For over 200 years, Abingdon has been the cultural, political, and sometimes the economic center of the entire region, and that rich history draws people to Abingdon.
2024 Events Coming Soon…
Meanwhile, Take a Look Back at 2023.
Abingdon Historic Homes Tour
Saturday, July 29, 10am-4pm Tickets: $25 Downtown Abingdon
Abingdon prides itself on its well-preserved downtown historic district and its commitment to historic preservation. Tour the interiors of a variety of the best preserved Federal, Victorian, and early 20th century houses and buildings in Virginia, all within walking distance downtown. Tour the houses of perhaps the wealthiest man in the United States in 1810, a 19th-century hotel converted into an elegant home, a structure that was once just rotting, bare timbers that has been restored to an elegant home today.
Ticket Purchasing Options:
Purchase tickets online at the link below
During the month of July at Shady Business (180 East Main St.)
Day of tour at 262 Bradley St. or Shady Business.
*Even if you have purchased a ticket online, you must pick up the printed house guide and map to the houses at Shady Business or at 262 Bradley St. the day of the tour.
Annual Festival Book Sale
Thursday, July 20, 5-7pm Preview Night for Members, $10
(Membership can be purchased that night.)
Weekdays & Saturdays, 10am-5pm Free to all
Washington County Public Library, 205 Oak Hill St.
Thousands of gently used hardcovers and paperbacks, including popular and classic fiction, crafts, cookbooks, art, reference, history, religion, military, romance, travel, collectibles, and children's books for all ages will be for sale at the annual "Festival Book Sale" sponsored by the Friends of the Washington County Public Library. Cash, debit and credit cards accepted.
Replenished hourly so plan to visit the sale often.
Sunday, July 30, 2-5pm Annual “Festival Book Sale” Bag Day – bring a bag and fill with books for only $5!
Virginia Highlands Quilt Show
Daily, 11am-4pm; Sundays 1-3pm Free
Holston Mountain Artisans, 214 Park St.
The annual Virginia Highlands Quilt Show will feature around 100 antique and contemporary quilts created by local stitchers in various patterns. There will be a special Viewer’s Choice Award for a contemporary quilt that has been made in the last five years.
Quilts, Barter Memorabilia, and Portraits:
Current Exhibits at William King Museum of Art
Monday – Saturday: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. F ree
Thursday: 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Sunday: 1 -5 p.m.
William King Museum of Art, 415 Academy Dr.
View three exhibits at the museum: “Reviving the Thread: Women’s 20th Century Quilting”--25 quilts from the mid-20th century; “Best of Barter”--props, costumes and set designs from some of Barter Theatre’s famous shows; and “Contemplating Character”--80 portraits in various mediums from the 18th century to the present.
Tour of White’s Mill
Friday, July 21, Sunday, July 23, Thursday, July 27, Sunday, July 30: 10am-5pm Free
12291 White’s Mill Road
Tour one of the last working grist mills in the region. White’s Mill has recently undergone a complete renovation to the outside of the building, including a new roof, siding, windows, and major structural work to the hurst frame and south wall. Visit the Mercantile during the visit and shop for goods by local artisans as well as White’s Mill cornmeal and grits.
Barter Theatre: A History and Backstage Tour
Friday, July 21, 11:00am-12:30pm, 5:00pm-6:30pm
Friday, July 28, 11:00am-12:30pm, 5:00pm–6:30pm
$10, Admission payable at the event, 127 W. Main St.
Learn about the history of Barter Theatre, from its beginnings during the Depression of the 1930s to its becoming the State Theatre of Virginia and one of the most respected repertory theatres in the United States. Visit the backstage area, the dressing rooms, and maybe even get to see the mysterious “Barter tunnel.”
This tour will be at least 1 1/2 to 2 hours long and includes several flights of stairs, as well as lengthy periods of standing. Tours are limited to no more than 25 people, on a first-come, first-served basis.
Abingdon Muster Grounds:
How Southwest Virginia Men Helped Win the Revolution
Friday, July 21,10am-5pm
Monday, July 24-Friday, July 28, 10am-5pm
1780 Muster Place (Colonial Road)
Learn about the importance of the Abingdon Muster Grounds in American history. A force of 400 men gathered here in September 1780 and marched over the mountains, joining other troops, and succeeded in defeating a British loyalist force under Major Patrick Ferguson in what came to be called the Battle of Kings Mountain. The battle is now seen as one of the most important turning points of the Revolutionary War. An interpretive center gives visitors an overview of the battle and houses Southwest Virginia’s premier Revolutionary War artifacts.
