As I understand the question, you wish to pin down the location of Salt Pond Road just outside of Lexington in Lafayette County, and have no wish to see Salt Pond itself. Right?

Salt Pond Township is located in southwest Saline County, and Salt Lick Township is located in south-central Saline County just south of the Saline County seat of Marshall. The vast salt deposits in south Saline County (think about the name "Saline" County. I know, I'm obvious.) attracted a lot of attention long before the Civil War when the Santa Fe Trail originated in what is now Howard County. It makes me thirsty somehow to write about all this, but the point is that Salt Pond Road outside of Lexington would be off to the southeast, as you say, towards Sweet Springs, which was called Brownsville back in Civil War times.

Does this have anything to do with Jesse James getting shot in the lung in May 1865, perhaps?

Bruce Nichols