Nomination Form
The coal industry has had a profound impact on Virginia’s economy, especially that of Tazewell County and the rest of Southwest Virginia. A leading symbol of this enterprise is the Pocahontas Mine No. 1, the first mine to tap the great Pocahontas-Flat Top Coal Field of 1882. The high quality of the coal in this huge seam created a demand for Pocahontas coal, and ushered in a long period of regional prosperity. A rail spur linked the mine with the Norfolk and Western Railroad by March 1883, and the shipyards and commercial areas of Norfolk and Newport News grew from coal exporting. At the same time, the town of Pocahontas grew up near the mine and became a regional commercial center as well as a “company town” housing the coal miners. The Pocahontas Mine No. 1 closed in 1955 after producing forty-four million tons, and has since been made a public attraction.
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
Programs
DHR has secured permanent legal protection for over 700 historic places - including 15,000 acres of battlefield lands
DHR has erected 2,532 highway markers in every county and city across Virginia
DHR has registered more than 3,317 individual resources and 613 historic districts
DHR has engaged over 450 students in 3 highway marker contests
DHR has stimulated more than $4.2 billion dollars in private investments related to historic tax credit incentives, revitalizing communities of all sizes throughout Virginia
