Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 09/20/2018
NRHP Listing Date 03/13/2019
NRHP Reference Number SG100003482
Wise County’s Big Stone Gap Historic District is nestled in the Allegheny Mountains of western Virginia. The “Big Stone Gap” refers to the broadening of the Powell River Valley between Stone Mountain, Little Stone Mountain, and Wallens Ridge. The district comprises the historic business core of Big Stone Gap, a boomtown that flourished from the late-19th century through the mid-20th century as the hub for emerging coal and iron-ore industries in Wise County. Unlike many towns in the region that arose unplanned, Big Stone Gap was laid out on a grid plan by the Big Stone Gap Improvement Company in the 1880s. The Stonega Coke and Coal Company, a pioneer in coal production in Southwest Virginia and the largest producer in its territory, built its headquarters in Big Stone Gap in 1908, further elevating the town’s importance. Coal extraction continued as the major local industry throughout the mid-20th century, stimulating the town’s commercial development in support of the growing industry and its employees. The Big Stone Gap’s historic district includes architecturally significant individual buildings, such as the 1912 Renaissance Revival-style Slemp Federal Building and the 1940 Moderne-style Tri-State Coach Bus Terminal, and vernacular commercial buildings constructed from 1900 to the mid-20th century, clustered mostly within a four-block area. Because a 1908 fire destroyed many buildings associated with the town’s boom period in the late 1800s, the ten-acre district’s oldest building dates to around 1900.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated: November 18, 2021