Abingdon Spirit Tours
Daily at 7:30pm (No tour on Sunday, July 30) $20, Cash only
Meet at 112 Court St., Wolf Hills Coffee
Join Abingdon’s “Haint Mistress” Donnamarie Emmert as she guides participants on her Abingdon Spirit Tour, now in its 27th year. Walk along historic Main Street, delighting in the town’s history and the ghost stories of businesses and homes along the way. Not recommended for children under 10, or people in wheeled conveyances. Tours will be called off in case of rain.
Late-Nite Comedy
Friday, July 21, 11pm $10 at event or in advance here:
Saturday, July 22, 11pm
Barter Theatre’s Smith Stage, 110 West Main St.
Shawn Carter will be the headliner as the Blue Ridge Comedy Club presents Late-Nite Comedy at Barter Theatre’s Smith Stage. Carter will be joined by several other comedians from the region’s flourishing comic scene. Shawn is from Boston, MA, where he was a regular in the Boston comedy scene, performing and producing shows. Carter ran the most popular open mic events in the Boston area and has also released an album that debuted at #1 on the iTunes comedy category. He was also the founder, writer, and editor for the popular website UnScene Comedy. The show is for adults only.
“Made in SWVA” Displays and Demonstrations
Saturday, July 22, 10am-6pm. Free
Southwest Virginia Cultural Center & Marketplace, 1 Heartwood Circle
Several artisans will demonstrate and display their creations and talk with the public for this one day only event. The center is the premier arts and crafts center in the region, representing 200 artisans from 19 Southwest Virginia counties. From pottery and quilting to modern paintings and glasswork, the artisans at the center are the masters of their media, carefully selected through a rigorous jurying process.
Duncansville One-Room Schoolhouse Tour
Saturday, July 22, 10am-4pm
Sunday, July 23, 2-4pm
Saturday, July 29, 10am-4pm
Sunday, July 30, 2-4pm Free
225 Stanley St. between the Coomes Center and E. B. Stanley Middle School
Tour the fully restored late 19th century schoolhouse, hosted by the Washington Cunty Retired Teachers, who give visitors a glimpse of what early education was like, including wooden desks, inkwells, slates, and a pot-bellied stove.
Sinking Spring Cemetery Tombstone Tour
Saturday, July 22, 10am Free
Saturday, July 29, 10am
Sinking Spring Cemetery, Cummings Cabin, Valley St. at Russell Rd.
Join Donnamarie Emmert, Abingdon historian and ghost-story teller, for a stroll through Abingdon’s history, this time through the Sinking Spring Cemetery. Emmert will discuss the final resting places of many people whose names are on our streets and were prominent citizens during their eras. She will focus on the iconography of the tombstones and what their tombstones say about them. Not recommended for children under 10. Wear walking shoes.
Life in the Backcountry during the Revolutionary War
Saturday & Sunday, July 22 and 23, 10am-5pm Free
Saturday & Sunday, July 29 and 30, 10am-5pm Free
1780 Muster Place (Colonial Road)
At the Abingdon Muster Grounds, experience what life was like in the Backcountry of Virginia during the Colonial era. What were the various roles of the men and women? Demonstrators will teach the skills that the colonists had to master in order to survive in the hostile environment. Revolutionary reenactors will demonstrate the mustering activities prior to the Overmountain Men’s march to the Battle of Kings Mountain.
The W. Blair Keller Interpretive Center highlights the importance of the Washington County, Virginia, militia and their participation in the Battle of Kings Mountain, 1780.
“How to Clean Tombstones” with Charlie Barnette
Saturday, July 22, 1pm Free
Sinking Spring Cemetery, Valley St. at Russell Rd.
Many people have family cemeteries that are in disrepair, with tombstones discolored or covered with lichens. This workshop will teach you the best way to clean tombstones. Do you use soap and water, a spray washer, the D2 Biological solution, or do you simply use a brush?
Charlie Barnette became interested in tombstone repair and cemetery restoration a decade ago when he was researching his own family’s cemeteries. Then, after involvement with the Historical Society of Washington County Virginia, he became committed to photographing and documenting tombstones throughout Washington County, Virginia. Today he has digitally documented over 800 cemeteries, maintains about a dozen, and has repaired and cleaned numerous tombstones.
Living History Tour of the Historic Sinking Spring Cemetery
Saturday, July 22, 5:30-7:15pm $5, cash only
Russell Rd. at Valley St.
