Duffield in Scott County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

The Crooked Road

Virginia's Heritage Music Trail

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Duffield

The Crooked Road side of marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, August 17, 2025

1. The Crooked Road side of marker

Inscription. The Crooked Road
Virginia's Heritage Music Trail From the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Coalfields region, southwest Virginia is blessed with historic and contemporary music venues, musicians, and fretted instrument makers. Historically isolated, the region retained its strong musical legacy by passing traditions down through musical families to an appreciative community.

Old time mountain music, bluegrass, and gospel can be enjoyed all year long and several museums are devoted to showcasing the area's rich musical heritage.

The Crooked Road winds through the ruggedly beautiful Appalachian Mountains and leads you to the major hotspots of old time mountain music, country music, and bluegrass. Alive and kickin' for today's fans, these venues preserve and celebrate musical traditions passed down through generations. Annual festivals, weekly concerts, radio shows, and jam sessions ring out to large audiences and intimate gatherings. Please visit the Crooked Road website to plan your trip to coincide with the current entertainment events.

Duffield Virginia's traditional songs and melodies were carried westward along

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the Wilderness Road spreading north to Illinois and other areas of the Midwest, and west to Texas and California. Civil War soldiers of both sides learned the song "Cumberland Gap” as well as other melodies of the upland south, and they took this traditional music to their homes. Radio and recordings made it possible for Virginia's traditional musicians to be heard across the nation beginning in the 1920s. Groups such as the Carter Family, the Powers Family, and the Stanley Brothers have inspired keepers of tradition in many distant places.

Duffield was an important way station on the South Atlantic & Ohio Railroad, which evolved to become a major coal-hauling route for today's Norfolk Southern. Huge "Mallet” steam locomotives pulled and pushed the coal trains over the steep grades. A famous Carter Family number—"The Lonesome Pine Special"—memorialized the passenger train of that name, which stopped at Duffield each day until it was discontinued in 1939. The surrounding area is rich in natural beauty and recreational opportunities with easy access to Natural Tunnel State Park and the Jefferson National Forest.

The Daniel Boone

Duffield side of marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, August 17, 2025

2. Duffield side of marker

Wilderness Trail follows U.S. Highway 58 through scenic Lee County passing by Wilderness Road State Park and through Cumberland Gap National Historical Park to the Kentucky state line.

Erected by Virginia's Heritage Music Trail.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Arts, Letters, Music • Entertainment • Railroads & Streetcars • Roads & Vehicles. In addition, it is included in the The Crooked Road: Virginia’s Heritage Music Trail series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1939.

Location. 36° 42.735′ N, 82° 47.563′ W. Marker is in Duffield, Virginia, in Scott County. It can be reached from Mechanic Street (State Road T 864) north of Natural Tunnel Parkway (State Road 871), on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 160 Mechanic Street, Duffield VA 24244, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Tri-Cities Area

and in Southwest Virginia.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally,

Full view The Crooked Road / Duffield Marker blocked by brush overgrowth image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, August 17, 2025

3. Full view The Crooked Road / Duffield Marker blocked by brush overgrowth

it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the original Cherokee Nation,

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 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Daniel Boone Trail (within shouting distance of this marker); Lost No Longer! (approx. ¾ mile away); a different marker also named Daniel Boone Trail (approx. ¾ mile away); Carter’s Fort (approx. 2.3 miles away); a different marker also named Carter’s Fort (approx. 2½ miles away); The Natural Tunnel Route (approx. 2.8 miles away); Lee County / Scott County (approx. 3.7 miles away); Scott County / Lee County (approx. 4.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Duffield.

More about this marker. The marker is mostly hidden by brush overgrowth near the northeast corner of the park.

Also see . . . The Crooked Road - Virginia’s Heritage Music Trail. (Submitted on September 7, 2025.)

The Crooked Road / Duffield Marker in the brush image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, August 17, 2025

4. The Crooked Road / Duffield Marker in the brush

Parking lot on Mechanic Street to the right

Marker is in the brush to the right. Park overlooks US 23S/ US 58 intersection image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, August 17, 2025

5. Marker is in the brush to the right. Park overlooks US 23S/ US 58 intersection

Credits. This page was last revised on July 7, 2026. It was originally submitted on September 1, 2025, by Mark Parker of Hickory, North Carolina. This page has been viewed 122 times since then and 44 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on September 1, 2025, by Mark Parker of Hickory, North Carolina. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.

The Crooked Road

Virginia's Heritage Music Trail

⎯⎯⎯Duffield

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Duffield