The James River & Kanawha Turnpike, now part of U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 64, began as an Indian trail used for travel to salt licks. In 1774, Col. Andrew Lewis used the path to reach the Battle of Point Pleasant. Virginia later turned it into a road, with improvements by 1791 allowing travelers to use boats at Kellys Creek in eastern Kanawha County to go west.

As salt production grew around Malden, just east of Charleston, a better road was needed. In 1820, Virginia authorized the James River Company to build a more reliable road from the James River to near Gauley Bridge. This route continued west to the Ohio River by 1832, becoming an important path for settlers and trade until the Civil War.

The turnpike declined after the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway reached Huntington in 1873 but experienced a revival as the Midland Trail, a cross-country road that became U.S. 60 in 1926. When I-64 opened in 1988, U.S. 60 became a local route. To preserve its history and beauty, it was named the Midland Trail Scenic Byway in 1989 and later became a National Scenic Byway.