LOCAL THINGS TO SEE AND DO
    Civil War Battlefield Overlook
From the Overlook you can view the terrain on which over 7,000 soldiers engaged in combat on Sunday, October 2, 1864. Enjoy the stories relating to the activities that took place the following Monday morning. Walk in the original trenches where soldiers fought and died. Viewing the topography and geological features from the Overlook make it easier to understand how an estimated 2,000 Southern troops could hold off an estimated 5,000 attacking Northern troops. Read the Virginia Civil War Trail Interpretive panel providing information on that October 1864 military engagement.

Museum of the Middle Appalachians
Enjoy viewing the five permanent displays featuring artifacts and specimens of the rich natural and cultural resources of the area or the periodically changing exhibit in the Saltville Exhibit Hall. The permanent displays include Geology, Woodland Indians, Ice Age, Civil War, and Company Town. The Saltville Exhibit Hall changes during the months and usually showcases something specific to the local area, such as an event of the past or some natural or cultural resource. The Museum Gift Shop has books, crafts, other items that can serve as a remembrance of your Saltville visit or a gift for someone. The Gift Shop also has over 1,400 photographs sharing the Saltville areas natural and cultural resources by ways of a picture. Old photos that you may really like can be quickly copied and purchased.

Palmer Grist Mill
See the beauty of a replica water powered Grist Mill plus the environmental features associated with the unusual surrounding habitat. The Mill houses a community theatre and the working mechanisms from the oldest Plantation style mill in Washington County, Virginia. Previous productions have included A Tuna Christmas, You Can’t Take It With You, Annie, Steel Magnolias, Sanders Family Christmas, and others. Productions are usually weekend events on Friday and Saturday nights, and a Sunday matinee.

King-Stuart Cabin
The cabin was occupied from its beginning (circa 1795) through the 1960s. See the many visible indicators of the numerous transitional modernization periods the cabin has experienced. The original builders of the cabin probably never envisioned the cabins life expectancy nor the influence its occupants would have on the cultural developments. Enjoy the stories relating to the various families occupying the cabin including William King, William Alexander Stuart brother of Confederate Cavalry General J. E. B. Stuart, Flora Stuart, the widow of Gen. Stuart and others.

Salt Park
You are at the site of an attempt to mine salt (using pick and shovel) dated the oldest such site in the United States. See a replica of a salt furnace where the 100 gallon capacity salt kettles are authentic. See an original Walking Beam Pump used as one of the various modes of extraction of the underground salt water. The pioneer cabin and blacksmith shop are typical structures appearing in this area during that early salt production developing years.

Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church
The church was dedicated in 1900. Enjoy its rich history from the 1896 construction completion through the present. The arrival of many English people associated with the early Matheson Alkali Works brought many English influences to the community. If the church were to be picked up in tact, it could be placed down anywhere in England and it would blend architecturally perfect into the new location. See the churches magnificent architectural features and enjoy the beautiful sounds from the 1904 pipe organ.

Madam Russell Church and Cabin
Visit the church which was named as a memorial to Madam Russell, Patrick Henrys’ sister. Walk through the original portion of the church and see the many beautiful features, including the magnificent stain glass windows. Tour the replica cabin of Madam Russell and enjoy the stories of her tremendous influence throughout the years. The life’s that Madam Russell touched are limitless and by some she is referred to as “The Mother of Methodism”.

Steam Locomotives
Walk around and observe steam locomotive No. 11, the oldest surviving N & W steam engine in existence. Both steam locomotives were in service from their arrival in the late 1890s or the early 1900s until their replacement by diesel powered units in the early 1960s. Other classic railroad equipment, including a caboose and local company paraphernalia are located at this site.

Ice Age Dig
Be a spectator during excavation activities and see bones of Ice Age animals being unearthed or participate in the “dig” activities. Most of the dig sites are in the Well-fields area and most sites have for years yielded information going back almost 20,000 years. Materials from the second most complete extinct musk ox skeleton ever found to illusive artifacts suggestive of human presence over 14,000 years ago. The column of blue-gray clay in which the specimens are recovered provide a continuous time-line from the present time back almost 200,000 years.

