Boykins in Southampton County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Nat Turner's Insurrection
Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), December 27, 2025
1. Nat Turner's Insurrection Marker
Inscription.
Nat Turner's Insurrection. . On 21 Aug. 1831, enslaved preacher Nat Turner began an insurrection five miles west of here with a force that grew to about 60 men. They killed nearly 60 white people before the revolt was suppressed within two days. In retaliation, white residents and militias killed an indeterminable number of African Americans in Southampton County and beyond. Thirty-one black people were later convicted in court of supporting the revolt; 19 were hanged. Turner was captured on 30 Oct., tried and convicted, and hanged on 11 Nov. In 1832, responding to the nation's deadliest slave revolt, the Virginia General Assembly debated proposals for gradual emancipation but instead tightened laws governing black Virginians.
On 21 Aug. 1831, enslaved preacher Nat Turner began an insurrection five miles west of here with a force that grew to about 60 men. They killed nearly 60 white people before the revolt was suppressed within two days. In retaliation, white residents and militias killed an indeterminable number of African Americans in Southampton County and beyond. Thirty-one black people were later convicted in court of supporting the revolt; 19 were hanged. Turner was captured on 30 Oct., tried and convicted, and hanged on 11 Nov. In 1832, responding to the nation's deadliest slave revolt, the Virginia General Assembly debated proposals for gradual emancipation but instead tightened laws governing black Virginians.
Erected 2021 by Virginia Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number U-122.)
77° 11.337′ W. Marker is in Boykins, Virginia, in Southampton County. It is on Meherrin Road (Virginia Route 35) south of Cross Keys Road, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 29450 Meherrin Road, Boykins VA 23827, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Coastal Virginia and in the Hampton Roads Metropolitan Area. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Upper South, and in the Tidewater. Globally, it is in 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 7 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Dr. J.M. Bland (approx. 1.9 miles away); Thomaston (approx. 5½ miles away); a different marker also named "Thomaston" (approx. 5½ miles away); Nottoway Indian History (approx. 6.1 miles away); From Barter To Buffer
Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), December 27, 2025
Photographed by Blake Rogers Wilson, October 13, 2025
3. Nat Turners Insurrection Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on July 12, 2026. It was originally submitted on December 28, 2025, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 129 times since then and 100 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on December 28, 2025, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. 3. submitted on October 30, 2025, by Blake Rogers Wilson of Washington, D.c..
