Parish vestries had been responsible for keeping highways in repair since the reign of Henry VIII.
From 1836 each parish was to appoint a surveyor, and was empowered to make a rate to keep the roads under its control in good order.
The 1835 Act also changed the law, with new roads not being declared highways, and therefore repairable by the parish, unless they met certain criteria.
The membership of the board consisted of one or more members elected annually by each parish, and known as waywardens, and by any county justices residing in the district.
The Isle of Wight and parts of South Wales were also exempt, as special legislation was already in place to establish highway authorities in those areas.
A large number of communities, some with very small populations, quickly chose to form boards and avoid being part of a district.
The Local Government Act 1888 passed responsibility for main roads to the new county councils from 1889, who were to bear all of the cost of their upkeep.