When Europe went to war in August of 1914 the residents of Fort Valley Virginia could have scarcely realized how important their small community would become to the US economy. During the late 1800s a manganese mine had operated in Fort Valley to…

This house is probably one of the oldest in Mt. Jackson. It was constructed around 1800 by Aaron Allen, a descendant of Benjamin Allen the original European owner of the land on which Mt. Jackson stands today. In 1849 it and several other houses…

Situated on the southwest corner of Congress Street and Lee Street, the Elon Henkel House, or Henkel Press Building is a familiar landmark in New Market. While the house is most notably known for being owned by Elon Henkel, his grandfather,…

In 1905 Charles D. Zirkle, who was on his deathbed, donated 45 acres of his property to the Virginia Conference of Seven Day Adventist to build a school. Two years later construction began on the main building of what was then the New Market Academy.…

In 1907 the Strasburg Textile Manufacturing Company opened on this site. The company manufactured various finished silk products. In 1934 Charles Platt and his son Nathan Platt purchased the company and focused on producing silk casket linings using…

The first school in the St. Luke community dates to before 1841. That year the school building, and a parcel of land, was deeded to a group of school trustees who agreed to use the building and land as a Union Church and school. This original…