A short distance from the center of Gate City, this marker stands along the business route of…read moreUS‑421, tucked close enough to the roadway that pulling over takes a bit of care. Even so, it rewards the effort. In just a few lines it sketches out how this small town took shape, how its identity shifted, and how geography and transportation shaped its name and purpose long before modern traffic filled the gap The marker has the same text on both sides. It reads, "The town was laid off in 1815 as the county seat of Scott County. The original name of Winfield, for General Winfield Scott, was changed to Estillville for Judge Benjamin Estill. In 1886, the name was changed to Gate City because of its situation in Moccasin Gap, through which the Old Wilderness Road to the west passed. It was incorporated in 1892." This is marker number K-11 and it was erected in 1941 by Virginia Conservation Commission. The shoulder may be narrow, but a brief stop offers a compact lesson in how names, landscapes, and migration routes shaped the community that still occupies this gap today. [Review 83 of 2026 - 1529 in Virginia - 25273 overall]

This marker is located with a small cluster of other interesting historical markers and there is a…read morepark, which makes it a great stop as you're passing through the Virginia mountains on US-58. There is room to park and read the markers. This one has the same text on both sides. It reads, "Moccasin Gap in Clinch Mountain links the valleys of the Holston and Clinch Rivers. Through here passed the main trail between Cherokee territory to the south and Shawnee lands in present-day Ohio. Hunters and explorers of European descent were using the gap by the mid-18th century. In 1775 Richard Henderson, a land speculator, hired Daniel Boone to clear a route to Kentucky. Boone and 30 men widened the existing Indian path to create the Wilderness Road, over which thousands of settlers later passed. The arrival of the railroad in the 1880s and the construction of U.S. highways in the 20th century ensured that Moccasin Gap would remain a significant transportation route." This is marker number K-15 and it was erected by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources in 2016. [Review 80 of 2026 - 1526 in Virginia - 25270 overall]

This marker sits within the small cluster at Gateway Park, where several signs trace the layers of…read moreScott County history from early settlement to the Civil War to the region's musical legacy. This particular marker shifts the focus to the county's earliest civic life and the improvised beginnings of its judiciary. It reads, "Scott County, named for Gen. Winfield Scott, was formed in 1814 from portions of Lee, Russell, and Washington Counties. The first court met on 14 Feb. 1815 at the house of Benjamin T. Hollins, about half a mile southeast of here. Hollins's house also served as one of the county's two polling places during its first election, held in April. A monument erected in 1915 marks the site. At an early meeting of the court, the county established a new seat now known as Gate City. The brick courthouse there, built by James Toncray, opened in 1829." Standing here, it is easy to connect that story to the present, since the current Scott County Courthouse is only a short distance away, a handsome Colonial Revival building that is well worth a visit for anyone interested in how the county's civic architecture evolved from a frontier living room to a fully realized courthouse square. [Review 88 of 2026 - 1534 in Virginia - 25278 overall]

Set among a small cluster of roadside markers on the edge of Gate City, this sign reaches farther…read moreback than most of its companions. While other markers trace the town's nineteenth century development, this one points to the fragile beginnings of European settlement in the Clinch River valley, a period when the region was still a contested borderland and the idea of a permanent community was far from secure. It anchors the story not in the town itself but in the fortified homesteads that once dotted the river, built out of necessity long before Gate City existed. The marker reads, "Blackmore's Fort stood to the northeast on the Clinch River near the mouth of Stony Creek. John Blackmore and others likely constructed the fort by 1774. It served as a defensive fortification for settlers of Euaropean descent on the frontier. During Dunmore's War in 1774, Daniel Boone commanded Blackmore's Fort as well as Moore's and Cowan's Forts on the Clinch River. During that war and the American Revolution (1775-1783). periodic conflicts between Native Americans and settlers occurred there, in part because of increased settlement. In the nearby cemetery are buried some of the early settlers to the area." It is marker number K-13 and it was erected in 2003 by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. There is parking here and as you read the marker, remember other visitors to Gate City when this valley was a frontier where geography, migration, and conflict shaped the earliest outlines of the community that would eventually grow. [Review 84 of 2026 - 1530 in Virginia - 25274 overall]