Woolly Mammoth
These are life size mobile models of a mother and baby Woolly Mammoth. Enjoy the stories related to the changing designs and construction stages of the larger Woolly Mammoth and to the multitude of features offered by the present day evolved form such as spraying generous volumes of water from the long trunk, emitting loud elephant like sounds from the mobile head section, flopping ears, blinking eyes, and moving legs and tail. Woolly has for 11 years competed with Punxsatawney Phil giving a week earlier weather prognostication at the Annual Woolly Day Breakfast.

War Between the States Re-enactment
In late summer each year hundreds of military and civilian re-enactors host a two day encampment at Saltville. The proximity of the modern day re-enactment to the original battlefield and defensive military fortifications adds to the events attractiveness as well as its historical authenticity. Camp daily opens at 10:00 AM and includes demonstrations, presentations, sutler area, and each day at 2:00 PM the Battle of Saltville Re-enactment. Visitors can enjoy the re-enactment as well as visiting the many other natural and cultural resources of the area.

Southwest Virginia Aquaculture Research & Extension Center
Visit this unique indoor facility where thousands of fish are raised for human consumption. Virginia Tech employees at the facility explain the daily operations that allow massive quantities of fish to be raised indoors and requiring very little water usage. You can see the large rotating biological cylinders that are continuously filter the used water and return clean water to the growth tanks, thus giving the name “recirculating aquaculture to the indoor fish farming operations. This recirculation aquaculture technology facility helps with design systems that will be productive in our variable climate, to identify and breed high-value species that are fast growing and stress-tolerant, to reduce the incidence of diseases and develop veterinary treatments for fish stock, as well as limiting water usage and waste

Bird Watching
Saltville is on the Clinch Mountain Loop of the Virginia Birding and Wildlife Trail program. Many activities are at the Saltville site of the Loop including bird watching, fishing, hiking, and nature studies. The Saltville Wellfields offer a unique habitat for the mountain region of Virginia. The site is one of the best places to find migrating shore birds and waterfowl in the mountains of Virginia. The waters of the wetlands are brackish, providing the only inland saline marshes in Virginia. Salt water plants that are normally found along the coastal areas are found throughout the Well-fields. Over thirty species of spring wildflowers can be seen near the Palmer Mill, including the infrequent wood poppy.

Golf Course
Saltville's’ Golf Course is one of the most level courses in the area. You would not expect such flat real estate in these mountains. Water hazards and sand traps make playing this beautiful setting a challenge. The course’s Pro Shop offers cart rentals, golfing equipment and refreshments. Enjoy the stories associated with the early origins of this course, which make it one of the areas oldest courses.

Company Houses
Drive through the different sections of town and see the various types of houses that are typical of a company town. Many of these houses were built between the late 1890s and the 1920s. The houses range between the small wooden frame laborers type to the large two story management type. The larger percentage of the company employees lived in these company built and owned housing. Enjoy the stories relating to the to the transition period in which these houses went from company ownership to private ownership.

Saltville Jam
Bring your instrument and or talent and join in the music making, or just sit back and experience the rich traditional Appalachian musical heritage traveling throughout the gathering. The entertainment happens every Monday evening from 6:00 to 11:00 PM at the Holston River Coon Club, and there is no admission fee.

Salt Made By Kettle Evaporation
During special events or upon request individuals demonstrate the technique of making salt by the kettle evaporation method. This method involves placing the natural occurring salt water (brine) in a cast iron settle, starting a wood fire underneath the kettle, bringing the brine to a boil, and then laboriously ladling the precipitated granular salt from the bottom of the kettle. The process is lengthy and labor consuming, requiring continually adding wood to the fire, replenishing the brine level as the steam (water) leaves the kettle, and removing the granular salt avoiding the solidifying and adhering of the salt to the bottom of the kettle.

W.A. Stuart House
See this house which was built circa 1840 by the brother of J.E.B. Stuart. The house later was home to Robert Porterfield, founder of the world famous Barter Theatre. Northern soldiers used the house for their lodging accommodations in December 1864 when they entered the Saltville valley and partially destroyed the salt works. The W.A. Stuart House, including lawn and adjoining garden area, was given to the Museum of the Middle Appalachians in September 1999 by direct descendants of Stuart. The Museums’ plans are for preserving the heritage and history of the house.

VFW Wall of Honor
Find the names of your relatives or friends among the hundreds of names engraved in the memorial wall. All the names are of individuals from this community who served in some branch of the military service.