Hardy in Franklin County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Jack-O-Lantern Branch Trail

National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, August 18, 2018

1. Jack-O-Lantern Branch Trail Marker (Upper half)

Viewing marker from the west. Inset color map of Booker T. Washington National Monument.

Inscription.
To the slave, the forest offered more than hunting, fishing, or food. The woods were a place to meet, to rest, even to worship, away from the owner's gaze.

Today, as in Booker Washington's childhood, half of this farm is forest. A 1½-mile trail loops through the woods—much of it the original acreage of this farm. The trail follows part of the steambed of the Jack-O-Lantern Branch, a natural boundary with neighboring property.

The walk is of medium difficulty, with a few short, steep sections. The trail brochure explains the signs of nature at work, such as lightning strikes and swelling streams, as well as evidence of human activity in the forest, such as fences, clearings, and fields.

Allow 45 minutes to enjoy your stroll.

A Safe Walk

Please don't trample! Leave plants and animals as they are.

• Forest citizens include snakes, poisonous plants, and insects that sting and bite. You are less likely to meet these residents if you stay on the trails.

• Thunderstorms and lightning strikes are frequent. Trees attract lightning and they topple. Don't wait out a storm under a tree—walk to a car or building.

•

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Recently downed trees may still be on the trail.

Erected by National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Agriculture • Parks & Recreational Areas.

Location. 37° 6.976′ N, 79° 43.814′ W. Marker is in Hardy, Virginia, in Franklin County. It can be reached from Booker T Washington Highway (Virginia Route 122) 0.2 miles east of Lost Mountain Road, on the right. Follow trail from Visitor Center southward for 0.2 mile to the Tobacco Barn to find the marker. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: Plantation Trail, Hardy VA 24101, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southern Virginia.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

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

Jack-O-Lantern Branch Trail Marker (Lower half) image. Click for full size.

National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, August 18, 2018

2. Jack-O-Lantern Branch Trail Marker (Lower half)

Viewing marker from the west. Inset color image of flowers and plants. Inset color image of wooden fence and trees.

the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: "No period of my life … was devoted to play" (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Day of Freedom (about 800 feet away); Animals for Food and Farm Work (approx. 0.2 miles away); Booker's Lifelong Love of Animals (approx. 0.2 miles away); Slavery in the Tobacco Kingdom (approx. ¼ mile away); "On behalf of the United States" (approx. ¼ mile away); Plantation Trail (approx. ¼ mile away); Booker T. Washington National Monument (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Hardy.

Other markers no longer nearby. Carry Me Home (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Freed Here, At Last (was approx. ¼ mile away but has been replaced with another marker now near it); How Tobacco Farms Used Slavery (was approx. ¼ mile away but has been replaced with another marker now near it); The Landscape of Slavery (was approx. ¼ mile away but has been replaced with another marker now near it); Slavery on the Plantation

Jack-O-Lantern Branch Trail Marker image. Click for full size.

National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, August 18, 2018

3. Jack-O-Lantern Branch Trail Marker

Viewing marker from the west. Inset color map of Booker T. Washington National Monument. Inset color image of flowers and plants. Inset color image of wooden fence and trees.

(was approx. ¼ mile away but has been replaced with another marker now near it).

Also see . . .
1. Booker T. Washington National Monument, National Park Service. (Submitted on August 17, 2019.)
2. Dr. Booker Taliaferro Washington, Tuskegee University. (Submitted on August 17, 2019.)
3. Booker T. Washington National Monument, National Register of Historic Places. (Submitted on August 17, 2019.)

Tobacco Barn exterior and the bridge. image. Click for full size.

National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, August 18, 2018

4. Tobacco Barn exterior and the bridge.

Viewing barn from the north.

Tobacco Barn interior. image. Click for full size.

National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, August 18, 2018

5. Tobacco Barn interior.

Viewing barn from the west.

Booker Taliaferro Washington Memorial and exterior of Visitor Center image. Click for full size.

National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, August 18, 2018

6. Booker Taliaferro Washington Memorial and exterior of Visitor Center

Viewing marker from the north.

Credits. This page was last revised on April 27, 2026. It was originally submitted on August 17, 2019. This page has been viewed 493 times since then and 19 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on August 17, 2019. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.