 To promote movement of settlers and to speed mail from Washington City to New Orleans, the Federal Road was laid out after 1805.In 1824, a military road was laid out from Fort Barrancas in Pensacola, Florida and ran on top of the ridges to Fort Mitchell in Russell County, Alabama, and connected to The Federal Road.Captain Daniel E. Burch of the U.S. Army marked the route using three notches on trees for a crew under Lt. Elias Phillips to follow.