Mad River Road was the first overland route between Dayton, Ohio and Cincinnati, Ohio. It was cut by Daniel C. Cooper in 1795 to provide access to the new town of Dayton and the "Mad River Country" northeast and north of Dayton. It was located at the mouth of the Mad River in the Symmes Purchase. The survey, entered into the record by Cooper and , extended Harmer's Trace north from near Cunningham's Station on the Mill Creek to the mouth of the Mad River, establishing the earliest road between Cincinnati and Dayton. Cooper, a surveyor and miller, was instrumental in the early settlement of Dayton, and Dr. Hole, the first physician in Montgomery County, established his cabin in 1796 near the now-extinct town of Woodburne on Mad River Road.