Conspicuously located alongside the road between the town of Broadway and the city of Harrisonburg, in Rockingham County, the Baxter House displays Virginia log construction at its finest. The western half of the double-pen structure has full-dovetai... Read More

Originally owned by Jacob Strayer, the 165-acre Bogata farm complex marks the rolling country­side of southeastern Rockingham County. First settled in the mid-1800s, Bogata became a prosperous antebellum Shenandoah Valley plantation. The circa 1847 m... Read More

Bon Air, also known as Bear Lithia, was built around 1870 for Adam and Susan Bear. The house is a combination of Italianate and Greek Revival styles, and sits next to Bear Lithia Springs, a water source acquired by the Bear family in 1791 but current... Read More

This historic landmark was built ca. 1800 on Linville Creek by pioneer Abraham Breneman, who migrated from Pennsylvania in 1770. It is a four-story brick water-powered mill that is the only pre-Civil War mill remaining in Rockingham County with all t... Read More

Bridgewater, in Rockingham County, is one of the largest and best-preserved of a string of towns located along the Shenandoah Valley's former Harrisonburg—Warm Springs Turnpike. It began as a river port for neighboring farms to float their goods down... Read More

This farm was always referred to as “Cave Hill Farm” because the cave was such a great place for good, clean water right out of the ground. It has withstood slavery, droughts, and dust storms in the early 1900s, financial stress in the 1930's and... Read More

The Battle of Cross Keys was one of the culminating battles of Stonewall Jackson's 1862 Valley Campaign. This Confederate victory, along with the Battle of Port Republic, held off the Union armies in the Valley and allowed Jackson to join Robert E. L... Read More

Built ca. 1749 for Daniel Harrison, one of the area's earliest settlers, this rugged Rockingham County farmhouse was constructed of limestone in the plain style favored by the region's early settlers for their more substantial dwellings. During the I... Read More

Established in 1833, the Rockingham County town of Dayton is among the most distinctive of several small towns lining the Shenandoah Valley's former Harrisonburg-Warm Springs Turnpike. The turnpike, and later the railroad, serviced local enterprises.... Read More

Since its construction in 1835, the Edom Store and Post Office has stood at the center of life in the village of Edom in Rockingham County. The brick building was erected for merchant and mill owner John Chrisman, who also lived with his family in pa... Read More

Located in the mountain town of Elkton in Rockingham County, near the heart of the Shenandoah Valley, the Elkton Historic District originally began ca. 1816 as a small crossroads community centered around a single store and homestead known as Conrad'... Read More

Since 1920, Endless Caverns has thrilled visitors with a spectacular display of formations presented in their natural coloring. Since its discovery in 1897, many expeditions have yet to find an end to the complex network of underground passageways - ... Read More

The George Chrisman House, a 1787 Federal-style dwelling in Rockingham County, is an outstanding example of Shenandoah Valley vernacular architecture with characteristics of both late 18th- and 19th-century design and fashion. The development and cul... Read More

Grand Caverns, formerly known as Weyer's Cave, is located in the central Shenandoah Valley in the town of Grottoes, Virginia, United States. A limestone cavern, it claims the distinction of being America's oldest show cave, in operation since 1806.... Read More

The Harnsberger Farm complex in Rockingham County has multiple points of interest. The oldest building is an early-19th-century log dwelling, an interesting vernacular structure showing a German influence with its three-room plan and central chimney.... Read More

Whether you're just passing through or you're a regular visitor to our museum and library, a fascinating experience always awaits at Rocktown History. Take some time to enjoy a self-guided tour of the many exhibits, and you will encounter precious ob... Read More

A leading historic farm in a region of fine farms, Inglewood occupies a commanding site just north of Harrisonburg in Rockingham County. The property was purchased in 1818 by Robert Gray, a Harrisonburg attorney. Gray built Inglewood's residence ca. ... Read More

The sophisticated Greek Revival-style Jonathan Peale House, built in 1845, features a dominant front portico and fine brickwork. The Rockingham County property also includes an unusually refined brick slave quarters. While the high quality of the hou... Read More

