Tribute to the historic 1927 “Bristol Sessions,” the first commercial recordings of country music, noting the city as the official “Birthplace of Country Music.” Read more...
This courthouse was built in 1831 by Daniel Lynch. The elaborate portico was added in the early 20th century. An 1894 clerk’s office stands on the courthouse green. The courthouse square was the scene of military action during the Civil War. Read more...
The reference library collection is housed inside Historic Smithfield Plantation house. It includes Preston Family information, Colonial and early Virginia information, and local historical data. Hours: 10:00 AM-5:00 Mon, Tues, Thru, Fri, Sat. Read more...
The beautiful old mill site on the Meherrin River has been Southside Virginia’s unofficial park for generations – and long South Hill’s best-kept secret. Recent restoration of the site and the publication of the Whittle’s Mill book have greatly heightened interest in the Meherrin River, the legacy of the Whittle family and the secrets of the old mill. The ruins Read more...
Special Collection houses a vast array of letters, journal, pictures, and diaries. Includes a Manuscript Collection for the American Civil War, Online exhibits, ImageBase Collection, and Digital Library and Archives. Also has direct link to the Civil War Institute which is likewise on the campus of Virginia Tech. Hours: M-F 8:00AM-5:00PM and by appointment Read more...
The cabin was occupied from its beginning (circa 1795) through the 1960s. See the many visible indicators of the numerous transitional modernization periods the cabin has experienced. The original builders of the cabin probably never envisioned the cabins life expectancy nor the influence its occupants would have on the cultural developments. Enjoy the stories relating to the various families occupying Read more...
The Richard P. Gravely, Jr. Nature Preserve is a 75-acre park located along the Smith River in Henry County, Virginia. Two miles of wooded trail are found on the property along with an outdoor classroom for nature study. A self-guided tour along Jones Cliff Trail leads guests back in time as they explore tobacco farming in the early 1900s and the Read more...
The house was built in the 1790s for James Wall, and has been home to the Wall, Land and Briggs families. During the Civil War, the front parlor of the house served as the site of a council of war for Generals W.H.F. Lee, Wade Hampton and Matthew Butler. In the late 19th century, rooms in the house, as well Read more...
The Brunswick County Museum is located in the historic Courthouse Square in Lawrenceville. Come and see a variety of exhibits documenting the county�s history. The County of Brunswick was created in 1720 and stretched from the fall lines in the rivers east of Emporia to the Blue Ridge Mountains. The county was bounded on the south by a surveyor�s line Read more...
A landmark to Hillsville since 1946, the Hillsville Diner is now the oldest continuously operating streetcar diner in the entire state of Virginia. Manufactured by the O’Mahoney company. The facility is listed in the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Hillsville Historic District. Moved here from Mt. Airy, NC where a young Andy Griffith frequented. It is Read more...
Located in Historic Uptown Stuart, the Patrick County Courthouse was designed and built by Abram Staples and completed in 1822. It displays many characteristics of Jefferson-inspired court buildings in the eastern and central portions of the state. Read more...
In 1865 emancipated African Americans withdrew from First Baptist Church, where they had worshiped from the balcony, and founded a congregation later known as High Street Baptist Church. Members erected their first sanctuary here in 1873. Fire destroyed that structure and its replacement, constructed in 1878. The present Romanesque Revival church was built in 1901. High Street Baptist served as Read more...
Shortly after the turn of the 19th century, Marshall Field and Co., located in Chicago, became interested in this area of land for a new textile mill site, conveniently located on the Smith River between two railroads, the D&W and N&W. Marshall Field and Co. wanted to build a model town, which provided homes, churches, boarding houses and schools on Read more...
Established in 1919, Bluemont Presbyterian Church is located on the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway. It is considered one of the historical “rock churches” in the area, as it was encased in stone in the 1950’s. Read more...
The Colonial Theatre has special place in the history of our community and in the lives of many of our residents. It has weathered many difficulties, including economic crises, as well as years of neglect at various times. The Colonial is one of the few remaining vaudeville theatres of its era in Virginia. Orginally built in 1925, it housed names Read more...
HOURS 12 PM to 5 PM : Our New Children’s Library Showcases Achievements of African Americans. Photos, Stories and Memorabilia tell a History of African American Education in Wythe County. Free Admission, Donations Appreciated A non-profit community organization was established in 2000 to preserve the historic Wytheville Training School. The school was constructed in 1882 for African American children and Read more...
Confederate Major General James Ewell Brown Stuart told his brother in 1863 “I would give anything to make a pilgrimage to the old place, and when the war is over quietly spend the rest of my days there.” J.E.B Stuart never returned to his birthplace and boyhood home, but thanks to a group of local citizens you today can visit Read more...
During your visit please be sure to check out the Veteran’s War Memorial. A visually striking memorial that provides a stirring tribute to those who have given so much so that we Americans can live free. Read more...
One of the Pre-Revolutionary churches in Southwest Virginia, organized in 1775, the present building was erected in 1851 on the site of a log meeting house deed to the congregation by Colonial Joseph Cole is is buried in the cemetery surrounding the church. Read more...
