Just across the border from Kentucky into Virginia, this marker points out the importance of the…read morearea here in reference to the Civil War. The marker reads, "Pound Gap probably was named for nearby grain pounding mill. Christopher Gist, returning from the Ohio River where he surveyed land for the Ohio Company, crossed the gap in 1751. During the Civil War, Pound Gap gained strategic importance as a gateway between Virginia and Kentucky. Union Col. James A. Garfield (later president) and his brigade forced the gap from the Kentucky side on 16 March 1862 after a skirmish with Confederate forces under Brig. Gen. Humphrey Marshall. Confederate Brig. Gen. John Hunt Morgan forced it from the Virginia side, capturing and destroying property in Kentucky." Long before the Civil War made it a military chokepoint, Pound Gap served as one of the few practical crossings through the tangled high ridges of Pine Mountain, guiding traders, drovers, and families moving between the upper Kentucky River valley and the Clinch River country. The route hardened into a wagon road in the nineteenth century, and its steep approach on the Kentucky side became notorious for mud, washouts, and the slow, echoing climb of freight teams. After the war, the gap's importance shifted to resource extraction, with timber crews and early coal operators using it as a corridor to reach remote hollows on both sides of the state line. In the early twentieth century, the arrival of automobiles forced state engineers to carve a more reliable roadway across the crest, replacing the old rutted track with a graded highway that finally made year‑round travel possible. Today the overlook near the gap offers a sweeping view into Virginia, a reminder that this narrow pass has always been less a boundary than a hinge between two mountain worlds. It is marker number XB-7 and it was erected in 1999 by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. [Review 75 of 2026 - 1521 in Virginia - 25265 overall]

A beautiful view and then a sober reminder of another dark time in America's past…read more The marker has the same text on both sides. It reads, "Leonard Woods, a black coal miner from Jenkins, KY, was lynched near here on the night of 29-30 Nov. 1927. Officers had arrested Woods for allegedly killing Herschel Deaton, a white man from Coeburn, VA, and had taken him to the Whitesburg, KY jail. On the day of Deaton's funeral, a white mob numbering in the hundreds broke into the jail and brought Woods close to this spot, where they hanged, shot, and burned him. No one was ever arrested. In the aftermath, at the urging of Norfolk editor Louis Jaffé, Norton's Bruce Crawford, and other journalists, VA Gov. Harry F. Byrd worked with the General Assembly early in 1928 to pass the nation's first law defining lynching as a state crime." In the months that followed, Virginia's newspapers debated not only the brutality of the killing but also the complicity of silence in both states, making the Woods case one of the rare Appalachian lynchings that forced a sustained, public reckoning with racial violence in the mountain South. It is marker number XB-27 and it was erected in 2021 by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. There is plenty of room to stop here, read the marker and think about those events. [Review 76 of 2026 - 1522 in Virginia - 25266 overall]

This marker stands on Main Street to the side of a tall brick building that used to be the local…read morehigh school. The marker is on two sides and reads, "his brick facility was built in 1923 by the United States Coal and Coke Co., then leased to Lynch Colored Common Graded School District. Students from Benham and Lynch enrolled in the high school. The first four graduates received their diplomas in 1928." "W.L. Shobe was principal, 1939-56, and was an outstanding and progressive administrator. After Professor Shobe's retirement, Coach John V. Coleman promoted to principal; school name changed to West Main High. School had many notable students and athletes." Online, there is more information... When the coal boom hit eastern Kentucky in the early-twentieth century, mining companies primarily recruited their workers from three population segments. First were local residents, who were traditionally farmers. Second were immigrants, including natives of Poland, Hungary, Yugoslavia, and Italy. Third were African Americans from the Southern states. Like the native mountaineers, they were typically farmers or had worked in the iron foundries of cities such as Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Birmingham, Alabama. Many African Americans who tired of a sharecropping existence welcomed a new change of scenery and opportunity for wage labor. [Review 13459 overall, 778 of 2020.]

Lynch is worth the drive off the beaten path!! So much history! There are several plaques giving…read morehistory and its like stepping back in time.