Joseph Funk (1777-1862) was the grandson of Henry Funk, the first Mennonite bishop in America, and the son of Henry Funk, Jr., founder of the “Funkite” branch of the Mennonite church. The Funks moved to Rockingham County from Berks County, Pa., when ... Read More

Kyle's Mill House, located southeast of Harrisonburg in Rockingham County, includes a mid- to late-18th-century log dwelling with later additions, the foundations of a dairy and mill, and 277 acres of pastureland that have been a part of the farm sin... Read More

President Abraham Lincoln's great-grandfather John Lincoln moved from Pennsylvania and settled in the Linville Creek area of Rockingham County in 1768. Although John's eldest son, Abraham, grandfather of the president, migrated to Kentucky, a younger... Read More

Built circa 1845 for its original owner, Cyrus Rhodes, a prosperous farmer, Long Meadow is a Greek Revival house in Rockingham County. The farm is located in a meadow within view of Massanutten Mountain. The two-story brick house, with an English bas... Read More

The story of African-American transition after the Civil War is featured at Long's Chapel at Zenda in Harrisonburg. The chapel served as a spiritual and educational center of Zenda or “Little Africa,” a settlement formed after the Civil War by newly-... Read More

German settlers in the Shenandoah Valley built Mannheim about 1788. Three bays wide, the coursed-limestone dwelling stands two-and-one-half stories high, banked into the rolling hillside. The off-center entry is surrounded by a wide wooden architrave... Read More

Nestled on 200 acres of woodlands and meadows just outside of Harrisonburg, Massanetta Springs is an idyllic setting for a wide variety of events. We are a designated National Historic District and part of Virginia's Green Lodging program. Guests may... Read More

Our History Melrose Caverns lies on the John Harrison, Sr. homestead, a small part of a pre-revolutionary land grant to the Harrison family. John, a brother of Thomas Harrison, the founder of Harrisonburg, discovered the Caverns in 1818.... Read More

The visually prominent Kite Mansion is the finest example of the mid-20th century Colonial Revival style in the Elkton area in eastern Rockingham County. Deeply set back from U.S. 33 by a terraced lawn and framed by evergreen shrubs and trees, the tw... Read More

Constructed in 1937-1938, Paul's Ottobine Mill in Rockingham County is a largely intact water-powered gristmill that illustrates traditional mill construction with such features as chamfered posts, a pivoting millstone crane, and vintage machinery. T... Read More

This plain dwelling near the town of Dayton in Rockingham County is one of the few Continental-type farmhouses surviving from the heavy German settlement in the Shenandoah Valley. The central-chimney house is also one of the latest and most southern ... Read More

Plains Mill, located along the North Fork of the Shenandoah River in Rockingham County, is a merchant mill that evolved to reflect changes in milling technology from its original construction between 1847 and 1849, through the 1950s. A boldly flowing... Read More

On the South Fork of the Shenandoah River in eastern Rockingham County, the grid-plan village of Port Republic was founded in 1802 and became a booming river port. It served as the shipping point for the agricultural and industrial products of the up... Read More

This idyllic village in Rockingham County began when Joseph Funk moved here in the early 19th century and established a publishing firm for Mennonite religious tracts and choral music. The settlement that grew up around his farm was called Mountain V... Read More

Built in Rockingham County in 1856 as the dwelling for what was originally known as Cottage Plains Farm, the Stephen Harnsberger house is a Shenandoah Valley example of the octagonal building fad that spread across the nation in the mid-19th-century.... Read More

The house at Taylor Springs, situated in Rockingham County just east of the city of Harrisonburg, is a prime example of a mid-19th-century brick farmhouse. Probably built about 1850 for Evan Henton, the simple I-house form and brickwork reflect the c... Read More

This plain Shenandoah Valley brick farmhouse is a relic of the early German Baptist Brethren, or Dunkers, known originally in the area of the Rockingham County town of Broadway as the Society of Tunkers, who opposed the use of churches and held their... Read More