Enjoy a relaxing picnic, read a book, or catch up with friends in the historic Competition Alley! Competition Alley is a center town vest pocket park that occupies the length of the last remaining street from the original town of Competition. It has a gazebo, bench seating and a shaded park area. Five interpretative panels explain the history of Pittsylvania Read more...
Henry County played a role in the development of the Colonial Frontier with the Carolina Road Beginning around the 1740s, this was the primary corridor funneling settlers from Pennsylvania to the settlements in the Carolina backcountry – particularly the Moravian Wachovia Tract. It is estimated that by the 1760s, some 1,000 wagons a day were traveling the Carolina Road. The Read more...
Historic downtown Salem is located just of Interstate 81 at Exit 140. Stroll down to the Farmer’s Market on Main Street, spend time antique shopping in a variety of shops, tour the Roanoke College campus and visit one of our locally owned eateries The shops along Main Street in Downtown Salem are worth the visit. You’ll find crafts, arts, antiques Read more...
The Buchanan Swinging Bridge is 366 feet long, 57.5 feet tall, the only one of its type to cross the James River. Owned by VDOT, the Swinging Bridge is a Historic Landmark. Portions of the large stone piers were constructed in 1851 for the Buchanan Turnpike Company’s Toll Bridge. Toll for every person was five cents with an additional five cents for each horse, mule Read more...
Dedicated in 1948, the Southwest Virginia Museum in Big Stone Gap chronicles the exploration and development of the region. The museum houses a collection of items from the region. The collection was started by C. B. Slemp, who served in Congress from 1907 to 1923 and was President Coolidge’s personal secretary. A lovely Victorian parlor in the four-story mansion is Read more...
The Veterans Memorial is comprised of a seven-foot high by 156-foot long black granite wall with the names of all local Veterans Killed In Action from the Revolutionary War to the present. The slogan “Freedom Is Not Free” is the centerpiece of the memorial. Among the 1,463 names currently carved on the Wall, 897 are from the Civil War, the Read more...
Pearisburg has existed as a village since 1808. The historical district includes buildings from almost every period in the town’s development. The two most significant predate 1840. Pearisburg was listed in 1992 as a National Registry Community. Read more...
This Greek Revival Courthouse was built in 1853 when L.A. Shumaker, a regional master builder, was paid $10,000 to design and erect the building.The courthouse has been elegantly restored. The interior of the courthouse is embellished with elaborate plasterwork. A magnet for researchers is the clerk’s office where records go back to 1747. Read more...
Constructed in 1890, the former Reynold’s Restaurant, now known as Kay’s Corner, is one of the last remaining frame commercial buildings in Rocky Mount’s Central Business District. This historically important building functioned as a restaurant with apartments at the entrance to town at Route 40. It was probably the first commercial structure to be encountered when entering Rocky Mount from Read more...
Grove Street Cemetery is Danville’s first municipally owned burial ground. It’s earliest surviving marked grave dates from 1833, two years before Danville incorporated. Grove Street Cemetery is the final resting place for many of the community’s founders and early citizens. It holds the remains of a number of Confederate veterans, including Col. Joseph Robert Cabell and Benjamin Edward Cabell, sons Read more...
Oakwood Cemetery is Martinsville’s oldest public cemetery. The original cemetery charter was dated April 23, 1883. A cemetery committee consisting of J.R. Brown, C.P. Kearfott and C.D. Keffer was appointed by the Martinsville Town Council. Around the same time, 83/4 acres were purchased from Dr. James Moss Smith for $50 per acre to establish the site. The town of Martinsville Read more...
Further south on Main Street, on the opposite side from the House of Laird, sits an imposing house from 1837 owned and restored by Cmdr. and Mrs. Richard W. Arey. It presides on a hill overlooking life along the thoroughfare. It features fine details such as its fanlight of leaded glass over the entrance door and plaster ceiling moldings. Of Read more...
Inscription reads: “Two miles west on the former Staunton-to-Parkersburg Turnpike is Camp Allegheny, the highest Civil War fortification east of the Mississippi. Its rolling meadows and spectacular views belie a punishing winter climate.” The turnpike was completed in 1839 to “benefit the state by retaining and increasing its western population, clearing and settling an extensive territory, and adding to the Read more...
Visitors traveling along the Blue Ridge Parkway must visit the Puckett Cabin at Milepose 189.9 in Carroll County. The site is a preserved log home, with rail fencing, that was the last home of Orlean Hawks Puckett (1844-1939). Puckett was a mid-wife who helped assist with the delivery of over 1,000 babies from 1890-1939. The site helps to interpret and Read more...
The Langhorne House is the birthplace of Nancy Langhorne, Viscountess Astor, the first woman seated in the British House of Commons. Her sister Irene married the artist Charles Dana Gibson who immortalized his wife as the “Gibson Girl,” the international fashion ideal of the turn of the 20th century. Their father, Chiswell Langhorne, worked in the tobacco industry while in Read more...
