LaVale's Toll House: Pay to Go West

The seven-sided brick building along the old National Road in LaVale was built in eighteen thirty-five and eighteen thirty-six as a toll collection station, built after the State of Maryland took over management of the road from the federal government. It is one of the few surviving National Road toll houses. Travelers passing west paid by the head, by the hoof, and by the wheel: the posted rates listed fees for wagons, horses, cattle, and even pedestrians.

The columned porch wrapped around five of the seven sides so the toll keeper could step out and flag down traffic from any direction. Today the little building stands restored beside a modern highway, a reminder that in the eighteen thirties, the simple act of heading west required a toll booth and a few coins.