Historical Markers and War Memorials in Lee County, Virginia
Jonesville is the county seat for Lee County
Adjacent to Lee County, Virginia
Scott County(36) ► Wise County(32) ► Bell County, Kentucky(56) ► Harlan County, Kentucky(34) ► Claiborne County, Tennessee(22) ► Hancock County, Tennessee(2) ►
Touch name on this list to highlight map location. Touch blue arrow, or on map, to go there.
On Orby Cantrell Highway (U.S. 23) 0.4 miles south of Baxley Lane, on the right when traveling south.
Lee County, the western-most county in
Virginia, was formed from Russell County in
1792; a part of Scott County was added
later. The county is named for Henry “Light-
Horse Harry” Lee, governor of Virginia
from 1791 to 1794 and former . . . — — Map (db m228710) HM
On Trail of the Lonesome Pine Road (Virginia Route 70) at the state line and Tennessee Route 70, on the left when traveling north on Trail of the Lonesome Pine Road.
Lee County Virginia. Area 446 square miles. Formed in 1782 from Russell, and named for Henry (Light-Horse Harry) Lee, revolutionary soldier and governor of Virginia, 1791–1794. Daniel Boone’s son was killed by indians in this . . . — — Map (db m104316) HM
On U.S. 23, 0.8 miles south of Jasper Road, on the right when traveling south.
Lee County, the western-most county in Virginia, was formed from Russell County in 1792; a part of Scott County was added later. The county is named for Henry “Light-Horse Harry” Lee, governor of Virginia from 1791 to 1794 and former American . . . — — Map (db m228717) HM
Near Pinnacle Road, on the right when traveling east. Reported missing.
The Cumberland Mountains on which you stand are only one link in a great chain of ridges and valleys that stretch 900 miles from New England to Alabama. The Appalachian wilderness was a 150-mile-wide wall to settlers looking west in the late 1700s. . . . — — Map (db m207050) HM
Near State Road 872, 0.2 miles north of U.S. 58, on the right when traveling north.
The abundance of game animals across Cumberland Gap attracted hunters to the region. Leaving home for months and sometimes years, long hunters such as Daniel Boone harvested deer, beaver, bear, elk, and other animals for their profitable pelts. . . . — — Map (db m188391) HM
Near Pinnacle Road, on the right when traveling east.
The exact spot where Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia met is not easy to see on the ridge line below. Nor was it easy to determine. In 1665 Great Britain's King Charles II declared his Virginia colony was to be separated from his Carolina colony . . . — — Map (db m35907) HM
Near Wilderness Road (U.S. 58) at Baileytown Road (Virginia Route 690).
Brig. Gen. Joseph Martin 1740-1805
Revolutionary Soldier
Henry County VA
Cherokee Agent for
Continental Congress
Virginia and North Carolina
1777- 1789
Leader
Powell’s Valley Expedition
with his brother
Maj Brice . . . — — Map (db m233525) HM WM
On Old Wilderness Road (U.S. 58), on the right when traveling west.
This pass was long the gateway to the west. On April 13, 1750, Dr. Thomas Walker reached the gap, which he named for the Duke of Cumberland, son of George II. A few years later Daniel Boone and numberless pioneers passed through it on the way to . . . — — Map (db m35777) HM
Near North Cumberland Road north of Wilderness Road (U.S. 8), on the right when traveling north.
The Wilderness Trail follows as closely as possible the 100-mile route Daniel Boone blazed in 1775 from the Tennessee-Virginia border to Cumberland Gap. Also known as the Warrior's Path or Wilderness Road, the trail opened the lands west of the . . . — — Map (db m207722) HM
Near U.S. 58 near Baileytown Road (Virginia Route 690).
Dedicated to the Memory of General Joseph Martin
Martin Station
and the more
Than 200,000
Settlers
Whose Courage
and Fortitude
helped to carve
our great nation
out of a vast
wilderness
and gave
birth to
the American
Frontier Spirit — — Map (db m233526) HM WM
Near North Cumberland Road, 0.3 miles north of Wilderness Road (U.S. 58), on the right when traveling north.
This cave system has a long history and a fascinating assortment of strange and sometimes imaginative names. Today the famous cave wears once again the first name that we know about, the name first recorded by Virginia land speculator and explorer . . . — — Map (db m207721) HM
Near Pennlyn Avenue west of Llewelyn Street, on the right when traveling west.
