author
Thomas B. (Thomas Brownfield) Searight
A Pennsylvania newspaperman, public official, and local historian, he is best remembered for capturing the life and lore of the National Road in vivid detail. His writing preserves not just a route, but the everyday stories, accidents, characters, and travel culture that grew around it.
1 Audiobook
The Old Pike A History of the National Road, with Incidents, Accidents, and Anecdotes Thereon
by Thomas B. (Thomas Brownfield) Searight
About the author
Born in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, in 1827, Thomas Brownfield Searight was educated at Madison College in Uniontown and graduated from Washington College in 1848. Sources describe him as a newspaperman, editor, local historian, and elected official in western Pennsylvania, with service that included work as Fayette County prothonotary and time in the Pennsylvania Senate.
Searight is most closely associated with The Old Pike: A History of the National Road, with Incidents, Accidents, and Anecdotes Thereon, published in Uniontown in 1894. The book became an important record of the National Road, blending historical research with stories of travel, roadside life, and regional memory.
He died in 1899, but his work remains valuable to readers interested in early American transportation, Pennsylvania history, and the human side of life along a famous road.