 Following the end of the Civil War, and the Reconstruction period, Virginia faced a massive debt problem.Much of this had originated in investments made by the Board of Public Works, including improvements such as this turnpike by then located chiefly in West Virginia.In 1871, the United States Supreme Court decided the first of two cases concerning the new state, ruling in Virginia v. West Virginia that Berkeley and Jefferson Counties would be part of new state, confirming the 1866 election results in those counties fronting on the Potomac River (and north of this turnpike).