For travelers who had to walk, the Appalachian mountains seemed like an impenetrable wall, 600 miles long and 150 miles wide. Here at Cumberland Gap you could find both a good way in and a good way out of that rugged labyrinth of ridges, . . . — — Map (db m207278) HM
Near Pinnacle Road, on the right when traveling east.
I cannot conceive of anyone passing this way who will not avail himself of taking this trail to the top of Pinnacle Mountain...there will be many pilgrimages...[to] this historic spot... The beauty of the mountains, the spirit of the pioneer and . . . — — Map (db m35916) HM
Near North Cumberland Road, 0.3 miles north of Wilderness Road (U.S. 58), on the right when traveling north.
What a road have we passed! Certainly the worst on the whole continent, even in the best weather; yet, bad as it was, there were 400–500 crossing...whilst we were...A man who is well-mounted will scorn to complain of the roads when he sees men, . . . — — Map (db m207720) HM
Near Pennlyn Road west of Llewelyn Street, on the right when traveling west.
Just up this trail you can see a rough stone tower that once was the fiery heart of a 19th-century iron-making business. Cumberland Gap provided all the necessary ingredients—abundant waterpower from Gap Creek, iron ore from nearby mines, . . . — — Map (db m162934) HM
Near Civitan Park Road, 0.1 miles west of Sand Cave Road when traveling west.
Westbound settlers on the Wilderness Road in the late 1700s welcomed their first sight of White Rocks. This bright sandstone beacon was a well-known signpost that Cumberland Gap was only another day's walk away. But few—if any—of those travelers . . . — — Map (db m207555) HM
Near State Road 872, 0.2 miles north of U.S. 58, on the right when traveling north.
Bison and other game animals established paths through Cumberland Gap as they searched for food, salt and water in the old-growth forest.
Cumberland Gap, a notch in the Appalachian Mountains created by geologic forces, was a natural corridor . . . — — Map (db m188410) HM
On Daniel Boone Trail (Business U.S. 58) just west of Smith Hollow Road, on the right when traveling west.
A short distance north is the Ely Mound, the
best-preserved Indian mound in Virginia. It
dates to the Late Woodland-Mississippian
Period (AD 1200–1650), during which more
complex societies and practices evolved,
including chiefdoms and . . . — — Map (db m44332) HM
Near Pennlyn Avenue west of Llewelyn Street, on the right when traveling west.
From the early 1820s to the 1880s, an iron smelting business here took advantage of the rushing waters of Gap Creek. Today only the creek and part of the original 30-foot-high stone tower remain, a small part of an industrial complex of . . . — — Map (db m207276) HM
On Daniel Boone Trail (Business U.S. 58) just west of County Route 684, on the right when traveling west.
Pioneer settler of Lee County, Revolutionary soldier, juror, and surveyor. Helped select road from Martins Station to Cumberland Gap. Buried south of here at mouth of the cave. His wife was “Polly” Yearly. His great-grandson, P. M. Ball . . . — — Map (db m44235) HM
On Old Wilderness Road (Virginia Route 58) 0.2 miles north of Virginia Route 872, on the right when traveling west.
Lee County. Lee County, the western-most county in Virginia, was formed from Russell County in 1792; a part of Scott County was added later. The county is named for Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee, governor of Virginia from 1791 to 1794 and . . . — — Map (db m80237) HM
On Wilderness Road (U.S. 58) 0.3 miles west of Chadwell Station Road (County Route 684), on the right when traveling west.
Frank B. Rowlett (1908-1998) and Gene Grabeel (1920-2015) grew up in Rose Hill, seven miles northeast of here. Rowlett, working in the U.S. Army's Signal Intelligence Service, led the team that in 1940 cracked the Japanese diplomatic cipher machine . . . — — Map (db m162938) HM
Near Pinnacle Road, on the right when traveling east. Reported missing.
The town you see 1,400 feet below, the mountain on which you stand, and the Gap itself all bear the name of an English royal - the Duke of Cumberland. Prince William Augustus (1721-1765) was the third and favorite son of King George II. The popular . . . — — Map (db m207051) HM
On Pennlyn Road west of Llewelyn Street, on the right when traveling west.