The Historical Society of Washington County Virginia presents a Living History Tour of the Sinking Spring Cemetery. The guided group tours will walk through the picturesque burial ground, where the graves of at least nine Revolutionary War veterans, two governors of Virginia, numerous Civil War veterans are among the notable graves in the cemetery. Also buried here is Landon Boyd, a nineteenth-century African-American leader who served on the petit jury empaneled by the federal government to try former Confederate President Jefferson Davis for treason. Interpreters in period costume at selected grave sites will tell the remarkable stories of the people lying at rest.
The tours start at the cemetery entrance and last about an hour. Tickets will go on sale at 5:15pm with the first tours beginning at 5:30pm. The last tour will begin at 7:15pm. Comfortable shoes are recommended as each tour involves walking over uneven ground. Due to the uneven ground, this event is not recommended for wheelchairs. Small children may find the event boring. The tours will proceed rain or shine unless there is severe weather..
Abingdon Downtown Walking Tour
Saturday, July 22, 7:30pm CANCELLED - this time slot only, all others on schedule
Sunday, July 23, 7pm ALL TOURS FREE
Wednesday, July 26, 7pm
Saturday, July 29, 7pm CANCELLED
Sunday, July 30, 7pm
Meet at the front steps of the Washington County Courthouse
How are the salt industry, Shangri-La, Daniel Boone, Eleanor Roosevelt, and the American Southwest all connected to Abingdon? Join local historian and Abingdon native, Garrett Jackson, on this walking tour of Abingdon’s known and little-known history. Learn how a small frontier town became a center for the arts, culture, politics, and religion in Southwest Virginia, and how it is connected to locations nationally and internationally.
A Conversation with Thomas Jefferson and John Adams
Sunday, July 23, 6-8:30pm $25
Monday, July 24, 6-8:30pm
Martha Washington Inn & Spa, 150 W. Main St.
Tickets are $25, one child 12 or under admitted free with a paid adult. Tickets are available at the office of the Historical Society of Washington County Virginia, 341 W. Main St., on Eventbrite or at the door.
Two of America’s leading historical reenactors representing Thomas Jefferson (Monticello’s Bill Barker) and John Adams (Steven Holloway) meet the citizens of Abingdon as they discuss the issues of their day with the audience. It’s an unforgettable experience.
Lawyers, farmers and political theorists, champions of the Declaration of Independence and the leading statesmen of their generation–until political friction in 1800 destroyed their bond. For twelve years they never spoke to each other. Finally, retired from public life, they restored their friendship until their mutual deaths on July 4, 1826.
St. Thomas Episcopal Church Luncheons
Monday, July 24 & Wednesday, July 26: 11am–1pm
$10, adults; $6 children under 12
124 E. Main St.
Having lunch at St. Thomas Episcopal Church is a nearly 30-year tradition at the Virginia Highlands Festival. Everyone is welcome. The menu includes quiche, salad, dessert, and a beverage. Ham biscuits can be purchased for an additional $2.50. All proceeds are donated to local community organizations and ministries.
clockwise, from top:
Harvey, Goforth, Wolf
Storytelling and Music: Celebrating the Storytelling and Musical Traditions of the Appalachian Region
Monday, July 24, 7:30-9:00pm
Tickets: $10 available through the Barter Theatre’s ticketing system.
Barter Theatre’s Gilliam Stage, 127 West Main St.
The Appalachian region takes pride in its tradition of storytelling as well as its tradition of old-time and bluegrass music and ballad singing. This event will showcase three accomplished storytellers and musicians from the region.
Hannah Harvey is a nationally known Appalachian storyteller whose energy is contagious. From contemporary coal miners’ oral histories to ancient folklore, Harvey’s stories and award-winning teaching on the power of storytelling to shape individual and cultural identity has been featured everywhere from The National Storytelling Festival to Yale University’s Psychiatric Grand Rounds, and in three courses on storytelling and folklore with The Great Courses. Her strong folk heroines rise from the rich cultural heritage of her native home in mountainous northeast Tennessee. Critics have called her work “very funny” (Theatre Guide London) and “deeply moving” (Classical Voice of North Carolina).
Josh Goforth from Madison County, North Carolina, early in his life started thinking about the musical heritage and stories of his native area. After high school he was part of ETSU’s famous Bluegrass and Country Music Program, and since then has become a highly accomplished storyteller and old-time, bluegrass, and swing musician who plays close to 20 instruments. He has performed in all 50 states, throughout Europe, Asia, and Australia, gracing such stages as the Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and the Grand Ole Opry. He was nominated for a Grammy for his 2009 release with David Holt, entitled “Cutting Loose.”
