The pioneers poured in from New England in droves after 1800 to settle this new land in upstate New York then known as the "Western Country," and one of the primary paths they followed was the Cherry Valley Turnpike.

This road, which is more than 200 years old, is today's Route 20 from Albany to Cazenovia, and Route 92 from there to Manlius. Here it connected with the south branch of the Seneca Turnpike.

Building such a lengthy road more than 70 miles long through the wilderness was a tremendous undertaking, requiring large sums of capital and manpower. Eventually, the promoters were able to secure both, but not without considerable effort and more than $100,000 in capital. The initial goal was to construct a highway from the old Revolutionary War frontier settlement of Cherry Valley, westward.

The Third Great Western Turnpike Company was chartered by the State of New York Legislature in 1803, and was organized on Nov. 16th of that year. The name was derived from the fact that the First Great Western Turnpike was from Albany to Duanesburg and the Second Great Western was from there to Cherry Valley. Eventually, this system of roads was nicknamed the Cherry Valley Turnpike.