stone mill and can depot are set very close to the road."
"Make a right onto York Road and then a left onto Belfast road. Some interesting houses are just west of the road. One is called "Black Acre" (left), so called by a former judge who remembered the name from practice law cases during his student days. Belfast Road crosses Interstate-83. Past Interstate-83 and on the right is a stone house on a hill called Young Jacob's Choice. A runaway slave from that plantation escaped to England, became a minister and a writer, and recorded his abuse and his flight in two published books."
"During the return trip, the route is reversed. Make a left onto Joyce Lane (Mile 56.5) and a left onto Western Run Road. Robert E. Lewis’s farm is on the right this time. Then make a right onto Cuba Road near the wrought-iron bridge (Mile 56.5). Cuba Road goes through Gentsville and leads to the Oregon Grill (Oregon Iron Furnace company store) on the corner of Shawan Road. Cuba Road becomes Beaver Dam Road, which leads back to Oregon Ridge Park (Mile 60)."
