The Minquas Indian Trail was a fur trading route from the Susquahanna region to fur trading posts
near the Schuylkill and is said to be the first highway in Pennsylvania. Historian Paul Wallace,
in his book Indian Paths of Pennsylvania, wrote that the Minquas Path "laid foundations
for the state's commercial development" and "provides a key to much of the Commonwealth's
early history." Holland, Sweden and Great Britain struggled for dominance on the Delaware
River to control trade. This map from Dr. Henry Paxon in "Where Pennsylvania History Began"
(1926) suggests the route passed between the Blue Bell and Printz's Mill at the point where
Woodland Avenue becomes Main Street in Darby and Island Road becomes Cobbs Creek Parkway.
The Great Minquas Path which is commemorated by markers in West Chester and Rose Valley
may have passed through Eden Cemetery (the former Bartram family farm), through the
Scott Estate to the site of the former 12th Street Dam, then through Darby, past the Blue Bell on
Cobbs Creek (Printz's or Old Swedes Mill) and to fur trading posts including Fort Beversrede (the
Beaver Road) at Point Breeze and Jonas Trading Post in SW Philadelphia.
near the Schuylkill and is said to be the first highway in Pennsylvania. Historian Paul Wallace,
in his book Indian Paths of Pennsylvania, wrote that the Minquas Path "laid foundations
for the state's commercial development" and "provides a key to much of the Commonwealth's
early history." Holland, Sweden and Great Britain struggled for dominance on the Delaware
River to control trade. This map from Dr. Henry Paxon in "Where Pennsylvania History Began"
(1926) suggests the route passed between the Blue Bell and Printz's Mill at the point where
Woodland Avenue becomes Main Street in Darby and Island Road becomes Cobbs Creek Parkway.
The Great Minquas Path which is commemorated by markers in West Chester and Rose Valley
may have passed through Eden Cemetery (the former Bartram family farm), through the
Scott Estate to the site of the former 12th Street Dam, then through Darby, past the Blue Bell on
Cobbs Creek (Printz's or Old Swedes Mill) and to fur trading posts including Fort Beversrede (the
Beaver Road) at Point Breeze and Jonas Trading Post in SW Philadelphia.
From "Where Pennsylvania
History Began" (1926)
History Began" (1926)
Above- Map from Explore PA History
Below- Rose Valley Marker
Right: Detail of map above
Below- Rose Valley Marker
Right: Detail of map above