For 44 months, thousands of troops—both Confederate and Federal—guarded this strategic pass and wagon road. More than a dozen fortifications and batteries on this rugged terrain made it a defense that no general was willing to assault.
. . . — — Map (db m207275) HM
On Norray Road (County Route 684) at Wilderness Road (U.S. 58), on the right when traveling east on Norray Road.
This marks the burial place of a party of white settlers who were surprised in camp and slain by Indians at daybreak, October 10, 1773. Those killed were James Boone, son of Daniel Boone; Henry Russell, son of Capt. William Russell; Robert and . . . — — Map (db m233011) HM
Near Pinnacle Road, on the right when traveling east. Reported missing.
The names of the valley, river, and mountains that stretch out before you echo the names of long-hunters and explorers of the mid-18th century. Frontiersman Ambrose Powell came here with the Loyal Land Company expedition in April 1750. Long-hunter . . . — — Map (db m207052) HM
On National Park Road, 0.3 miles north of Wilderness Road (U.S. 58), on the right when traveling north.
Near here the famed explorer Meriwether Lewis made a discovery that might have mattered more to the people of Kentucky and Tennessee than Lewis and Clark's first sighting of the Pacific Ocean in 1805. Both Captains Meriwether Lewis and William Clark . . . — — Map (db m207715) HM
Near State Road 872, 0.2 miles north of U.S. 58, on the right when traveling north.
Following game paths, American Indians journeyed through the Gap on trading and warring expeditions. For centuries, the Shawnee, Cherokee, and Iroquois fought for control of the land. In more peaceful times, they traveled through the Gap to trade . . . — — Map (db m188404) HM
Before trucks and cars in the 1900s, before steam locomotives in the 1800s, before long-hunters' packhorses in the 1700s, there was long-distance traffic crossing the Gap — on foot — going both north and south. No one knows how many centuries . . . — — Map (db m207279) HM
On Daniel Boone Trail (Business U.S. 58) near County Route 684, on the right when traveling west.
The cliffs to the north were a familiar landmark along the Wilderness Road which was blazed by Daniel Boone in March, 1775, and which was the principal route from Virginia to Kentucky. They are part of the Cumberland Mountains. — — Map (db m44325) HM
On Wilderness Road (U.S. 58) south of County Route 879, on the right when traveling north.
Passage of the Vocational Education Act in 1917 brought agricultural training to high schools across the nation. Difficult terrain and poor roadways limited its success in southwestern Virginia. Pioneering educator William H Starnes established a . . . — — Map (db m148796) HM
On County Route 622, 1.6 miles south of Main Street (U.S. 58), on the left when traveling west.
Andrew Taylor Still, physician and founder for Osteopathic medicine was born here in a log cabin on August 6, 1828. The cabin now stands on the campus of Kirksville College of Osteopathy and Surgery in Kirksville, Missouri, the first American school . . . — — Map (db m44372) HM
On Daniel Boone Trail (U.S. 58) at County Road T-662, on the right when traveling east on Daniel Boone Trail.
Andrew Taylor Still, physician and founder of osteopathy, was born two miles southwest, near the Natural Bridge of Lee County, August 6, 1828. Dr. Still served in the War Between the States. He established the first American school of osteopathy in . . . — — Map (db m36026) HM
On Main Street (U.S. 58) at Martin Street, on the right when traveling west on Main Street.
This town was established in 1794 as the county seat of Lee County and was named for Frederick Jones. Here on January 3, 1864, General William E. Jones, assisted by Colonel A.L. Pridemore, defeated a Union force, capturing the battalion. Union . . . — — Map (db m36028) HM
On Daniel Boone Trail (U.S. 58) at County Road T-652, on the right when traveling west on Daniel Boone Trail.
This camp ground was established in 1810 as a place for religious services for the Methodists of Lee County on lands given by Elkanah Wynn. In June, 1827, Rev. Abraham Still, Daniel Dickenson, George Morris, Evans Peery, Henry Thompson, Elkanah Wynn . . . — — Map (db m36025) HM
On Flanary Bridge Road (County Route 758) at Mount Moriah Road (County Route 665), on the right when traveling south on Flanary Bridge Road.
