Fayetteville and Western Plank Road

There were 80 such projects for internal transportation authorized by North Carolina by 1860, and this was the only one that reached its goals.

Instead, the members of the Moravian Church in Salem, North Carolina planned for the terminus in their town, and they raised sufficient stock investments to make this possible.

Travel from Salem to Fayetteville by two horses and a wagon cost about $2.25, and took four days.

[2] Because Fayetteville is at the head of the navigable waters of the Cape Fear River, it was planned to make Fayetterville a center for transportation for the eastern part of the state.

However, the 129 mile long plank road opened up central North Carolina rural areas to larger markets and economic opportunities.