This marker is near the bridge over the Powell River and calls out the city of Big Stone Gap…read more It reads, "Big Stone Gap, originally known as Three Forks, received its charter, February 23, 1888. A postoffice was established April 12, 1856. In the early nineties it became the center of iron and coal development. It was the home and workshop of John Fox, Jr., novelist, and author of "Trail of the Lonesome Pine."" The town of Big Stone Gap is economically centered around the coal industry. Formerly known as "Mineral City" and "Three Forks" before the official name change in 1888. The "Big Stone Gap" refers to the valley created on the Appalachia Straight, located between the town and Appalachia. The town served as an important center for coal and iron development in the 1880s and 1890s and residents hoped its coal and iron ore deposits would make it "the Pittsburgh of the South." [Review 13456 overall, 775 of 2020.]

US-23 is a busy highway, running 61 miles across western Virginia from the Tennessee state line…read morenear Weber City north to the Kentucky state line near Pound. This section is a four lane highway and so there is plenty of room to stop and read this marker that points out you are crossing from Wise County into Lee County. The Lee County side reads, "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 Revolutionary War officer. Cumberland Gap National Historic Park lies partly in Lee County and in the states of Kentucky and Tennessee. The Cumberland Gap was the principal route through the mountains that Native Americans and early European settlers used to travel to the west and the south. The county seat is Jonesville." The Wise County side reads, "Wise County was formed in 1856 from Lee, Scott, and Russell counties. It was named for Henry Alexander Wise who was governor of Virginia from 1856 to 1860. The county seat is the town of Wise. After the Civil War the town of Wise grew and the county's industry expanded because of the growth of the railroads and the increased mining of coal in the region. Noted novelist John Fox Jr. lived in the town of Big Stone Gap here for a portion of his life and wrote the best-selling novels 'The Trail of the Lonesome Pine' and 'The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come.'" It is marker number Z-189 and it was erected in 2003 by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. [Review 78 of 2026 - 1524 in Virginia - 25268 overall]

Located adjacent to the Coal Museum, this marker recalls a local music hero who made it…read more It reads, "Carl Martin was born in Big Stone Gap in April 1906. He grew up in Southwest Virginia and moved to Knoxville, Tenn., in 1918. He performed regionally on the guitar, mandolin, bass, and violin at coal camps, dances, and in traveling shows. In 1930, Martin's string band recorded two instrumentals for Vocalion, released under the band name "Tennessee Chocolate Drops" for a black audience and the "Tennessee Trio" in the white old-time music series. Martin moved to Chicago in the 1930s, recording blues and performing with such artists as Big Bill Broonzy and Tampa Red until serving in World War II. The 1960s folk revival brought Martin before new audiences. He died in Detroit on 10 May 1979." Country music, if you're a fan: https://youtu.be/r508dnuveuU [Review 13455 overall, 774 of 2020.]

Beautiful views at the top. Be careful on the drive up, it's 5 miles of a narrow gravel road. Watch…read moreout for wasps on the tower, I ended up getting stung by one on a railing.

A former fire tower station, Birch Knob is now a public overlook. You have a 360 degree view of…read moreVirginia, Kentucky and Ohio. The view is really great. That said, had I known the condition of the dirt/rock road I would not have gone up there despite having AWD. The road started out fine but deteriorated and there were some really bad spots that were either washed out and rocky or rutted. Trying to avoid these spots sometimes led to the brush scratching against my car. Thankfully, someone had chain sawed a few trees that had fallen across the road. I had the 6 plus mile road to myself-the only nice thing about the ride up. When you get to the top there is a small area for parking and a pit toilet-which I did not use. Then you have to walk up hill path to get to the steep metal stair case that brings you to the overlook. This place is definitely not for anyone having trouble walking! At the top the view was great, however, I didn't stay long as there were biting flies and mosquitoes tormenting me! The view: five stars. The drive up 1-2 stars. Hard to put an overall score. If you have an ATV, the experience will be much, much better! There is a hiking trail there too. Didn't check it out. The place is kept pretty clean-saw very little litter during the ride up and at the top.

This marker helps us remember an important ally to students and the community. It reads,…read more "Principal of the East Benham High School, 1934-60. Matthews taught math and coached ball teams. The students were children of employees of Wisconsin Steel Coal Company. Joseph Matthews and his wife Ruth were leaders in black community and bought food, clothes, and supplies for the needy. Presented by Students, Faculty, and Friends and the Ky. African American Heritage Commission." There is unfortunately no other information I can find about Mr. Matthews [Review 13460 overall, 779 of 2020.]