Marion is located in southwest Virginia along the middle fork of the Holston River and is the county seat for Smyth County. Settlers came to southwest Virginia in larger numbers in the late 18th century when the Virginia General Assembly ordered the opening of a new road, known as the Wilderness Road, over the Cumberland Mountains to Kentucky. In 1832, Smyth County was formed and an area selected for its county seat. The seat was named Marion in honor of General Francis Marion of Revolutionary War fame. When the construction of the courthouse was completed in 1834, the town quickly began to grow to serve the needs of people coming for the court days. Commerce and industry expanded at an accelerated pace after the opening of the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad in 1849. Salt works, gristmills and iron works were the primary local industry. During the Civil War, the rail system that provided transportation for the products of local industry was destroyed. The railway system was rebuilt and local industry recovered from the setbacks of the Civil War, reaching its height of development during the late 19th century. In 1881, the railroad, then owned by Atlantic, Mississippi & Ohio railroad, was sold to Norfolk & Western, which replaced the tracks with new steel rails. The new railroad introduced an era of coal and freight transportation, accelerated industrialization, and population growth. Nearby Radford also experienced similar growth because of the new railroad.
With the construction of I-81 in the 1960s, Marion's downtown started to decline. The Marion Historic District was listed in the National Register in 1992, and the following year the Marion Downtown Revitalization Association was created. This organization leads revitalization efforts in Marion, which became a designated Virginia Main Street community in 1995. The Marion Historic District is bounded by Main, Cherry, Strother, Lee, North College and College sts. The Marion Downtown Revitalization Association is located at 138 W. Main St., Suite 101. It is open from 9:00am to 5:00pm, Monday-Friday. For more information about shopping, dining and events in Marion call 540-783-4190. |
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