Abingdon in Washington County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Sinking Spring Cemetery

Photographed by J. J. Prats, June 9, 2017

1. Sinking Spring Cemetery Marker

Inscription.
In 1773, the Rev. Charles Cummings became the first minister of the Sinking Spring Presbyterian congregation, among the earliest in Southwest Virginia, and the first meetinghouse was soon constructed here of logs. The earliest marked grave in the cemetery is dated 1776. Buried here are pioneers; veterans of the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the Civil War; and two antebellum Virginia governors (David Campbell and John B. Floyd, who also served as President James Buchanan’s secretary of war). Cummings’s log manse, among the oldest east of the Mississippi River, was moved here in 1971 from its original site two miles north.

Erected 1998 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number K-52.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Colonial Era • Religion & Religious Structures. In addition, it is included in the Former U.S. Presidents: #15 James Buchanan, and the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1773.

Location. 36° 42.56′ N, 81° 58.924′ W. Marker is in Abingdon, Virginia, in Washington County. It is at the intersection of Russell Road NW (Alternate U.S. 58)

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and Valley Street NW (Alternate U.S. 58), on the left when traveling west on Russell Road NW. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Abingdon VA 24210, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Virginia’s Tri-Cities Area,

in Southwest Virginia,

and in the Blue Ridge Highlands.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Confederate General John Hunt Morgan (a few steps from this marker); Washington County, Virginia Revolutionary War Memorial (a few steps from this marker); The Cummings Cabin (within shouting distance of this marker); Henry Creswell (within shouting distance of this marker); Sinking Springs Cemetery Confederate Memorial (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Celebrate! A Social History of Abingdon (about 500 feet away); Hubert J. Treacy, Jr. (about 700 feet away); Boyhood Home of Gen. Joseph E. Johnston (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Abingdon.

Also see . . . Sinking Spring Presbyterian Church. Church website homepage:
“The Sinking Spring Cemetery marks the site of the first church building bearing the Sinking Spring name. Built as a front-log structure in the early 1700's, it was supplanted by a larger building sometime in the 1780's. This continued as the church site until 1831-1833 when the third building was built on Main Street and which building has now become the Barter Theater.” (Submitted on June 24, 2017.)

Photographed by J. J. Prats, June 9, 2017

2. Sinking Spring Cemetery Marker

The Rev. Charles Cummings’s Log House image. Click for full size.

Photographed by J. J. Prats, June 9, 2017

3. The Rev. Charles Cummings’s Log House

The oldest log house east of the Mississippi was moved to the grounds of the cemetery.