County
History
Created in 1778 from portions of Augusta and Botetourt
counties, Rockbridge County has been the home of military
strategists Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson and Robert E. Lee, inventor
Cyrus McCormick, and pioneer Sam Houston. Rockbridge County is
centrally located in the historic and scenic Shenandoah Valley in
west-central Virginia. Rockbridge County was named for the distinctive geological landmark, Natural Bridge, located in the
southern portion of the County. The County is bounded on the west
by the lower elevations of the Allegheny Mountains and on the east
by the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains. It is surrounded by the
counties of Augusta, Nelson, Amherst, Bedford, Botetourt,
Alleghany, and Bath, and lies at the headwaters of the James and
Maury rivers. Two major interstates, 81 and 64, service the
Rockbridge County area.
Today, Rockbridge County encompasses 607 square miles of
diverse, rolling terrain. Within its borders are two incorporated
towns, Glasgow and Goshen, and two independent cities, Lexington
and Buena Vista. Lexington, the county seat, is an important
educational, retail, commercial, and governmental center. Buena
Vista, situated 6 miles east of lexington and adjacent to the
Maury River, is the industrial and manufacturing nucleus of the
area.
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