I am writing in response to Steven D. Gilmore’s letter of Aug. 25, requesting ­information about the Yadkin Road markers.

The Yadkin Road was originally a buffalo trail that ran from the Yadkin River in the west to the Cape Fear River, near Fayetteville, where the buffalo migrated in winter. Indians and early settlers followed the path.

During the Revolutionary War, Cornwallis used the road, as did Sherman during the Civil War. Farmers rolled their tobacco to ­market on the road. It is probably the oldest road in the state and went from Mocksville to Fayetteville.

The markers were erected in 1927, after Leonard Tufts, Allen Wicker Knight and James Johnson decided that there was not enough attention paid to the history of the area by the younger generation. Johnson, Aberdeen historian at the time, wrote the inscription, and Wicker inscribed the five markers, four of which still remain. Over time, the Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts have tended to the markers, discouraging the growth of weeds around them and planting flowers.

To find out more about these historical markers and other items of interest in the area, visit the Tufts Archives, the Pinehurst History Museum. Our hours are Monday through Friday, 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m., and Saturday 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. We are located in the center of the village of Pinehurst across from the Holly Inn.

Audrey Moriarty

Tufts Archives

Pinehurst