Eugene Wolf is a native of Greeneville, Tennessee, who studied music and theatre at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. He was a member of Johnson City’s Road Company for many years. Wolf has been associated with Barter Theatre for 25 years as an actor and director. His favorite role is that of A.P. Carter in “Keep on the Sunny Side,” which he recently reprised during the spring season. His one-man show, “The Book Of Mamaw,” took home the United Solo/Backstage Audience Award in 2019 in NYC and has been performed around the country. He is the host of “What in the World,” a weekly radio show featuring world music for WEHC-FM.
Lecture: Great Road Style: The Decorative Arts of Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee
Monday, July 24, 7:30-8:30pm Free
Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center Auditorium
Learn about the decorative arts and material culture of Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee: the furniture, pottery, textiles, art, musical instruments, metal work, woodwork and more, made by hand in this region prior to 1940. The lecturer is Betsy White, the Director of William King Museum of Art, who oversaw an extensive survey of the material culture of the region and is the author of “Great Road Style: the Decorative Arts of Southwest Virginia & Northeast Tennessee” and “Backcountry Makers: An Artisan History of Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee.”
Lecture: Exploration to Reconstruction: Abingdon and Washington County, 1650-1880, by Dr. Garrett Jackson
Tuesday, July 25, 7:30-8:30pm. Free
Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center, 1 Partnership Circle
Abingdon and Washington County have witnessed many historical events from early Spanish exploration of the Southeast, to Washington County men helping to win the American Revolution, to the area being central to westward expansion, to providing several generals to the Civil War. An Abingdon native even became the first African-American City Council Member in the former Confederate capital, Richmond.
Local historian Dr. Garrett Jackson will present the highlights of the area’s history and how it relates to national and international events and personalities.
Children’s Concert: Cool Colonial Instruments
Wednesday, July 26, 2-3pm Free for children 12 and under; $10 for others
Smith Stage at Barter Theatre, 127 W. Main Street
Dean Shostak from Williamsburg, Virginia, will perform a concert for children, using the musical instruments which were used in Colonial America. These include several glass instruments, such as the glass violin, glass handbells, and especially the glass armonica--as well as the hurdy-gurdy and the pocket violin. Shostak has performed concerts in Colonial Williamsburg for many years and is largely responsible for the revival of interest in the glass armonica.
Crystal Concert
Wednesday, July 26, 7:30-8:30pm $10
Smith Stage at Barter Theatre, 110 W. Main Street
Dean Shostak from Williamsburg, Virginia, will perform his “Crystal Concert,” using crystal instruments that were used in Europe and Colonial American in the 18th century: the glass violin, glass handbells, and especially the glass armonica. Shostak has performed concerts in Colonial Williamsburg for many years and is largely responsible for the revival of interest in the glass armonica, which was designed by Benjamin Franklin after seeing water-filled wine glasses played in France.
Barter’s Late-Nite Cabaret
Friday, July 28, 11pm $15 at door
Saturday, July 29, 11pm
Barter Theatre’s Smith Stage, 110 West Main St.
After several years, Late-Nite Cabaret, featuring members of Barter Theatre’s acting company, is returning as part of the Virginia Highlands Festival. This is a raucous night of "anything goes" entertainment which may feature skits, monologues, some song and dance. Adults only! $15 at the door. First Come, First Served. Doors open and pre-show entertainment begins at 11pm, main show at 11:30pm. General Admission.
Civil War Living History: Fairview Farm & Homestead
Saturday, July 29, 9-11am, 1-4:30pm $5, Free for 12 and under
908 Hillman Highway
Go back in time at the Fairview Homestead to relive what life would have been like in encampments during the Civil War. Reenactors will show visitors period firearms and cannons, drills with mounted and dismounted cavalry, as well as a Civil War surgeon. Visit the cabin, blacksmith shop, and the homestead’s collection of antique farm machinery.
Food trucks and vendors will be at the site all weekend.
Abingdon Historic Homes Tour
Saturday, July 29, 10am-4pm $25
Downtown Abingdon
Abingdon prides itself on its well-preserved downtown historic district and its commitment to historic preservation. Tour the interiors of a variety of the best preserved Federal, Victorian, and early 20th century houses and buildings in Virginia, all within walking distance downtown. Tour the houses of perhaps the wealthiest man in the United States in 1810, a 19th-century hotel converted into an elegant home, a structure that was once just rotting, bare timbers that has been restored to an elegant home today. T
Ticket Purchasing Options: $25 each. Purchase tickets online at the link below, or during the month of July at Shady Business (180 East Main St.), or on the day of the tour at 262 Bradley St. or at Shady Business.
