Roanoke Street (Stop O)

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

Points of interest on Roanoke include the Croy House at 307 East Roanoke Street, one of the oldest (if not the oldest) homes in Blacksburg that is still standing on its original site. In 1840, Andy Croy purchased the property from a Miller family as a wedding present for his daughter, Rose Ann Croy, and son-in-law William H. Dawson. The street was widened in 1913, leaving the front door of the house to open onto the sidewalk.

Images

A view of downtown Blacksburg

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

Since its establishment in 1798, Blacksburg has grown well beyond its original limits. The original town of Blacksburg occupied sixteen square blocks, each made up of four lots. These lots are bounded by Jackson Street on the northwest side, Wharton Street on the northeast, Draper Road on the southwest, and Clay Street on the southeast. Within the square are several main thoroughfares including Main Street, Church Street, Roanoke, and Lee. Many of the streets terminate in T-intersections (nine in total), which help give an idea of the limits of the original town.

Sources

Allen, Nadine. "Georgia Croy House House is Oldest in Blacksburg on Original Site." The News Messenger Bicentennial Edition (Blacksburg), July 1, 1976, 8-H. http://spec.lib.vt.edu/bicent/maps/dunay/gcroy.htm.

"Blacksburg Historic District Contributing Structures List". Town of Blacksburg, VA.

http://www.Blacksburg.gov/home/showdocument?id=2089.

"The Sixteen Squares of Blacksburg". YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zB1zBWt4KVw, published by the Town of Blacksburg, VA, http://tobweb.org/WalkingTour/.

"National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Blacksburg Historic District". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. December 1990. Accessed February 28, 2017.

http://www.dhr.Virginia.gov/registers/Counties/Montgomery/150-0108_Blacksburg_Historic_District_1991...

Downtown Blacksburg; image by Smash the Iron Cage - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39867063.