Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park

The Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park is a Virginia museum, run as a state park, dedicated to preserving the history of the southwestern part of the commonwealth. It is located in Big Stone Gap, in a house built in the 1880s for former Virginia Attorney General, Rufus A. Ayers. It was designed and built by Charles A. Johnson. Construction began in 1888 and was completed in 1895.^[3]

Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Virginia Landmarks Register
Southwest Virginia Museum, September 2013
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Location	10 W 1st St N, Big Stone Gap, VA 24219
Coordinates	36°51′48″N 82°46′49″W
Area	1 acre (0.40 ha)
Built	1895 (1895)
Architect	Johnson, Charles Ralph, Sr.; Campbell, Edmund Schureman
Architectural style	Queen Anne
NRHP reference No.	02001362[1]
VLR No.	101-0002
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	November 22, 2002
Designated VLR	September 11, 2002[2]

The limestone and sandstone used on the exterior walls came from area quarries. Red oak lines the interior walls and ceilings. A small moat once surrounded the house.^[3]

The structure was acquired by the state in 1946 from a foundation managed by C. Bascom Slemp. Much of the museum's collection focuses on the coal boom of the 1890s; there are also exhibits dedicated to the history of Big Stone Gap and the surrounding area, as well as the story of the pioneers who migrated westward during the 18th century.^[4] The museum is also the location of the Southwest Virginia Walk of Fame.^[5][6][7]

The museum building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.^[1]

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Wise County, Virginia
• List of Virginia state parks
• List of Virginia state forests

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
2. "Virginia Landmarks Register". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Retrieved June 5, 2013.
3. Hensley, Clayton (July 27, 2014). "Big Stone Gap awaits its time on the big screen". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
4. J. Daniel Pezzoni (July 2002). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park" (PDF). Virginia Department of Historic Resources. and Accompanying two photos
5. "WALK OF FAME, Southwest Virginia Museum". www.swvamuseum.org. Retrieved August 16, 2018.
6. "Walk of Fame of Southwest Virginia". www.dcr.virginia.gov. Retrieved August 16, 2018.
7. Bristol Herald Courier, Joe Tennis. "People who shaped our culture honored on Walk of Fame". Retrieved August 16, 2018.

• Park webpage