Skip to main content

Small Towns of Virginia Series - Pound

Downtown Pound, Virginia
Just south of the Kentucky State Line along US 23 is the Town of Pound.  This Mountain Empire town of nearly 1,000 is a sample of many of the small towns in this region - tucked away within the folds of the numerous hills and mountains of the area and not a straight road to be found.

The Pound Hardware & Furniture Company building is now home to a hodgepodge of different shops.
Pound sits along Virginia's Crooked Road - a meandering journey through Southwest Virginia highlighting and celebrating the regions connection to Americana and Bluegrass Music.  Pound celebrates its piece of Bluegrass Heritage 7:00 pm every Thursday night at the Pound Town Hall Building.  "Pickin' in the Pound" features local bluegrass musicians and southwest Virginia hospitality.

Until 2011, Pound was home to the Pound High School Wildcats.  That year, Wise County consolidated Pound HS with Wise's J.J. Kelly High School to form Central High School in Norton.  The new Central High School would open in 2013.  From my visit there in 2008, Pound was very proud of their high school.

This local store displays Pound High School Wildcat Pride

Pound sits along the Pound River and is served by US 23 and Virginia Route 83.  The planned Coalfields Expressway - which will run from Beckley, WV southwest to Pound - will have its southern terminus here.  There is no timetable for completion for this road.

The Pixie Drive-In was for sale by owner in 2008; however, it is still there and under new ownership.
Site Navigation:

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Former US Route 50 and the Pioneer Route Lincoln Highway on Johnson's Pass Road

Johnson's Pass Road is one of the oldest highway corridors in California.  Johnson's Pass was part of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road as it was completed during 1856 over the Sierra Nevada.  The pass would later be incorporated into the Pioneer Branch of the Lincoln Highway in 1913 and US Route 50 in 1926.  Johnson's Pass Road would be bypassed by a new alignment of US Route 50 over Echo Summit in 1938.  A replacement of the Meyers Grade east of Johnson's Pass would be opened to traffic in 1947.   Johnson's Pass Road remains accessible to traffic and is still signed by the Lincoln Highway Association.  Pictured as the blog cover is the view from the top of Johnson's Pass Road overlooking modern US Route 50 and Lake Tahoe.   Part 1; the history of Johnson's Pass Much of the history of what become the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road is discussed in the  September 1950 California Highways & Public Works  during its Centennial Edition.  The or...

Former US Route 50 and the South Lincoln Highway from Folsom east to Placerville

The corridor of Folsom of Sacramento County east to Placerville of El Dorado County has been a long established corridor of overland travel dating back to the California Gold Rush.  The Folsom-Placerville corridor was once part of the path of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road which became the first California State Highway and later the South Lincoln Highway.  In time the South Lincoln Highway's surface alignment was inherited by US Route 50.  The Folsom-Placerville corridor also includes the communities of; Clarksville, Shingle Springs and El Dorado. Part 1; the history of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road, South Lincoln Highway and US Route 50 through Folsom-Placerville Folsom is located on the American River/Lake Natoma of eastern Sacramento County.  That lands now occupied by the City of Folsom were part of Rancho Rio de los Americanos prior to the finding of gold at Sutter's Mill during 1848.  During the California Gold Rush the lands of Rancho Rio de los Americanos were p...

Angus L. Macdonald Bridge

At 1.3 kilometers (or about 0.84 miles) in length, the Angus L. Macdonald Bridge is one of two bridges crossing over the Halifax Harbour between Halifax, Nova Scotia and Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, with the other bridge being the A. Murray Mackay Bridge . Opened in 1955 and named after former Nova Scotia Premier and Canadian Minister of Defense for Naval Services Angus L. Macdonald, the Macdonald Bridge was the first bridge that crossed Halifax Harbour that was opened to traffic. The Macdonald Bridge was also the subject of the Big Lift, which was only the second time in history that the span of a suspension bridge were replaced while the bridge was open to traffic. Planning began in 2010 for the Big Lift, while construction took place between 2015 and 2017. Similar work occurred on the Lion's Gate Bridge in Vancouver, British Columbia before the project took place on the Macdonald Bridge. At this time, much of the bridge infrastructure is new, leaving only the towers, main cables and...