*Even if you have purchased a ticket online, you must pick up the printed house guide and map to the houses at Shady Business or at 262 Bradley St. the day of the tour.
Sawdust Festival
Saturday, July 29, 10am-4pm Free
Holston Mountain Artisans, 214 Park St.
The annual Sawdust Festival at Holston Mountain Artisans helps to celebrate the organization’s longevity, now in its 52nd year. It will feature several of the cooperative’s woodcarvers and woodworkers demonstrating their skills, as well as featuring other members demonstrating other arts and crafts.
Antiques Discovery Day
Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center, 1 Partnership Circle
Sunday, July 30 — 1:00pm - 5:00pm Antiques Discovery Day
$10 for one item, $25 for three items
Have you ever wondered what your grandmother’s favorite porcelain vase is worth? Your Uncle Fred’s Civil War memorabilia? That oil painting that you bought at a thrift shop that seems an original and is signed? A basket that was supposed to have been traded to your third-great-grandfather by a Cherokee Indian? On and on. Many people have inherited or purchased items that they would love to have identified and informally appraised.
The Virginia Highlands Festival, in conjunction with the William King Museum of Art, will conduct an Antiques Discovery Day at which a panel of regional antiques experts will try to identify your family “treasures” and give you an informal appraisal of their worth.
The event will be held on Sunday, July 30, from 1-5pm at the Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center in Abingdon.
The cost for the identification and appraisal of one item is $10, or three items for $25. Tickets will be available at the door. However, if you wish to reserve a time slot, you can buy tickets online at vahighlandsfestival.org for 1:00pm , 2:00pm, 3:00pm and 4:00pm times.
Please do not bring firearms. If you want a piece of furniture identified or appraised, take several cell phone photographs of the piece from all angles, and bring your phone to the event.
Betsy White, the Executive Director of the William King Museum of Art will be at the event to document Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee furniture, textiles, and decorative arts for the museum’s Cultural Heritage Project archive.
History was Made Here.
The Muster Grounds in west Abingdon is the site in Washington County militia (Overmountain Men) gathered and began a march over the mountains to South Carolina where the British were soundly defeated at the Battle of Kings Mountain. Some historians are now seeing that battle as the turning point of the Revolutionary War, so Abingdon takes great pride in having been central to that effort. You can tour that site daily.
Experience Living History.
Another annual activity during the Festival is a living history demonstration of life in the “Backcountry” during the Frontier and Revolutionary periods, where settlements and forts were far apart and surviving took considerable skill and hardiness. Abingdon’s Sinking Spring Cemetery is the burial ground for many of Southwest Virginia pioneers. There will be walks and a living history tour of the cemetery during the Festival.
History Preserved Through Architecture.
Abingdon has the best-preserved Colonial, Federalist, and Victorian structures in the region—and is one of the loveliest small towns in America. Fifty years ago, the Abingdon Town Council created a historic district in the downtown area, which forbids buildings from being torn down or structures being modernized without oversight from an Architectural Review Board. A tour of some of the most interesting Abingdon homes and buildings is always a highlight of the Festival.
Hear the Legends from the Locals.
Lectures on local history, tours of the backstage of the Barter Theatre, and walking tours of the town, have long been a part of the Festival. Any place with a long (and sometimes violent) history has ghosts and legends that get passed down through the centuries. There will be nightly ghost tours during the Festival.
History Preserved for New Uses.
The Virginia Creeper Trail, which was once a railroad bed, is a reminder that Washington County in the early decades of the 20th century provided more lumber to build the cities of the Northeast than any other county in the nation. There is a display of photographs in the visitors’ center at the trailhead which reflects the history of that lumber industry.
Own a Piece of History.
Finally, the Antiques Market is one of the foundational events for the festival, and its success is derived partially from an interest in history. Strong interest in preserving relics of the 18th, 19th, and now 20th centuries brings several thousand people to browse through the largest antiques market in the region. There is also an annual lecture series that highlights collecting antiques and vintage pieces. This year those lectures are on the long rifle, the Yarber Chair Company, collecting Iron Mountain Pottery, collecting mid-century modern furniture, and the variety of textiles in early Appalachia.