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]

Not far from the other markers that cluster along this stretch of road, this one stands out for its…read morefocus on cultural history rather than conflict or early settlement. The setting is modest but pleasant, with a small roadside park and a gazebo offering a brief place to pause, though the traffic can move quickly here and a bit of caution goes a long way. Even so, it is worth stepping out for a moment, because this marker honors a family whose influence reached far beyond Scott County and helped shape an entire genre of American music. The marker reads, "The Carter Family of Scott County, the 'First Family of Country Music,' consisted of Alvin Pleasant 'A. P.' Carter (1891-1960) who sang and composed; Sara E. Dougherty Carter (1898-1979), who sang lead and played the guitar and autoharp; and Maybelle Addington Carter (1909-1978) who sang and played the guitar and autoharp. After their first recording session in Bristol for the Victor Talking Machine Company in 1927, the trio enjoyed tremendous popularity, appearing on the radio, and recording more than 250 songs until 1943. The Carter Family incorporated unique harmony vocals into traditional tunes and original material. A. P. and Sara Carter are buried in Maces Springs, Va., near Hiltons. Maybelle Carter is buried in Hendersonville, Tenn." The Carter family's harmonies, arrangements, and musical sensibilities helped define what country music would become. And so the marker serves as a quiet reminder of how a small mountain community contributed something enduring to American culture. It is marker number KA-18 and it was erected in 2003 by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. [Review 85 of 2026 - 1531 in Virginia - 25275 overall]

Set just off US‑23 beside a small roadside park, this marker stands with a cluster of others that…read moretrace pieces of Scott County's past. Most of the signs here lean into frontier stories or early settlement, so this one feels more contemporary by comparison, pointing to an educational institution that shaped generations and then quietly disappeared from the landscape. The school itself is long gone, but the marker gives it a presence again, asking you to imagine a two‑room building that once carried the weight of an entire community's hopes. The same text on both sides, it reads, "Prospect School, for six decades Scott County's only public school for African Americans, moved into a new building 1.5 miles northwest of here ca. 1919. Contributions for the two-room school came from the black community ($1,200), the county ($600), and the Julius Rosenwald Fund ($500). This fund, created by the president of Sears, Roebuck, and Co. and inspired by the work of Booker T. Washington, helped build more than 5,000 schools for black children in the South and supported two additions to Prospect in the 1920s. The school offered grades 1-7; black students who sought further education had to leave the county. Prospect School closed in 1965 with desegregation and was later demolished." It is marker number KA-22 and it was erected in 2020 by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. The setting is simple but accessible, with enough space to pull over, step out, and take a moment with a story that deserves more than a passing glance. [Review 81 of 2026 - 1527 in Virginia - 25271 overall]

This marker in Gateway Park offers a compact but engaging portrait of John P. McConnell, a Scott…read moreCounty native whose career stretched far beyond these mountains. It has the same text on both sides. It reads, "John P. McConnell, educator, was born about eight miles north of here. He served as acting president of Milligan College in Tennessee and later taught history and economics at Emory and Henry College. An advocate of higher education for women, McConnell became the founding president of the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Radford in 1911. He hired faculty and designed curricula before students arrived in 1913. The school, later known as Radford University, became coeducational in 1972. McConnell was president of the Southern Educational Society, the Anti-Saloon League of Virginia, and Southwest Virginia, Inc., which promoted economic development." It is marker number K-14 and it was erected in 2016 by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. There is a small park here and it's a worthwhile stop for anyone interested in how local figures helped build the educational and economic framework of Southwest Virginia. [Review 87 of 2026 - 1533 in Virginia - 25277 overall]