•1930 – J. D. Bassett holds a “house divided” meeting and forms Bassett Furniture Industries, Inc., an umbrella combination of all three companies (J. D. Bassett Manufacturing and W. M. Bassett and Bassett Furniture Companies).
•1930 – Tom . . . — — Map (db m315932) HM
•1960 – Gravely Furniture launches its first grandmother clock, a shorter version of the grandfather clock. The clock was known as No. 122, the Lady Norfolk. Priced at under $200, the clock becomes an overnight success.
•1960 – J. Clyde . . . — — Map (db m315934) HM
•1991 – American of Martinsville exits the residential furniture market to concentrate solely on hospitality, contract and institutional businesses.
•1993 – Bassett opens its 200th Bassett Furniture Gallery in New Bedford, Mass.
•1997 – J. . . . — — Map (db m315935) HM
Martinsville named in his honor
Served as Indian agent for VA, NC, GA and Continental Congress, 1777 - 1789
First General Officer appointed from Henry County, VA, 12th Brigade, VA militia 1793. Served in VA, NC, and GA . . . — — Map (db m172169) HM WM
As with other rail lines, the Dick & Willie made posssible for subsistence farmers in Appalachia to earn much-needed cash selling chestnuts to buyers in cities throughout the east. Early 20th century newspapers often showed train cars, overflowing . . . — — Map (db m205786) HM
The Dick & Willie was the first railroad to Henry County and was in full operation by 1884.
Originally, the railroad was a narrow gauge, but within a decade, the textile mills in the hamlets of present-day Eden were thriving. The narrow gauge . . . — — Map (db m205813) HM
Named for “Old Tassel”, beloved statesman and chief of the Overhill Cherokee, whose name became synonymous with integrity and truth. Friend of General Joseph Martin and advocate of peace, he was murdered in 1788 along with another chief at Chilhowee . . . — — Map (db m315907) HM
Christ Church Parish House
has been placed on the
National Register
of Historic Places
by the
United States Department of the Interior
and dedicated as a
Virginia Historic Landmark
by the
Virginia Board of Historic . . . — — Map (db m315913) HM
The Dick & Willie Railway linked the rural counties with the urban worlds of Martinsville and Danville in a new and exciting way. "Dick & Willie" was the popular name for the Danville & Western Railway. At a time when most travel was made by horse, . . . — — Map (db m205817) HM
Local historians remember that the train earned its nickname from two early train workers: Richard Hundley and William Martin. The Dick & Willie was vital to the people, communities and industries it linked together — a partner and an important . . . — — Map (db m205816) HM
The nearby structure, commonly known as a silo, was in reality an incinerator for the DeShazo Lumber Company taht was located on this site.
George Napier "Nappy" DeShazo [1901-1991] began his sawmill job in 1922 as a bookkeeper with G.M. . . . — — Map (db m205819) HM
Henry County opened a new Dry Bridge School just south of here in 1928 after the School Improvement League, an organization of African Americans living east of Martinsville, campaigned under the leadership of the Rev. W. F. Geter to replace the . . . — — Map (db m205807) HM
Since the late 19th century, Fayette Street has
been a gateway to the business, social, and
Cultural life of African Americans here. Institutions such as Mt. Zion A.M.E. Church (founded
in 1870), St. Mary’s Hospital (1926-1952), . . . — — Map (db m104550) HM
A few men changed the shape of Martinsville-Henry County forever. On the heels of the Civil War and with the decline of the planter class, they had the dream of making furniture. It was through their integrity and perseverance that the area’s . . . — — Map (db m315936) HM
Gloria Victis
1861-1865
Henry honors her heroes
Defeated yet without scar
Erected by Mildred Lee Chapter.