This Baptist Church, a mile southeast, is the oldest church in Lee County. It was organized in 1800; the original site was on Powell’s River, a short distance west. John Kinney was the first pastor. The church was removed to the present site in 1822. — — Map (db m44361) HM
On Seminary Church Loop (Old U.S. 58) at Cave Springs Road (County Route 622), on the left when traveling north on Seminary Church Loop.
Three men who served in Congress were
born within a one-mile radius of this point
James B. Richmond (1842–1910) was a member
of the House of Representatives from 1879
to 1881 as a Democrat. Campbell Slemp (1839–1907), a Republican, . . . — — Map (db m104896) HM
On U.S. 421, 0.3 miles west of Blueberry Hill Road, on the right when traveling east.
(obverse)
Lee County Virginia
Area 446 Square Miles
Formed in 1792 from Russell, and named for Henry (Light-Horse Harry) Lee, Revolutionary soldier and Governor of Virginia, 1791-1794. Daniel Boone's son was killed by Indians . . . — — Map (db m181401) HM
On Harrell Street at East Morgan Avenue (Alternate U.S. 58), on the left when traveling west on Harrell Street.
Pennington Gap is a mountain pass named for an early settler. The town came into existence with the extension of the Louisville and Nashville railroad, 1890. It was incorporated in 1891. Standing on a short-cut highway to eastern Kentucky, it is a . . . — — Map (db m90916) HM
On Dr. Thomas Walker Road at Clearfield Drive, on the right when traveling west on Dr. Thomas Walker Road.
Daniel Boone Trail from North Carolina through Virginia to Kentucky
Marked by the Virginia Daughters of the American Revolution — — Map (db m233553) HM
On Daniel Boone Trail (Business U.S. 58) just west of Bypass U.S. 58, on the right when traveling west.
In March 1769 Joseph Martin led a party of men to the Powell Valley, and attempted to establish a settlement nearby. By that fall they abandoned the site after conflicting with Native Americans. Martin returned here with a party of men in early 1775 . . . — — Map (db m44357) HM
On Daniel Boone Trail (U.S. 58) at County Route 702, on the right when traveling east on Daniel Boone Trail.
In this valley, on 10 Oct. 1773, Delaware, Shawnee, and Cherokee Indians killed Daniel Boone's eldest son, James, and five others in their group of eight settlers en route to Kentucky. Separated from Daniel Boone's main party, the men had set up . . . — — Map (db m35981) HM
On Daniel Boone Trail (U.S. 58) at County Route 702, on the right when traveling east on Daniel Boone Trail.
In this valley in June 1785, Fanny Dickenson Scott's husband, Archibald Scott, their four children and a young male member of the nearby Ball family were killed by members of four different Indian tribes. The rest of the Ball family escaped, but . . . — — Map (db m35982) HM
On U.S. 58/421 at Pine Drive, on the right when traveling west on U.S. 58/421.
Long hunters, so named because they left home for months at a time, pursued game beyond the limits of Euro-American settlement in the 18th century. Hunting parties of ten formed in the Holston River valley and traveled west before setting up base . . . — — Map (db m162939) HM
On Seminary Church Loop (Old U.S. 58) at Seminary Road (County Route 708), on the left when traveling north on Seminary Church Loop.
The Seminary United Methodist Church was
established in 1851 in Turkey Cove. Over
the years this structure has served as a church, a school
and a Masonic Lodge. Its first of board of trustees included W. N. G. Barron, James F
Jones, Henry C. . . . — — Map (db m104890) HM
On Seminary Road (Route 708) at Seminary Church Loop (Old U.S. 58), on the left when traveling west on Seminary Road.
This valley was one of the most fertile and prosperous in the region during the Civil War. Turkey
Cove contained farms large and small, prosperous and failing, and men who weighed their
southern-facing economic interests with their
traditional . . . — — Map (db m104895) HM
Near North Cumberland Road (Route 872) 0.3 miles north of Wilderness Road (U.S. 58), on the right when traveling north.
If roads could talk, the one you are on would have many tales to tell. From buffalo trace to Warriors Path, Wilderness Road, Dixie Highway, U.S. Highway 25E, and back again to the Wilderness Road – it has come almost full circle over the past two . . . — — Map (db m207723) HM
