Maryland Route 194 - Route Description

Route Description

MD 194 begins at an intersection with MD 26 (Liberty Road) in Ceresville. The roadway continues south as MD 26, which crosses the Monocacy River on its way toward Frederick. MD 26 heads east from the intersection as a two-lane road toward Libertytown. MD 194 heads north as Woodsboro Pike, which starts as a four-lane divided highway but reduces to two lanes as the highway passes through the suburban communities of Discovery and Spring Garden, where the state highway passes the historic Woodsboro and Frederick Turnpike Company Tollhouse. At Walkersville High School, the state highway enters the town of Walkersville and the highway's old alignment, Frederick Street, splits to the north. MD 194 collects the other end of Frederick Street and passes between residential subdivisions before leaving the town at the highway's intersection with Devilbiss Bridge Road and Daysville Road. The former road heads west toward the historic Harris Farm; the latter highway leads to the 19th century Crum Road Bridge.

MD 194 parallels the Maryland Midland Railway's north–south line, Israel Creek, and Laurel Hill north to Woodsboro. At the south end of the town, Main Street, which is unsigned MD 194A, continues straight north while MD 194 veers northeast to bypass the town. The state highway starts to run concurrently with MD 550 at Woodsboro Road, which heads east as MD 550 toward Libertytown. On the north side of town, MD 550 heads west as Woodsboro Creagerstown Road, which meets the northern end of Main Street before heading northwest toward Creagerstown and Thurmont. MD 194 veers northeast and has a grade crossing with the railroad track at New Midway, where the highway intersects Legore Road, which leads to the LeGore Bridge. The state highway passes through the village of Ladiesburg before crossing Little Pipe Creek, one of the tributaries of Double Pipe Creek, into Carroll County.

MD 194 continues as Francis Scott Key Highway through Keymar, where the north–south and east–west lines of the Maryland Midland Railway intersect. The state highway has a grade crossing of the east–west rail line and intersects Middleburg Road, which heads west as MD 77. In the hamlet of Bruceville, MD 194 crosses Big Pipe Creek and intersects Keysville Bruceville Road, which heads northwest toward the village of Keysville and Terra Rubra, the birthplace of Francis Scott Key. The state highway passes the historic Winemiller Family Farm and Keefer-Brubaker Farm on its way to Taneytown. MD 194, which becomes Frederick Street, crosses a branch of Piney Creek and passes the Ludwick Rudisel Tannery House. In the center of the Taneytown Historic District, the state highway intersects MD 140 (Baltimore Street), where MD 194 becomes York Street. After leaving Taneytown, the state highway becomes Francis Scott Key Highway again as it heads through farmland. MD 194 crosses Piney Creek before reaching its northern terminus at the Pennsylvania state line. The roadway continues north as PA 194 (Frederick Pike) toward Littlestown and Hanover.