Early Monday morning in Bland meant that the courthouse was still waking up, which made it easy to…read moretake in the 1923 Bland County Courthouse without a single interruption. It's a solid Classical Revival design by renowned architect Frank P. Milburn, the same guy responsible for a long list of early twentieth century courthouses across Virginia and the Carolinas, and his familiar symmetry and brick‑and‑stone detailing show up clearly here. Bland County takes its name from Richard Bland, the Virginia statesman and early advocate for colonial rights. The county's most widely known modern resident is probably Olympian and world champion wrestler Dennis Hall, who grew up here. Walking the grounds before the offices opened meant that I had time to look over the usual Confederate memorial statue, the local history marker and the Bland County Courthouse Bell on display, all of which give the lawn a little extra texture even if none of it rises to statewide fame. The courthouse has handled the routine mix of local criminal and civil matters over the decades but nothing that ever turned into a headline case. Parking was easy at that hour and the quiet made the stop feel calm and straightforward, a quick look at a well‑kept rural courthouse that still anchors its small mountain county. [Review 901 of 2026 - 1551 in Virginia - 26082 overall]

This marker is on the grounds of the Mercer County Courthouse, where you will be very challenged to…read morefind parking during the week. It points out a local citizen who fought in the Revolutionary War and helped settle Princeton. It has the same text on both sides. It reads, "Richard Blankenship, Revolutionary War Soldier, was a member of Major James Robertson's company of New River Valley volunteers who fought at the Battle of Point Pleasant, October 10, 1774. He lived on a 33 acre farm 8 mi. southeast, at Ingleside, Mercer Co. and was recorded as an octogenarian in 1840 census. He was early settler, soldier and progenitor of many people in this area." the marker was erected in 1979 by the West Virginia Department of Culture and History. Richard Blankenship was born in Bedford County, Virginia around 1765 and came from a large frontier family whose descendants later spread throughout Mercer and Tazewell Counties. He married Rebecca Ann Dillon in 1786 and the couple raised an unusually large family, with seventeen children whose lines became deeply rooted in the Princeton area. By the early nineteenth century he was established in Mercer County, appearing in local records as a small‑acreage farmer tied to the Bluestone Valley community. His long life, early settlement, and extensive family network made him one of the foundational figures in the region's population history. [Review 906 of 2026 - 218 in West Virginia - 26087 overall]

Great rest stop and visitor center. Clean bathrooms, well stocked. If you need a snack vending…read moremachines available. Nice resting point. There are plenty of photo ops.

Welcome to Virginia! Virginia is for Lovers! The restrooms were very clean, informative signage…read moreavailable to learn more about the history and heritage of the location. Pet friendly as well. Separate car and truck parking. Nice landscaping. It's well worth the stop!

The more northern of the two tunnels on I-77 between Charlotte and Cleveland (yeah, the highway…read morestarts in Columbia and it has several other cities along the way but I'm uncaring about those facts), the East River Mountain Tunnel goes under the border of West Virginia and Virginia. At 5,412 feel long, it joins the cities of Bluefield WV and Rocky Gap VA. It took five years to build and was completed in 1974. It has saved travelers the difficult journey of going up and down the mountain on US-52. If you're headed northbound, exit one is immediately after the end of the tunnel. If your eyes take more than a moment to adjust from darkness to light, you may have some trouble. There is no toll to use the tunnel. [Review 20387 overall - 1446 in Virginia - 1365 of 2023.]

A tunnel that runs literally through East River Mountain, instead of a road and us literally…read moredriving up the mountain. Since the elevation for the mountain is more than 3,000 feet, the logical solution was a tunnel through both mountains, so they built this tunnel for us to drive through the mountain. There are actually two of these similar tunnels along I77, but this particular tunnel starts in Virginia and ends in West Virginia, or vice versa. The state line falls almost exactly across the midpoint of the tunnel, with 51% of the tunnel residing in West Virginia and the remaining 49% on the Virginia side. Because of that, both states antied up the 40 million for the project, that started in 1969 and completed in 1974.

Just north of Peterstown, this marker points out a piece of Colonial-era history. Traveling through…read morethe South, most markers denote Civil War events so this was a pleasant change to see something from a different era. It has the same text on both sides, reading "This defense, erected, 1775, by Captin Michael Woods, was of importance during Lord Dunmoore's War. Troops from here were engaged in the Battle of Point Pleasant next year and later were with George Rogers Clark." The marker was erected in 1979 by the West Virginia Department of Culture and History. There is room to stop to read the marker. The fort was a frontier stockade built in 1773 by Captain Michael Woods during a time of rising tensions between settlers and Native American tribes. It was strategically located along Rich Creek, marking the edge of white settlement in Monroe County at the time, with no other established communities between Woods' Fort and the mouth of East River in 1779. No physical remnants are remaining. [Review 577 of 2025 - 161 in West Virginia - 24138 overall]

This marker is located on the traffic circle in front of the Mercer County Courthouse in downtown…read morePrinceton and points out some of the Civil War history that happened here. It has the same text on both sides. It reads, "Scene of several actions, May 1862, between Federal troops from General Cox's army and Confederate forces under Jenifer and Wharton. When the Confederates abandoned their camp here, the town was set on fire and partially burned." The marker was erected by the West Virginia Division of Culture & History. Princeton saw several days of back‑and‑forth skirmishing in 1862 because the town sat on a key route between the Kanawha Valley and the Virginia rail lines, so both Union and Confederate forces kept probing the area. The burning of the town left long‑term scars, forcing residents to rebuild almost entirely after the war and shaping the layout that developed in the decades that followed. There is very limited parking in the area, especially during the business day when the courthouse is open. [Review 905 of 2026 - 217 in West Virginia - 26086 overall]

While the nearby Indian Creek Covered Bridge is closed to vehicles, the Laurel Creek Covered Bridge…read moreis actually open for traffic. It was pleasant to be able to drive across this bridge! The Laurel Creek Covered Bridge was completed in 1911 and spans Laurel Creek, carrying County Route 23/4 across Laurel Creek. The bridge is a Queenpost truss design , with original barn-red siding and when it was built, a chestnut shake roof that was later replaced with the galvanized metal you see today. It is just 34 feet, 6 inches long and 13 feet, 2 1/2 inches wide which makes it the shortest covered bridge in West Virginia. [Review 540 of 2025 - 130 in West Virginia - 24101 overall]

Convenient location, plenty of various sizes of mailboxes to rent., all of the usual mailing…read moreservices are provided. Suggestion: I would like to see access to rented mailboxes become available 24 hours, seven days a week again. Locking up the main doors for the entire weekend is unacceptable. Especially when some customers only have Sundays available to pick up their mail.