No. 74, U.D.C.,
To the true Confederate soldiers of Henry — — Map (db m66089) WM
In honor of those citizens of Martinsville and Henry County who courageously participated in these wars
American Revolution 1776-1789
War of 1812 1812-1814
Civil War 1861-1865
Spanish American War 1898
World War I 1917-1918
World War . . . — — Map (db m66090) WM
Martinsville's oldest public cemetery was established as a part of First Episcopal Church on land given by Mr. Marshall Hairston in 1847. The original location was on the corner of Moss and Church Streets. Around 1885 the church cemetery was . . . — — Map (db m172180) HM
Named for Joseph Martin, pioneer who settled here in 1773. In 1793 the courthouse of Henry County was moved here and the town was established, Patric Henry, for whom the county was named, lived near here once. In 1865, Stoneman, moving south to join . . . — — Map (db m64658) HM
This siren was originally located on top of the Martinsville Fire Department’s Company 2 Station in 1948 and remained there until its removal in 2020.
The siren was originally utilized to notify volunteers to respond to the Fire Station when a . . . — — Map (db m315908) HM
Here in 1949, six all-white, all-male juries convicted seven black men of the rape of a white woman. All seven men were sentenced to death. On appeal, NAACP attorneys submitted the first petition to the U.S. Supreme Court arguing that capital . . . — — Map (db m302144) HM
A Rich Heritage in Textiles Began Just Across the Street
The building directly across from you, now known as the Clocktower Building, was once home to one of Martinsville's early textile mills—Martinsville Cotton Mill. Rucker & Whitten Plug . . . — — Map (db m205820) HM
On March 24, 1865, Union Gen. George Stoneman led 6,000 cavalrymen from Tennessee into southwestern Virginia and western North Carolina to disrupt the Confederate supply line by destroying sections of the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad, . . . — — Map (db m66013) HM
The Town of Martinsville chartered Oakwood Cemetery in 1883 and deeded it to the Martinsville Cemetery Association in 1887. Buried here are about 80 Confederates soldiers, at least one Union soldier, and veterans of World Wars I and II. Also . . . — — Map (db m172170) HM
The Dick and Willie Trail is 4.5 miles in length and runs along a portion of the former Danville and Western Railroad track. Once part of the Norfolk Southern Railroad, the Danville and Western was affectionately nicknamed the "Dick and Willie." . . . — — Map (db m205783) HM
The Dick and Willie Trail is 4.5 miles in length and runs along a portion of the former Danville and Western Railroad track. Once part of the Norfolk Southern Railroad, the Danville and Western was affectionately nicknamed the "Dick and Willie." . . . — — Map (db m205799) HM
The Dick and Willie Trail is 4.5 miles in length and runs along a portion of the former Danville and Western Railroad track. Once part of the Norfolk Southern Railroad, the Danville and Western was affectionately nicknamed the "Dick and Willie." . . . — — Map (db m205814) HM
The Dick and Willie Trail is 4.5 miles in length and runs along a portion of the former Danville and Western Railroad track. Once part of the Norfolk Southern Railroad, the Danville and Western was affectionately nicknamed the "Dick and Willie." . . . — — Map (db m205815) HM
•1902 – Bassett Furniture Company was formed from its roots as a sawmill and once produced railroad ties. Company founder J.D. Bassett, Sr. had been selling lumber to furniture manufacturers in Jamestown, N.Y., and Grand Rapids, Mich., when he . . . — — Map (db m315929) HM
This beautiful Queen Anne residence was built in 1896 by John W. Carter as a wedding present for his young bride, Miss Mary Kizzah Drewery, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Henry M. Drewery.
Referred to as the “Grey Lady”, the dwelling is a textbook . . . — — Map (db m315910) HM
The Little Post Office
1893
has been placed on the
National Register
of Historic Places
by the
United States Department of the Interior
1997
The Little Post Office
1893
has been dedicated as a
Virginia Historic . . . — — Map (db m315912) HM
Southerners share a love of celebrations, particulary at the end of harvest time. During the fall the Dick & Willie ran special trains that transported local residents to the fairs held in Danville, Leaksville (now part of Eden, N.C.), Martinsville . . . — — Map (db m205791) HM
What plants are being grown by VMNH archaeology?
Zea mays L. 'Tutelo Strawberry' - Tutelo Strawberry Corn - Family Poaceae
Phaseolus vulgaris L. 'Hidatsa Red Indian' - Hidatsa Red Indian Bean - Family Fabaceae
Cucurbita pepo L. . . . — — Map (db m315922) HM
