Near Konnarock in Smyth County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Konnarock Training School (1924~1959)

Photographed by Tom Bosse, October 18, 2020

1. Konnarock Training School (1924~1959) Marker

Inscription. Konnarock Training School, established in 1924 by the Women's Missionary Society of the United Lutheran Church in America, educated children from isolated mountain communities. Lutheran missionary Kenneth Killinger and lay leader Laura Lu Scherer Copenhaver had advocated the school's founding as a crucial step toward meeting the spiritual, intellectual, and physical needs of the people of Appalachia. Built on land donated by the Hassinger lumber Company, Konnarock was a regional boarding school for girls but also provided day classes for local children. In 1936 a medical clinic was added to serve the surrounding community. Konnarock Training School closed in 1959.

Erected 2015 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number K 82.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Education • Religion & Religious Structures • Science & Medicine • Women. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1924.

Location. 36° 40.356′ N, 81° 36.679′ W. Marker is near Konnarock, Virginia, in Smyth County. It is at the intersection of Whitetop Road (County Route 600) and Konnarock Road (County Route 603

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), on the left when traveling west on Whitetop Road. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Troutdale VA 24378, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is 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 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: White Top Folk Festival (approx. 3.3 miles away); Whitetop (approx. 4 miles away); Green Cove Station (approx. 4.1 miles away); “Maud Bows to The Virginia Creeper” (approx. 4.1 miles away); The Offset (approx. 4.7 miles away); Old Growth Forest Remnants (approx. 4.7 miles away); Trestle Construction (approx. 4.8 miles away); “Virginia Creeper” Railroad (approx. 5.1 miles away).

Also see . . .
1. KTS Historic Photos. (Submitted on November 8, 2020, by Tom Bosse of Jefferson City, Tennessee.)
2. Konnarock Training School. (Submitted on November 8, 2020, by Tom Bosse of Jefferson City, Tennessee.)

Photographed by Tom Bosse, October 18, 2020

2. Konnarock Training School (1924~1959) Marker

Konnarock Training School (1924~1959) image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Tom Bosse, October 18, 2020

3. Konnarock Training School (1924~1959)

Credits. This page was last revised on July 9, 2021. It was originally submitted on November 8, 2020, by Tom Bosse of Jefferson City, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 893 times since then and 45 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on November 8, 2020, by Tom Bosse of Jefferson City, Tennessee. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.