Booker T. Washington National Monument Highpoint Trip Report
Date: June 5, 2008
Author: Fred Lobdell
Booker T. Washington was born into slavery on a tobacco farm in west-central Virginia
in 1856 and lived the first nine years of his life as a slave on that farm.
He had a tremendous respect and desire for education, and at the age of 16 he enrolled
in Hampton Institute, now Hampton University. Later he taught at Hampton before
moving to Alabama in 1881 where he founded Tuskegee Institute.
The National Monument preserves most of the Burroughs farm where Booker was born
and lived his early life. It lies on Virginia route 122 in Franklin County.
From the intersection of US 220 and VA 40 on the east side of Rocky Mount,
go east on 40 for a mile or so, following the brown National Monument signs.
Turn left (north-northeast) onto VA 122, which brings you to the entrance to the NM
in 10 or 12 miles. Highway 122 passes through the 1,000-foot contour that marks
the HP of this NM, but I thought it most convenient to park in the visitors parking area.
From there I walked up a grassy slope to Burroughs Cemetery, then continued on to the highway,
crossing a split rail fence just before the road.
The high area is on the north side of the highway. I thought the highest ground was near
an unmowed area, perhaps 200 yards north of 122, or perhaps another hundred yards
farther north along a tree line that marks the northern boundary of the NM.
I found it quite easy to determine where I was relative to the monument boundaries,
as dirt roads and driveways are accurately depicted.
I thank Dave and John for their National Monument list,
without which it probably never would have occurred to me to visit this place.