This is the definitive history of Southwest Virginia, the area originally comprising Botetourt, Fincastle, and Washington counties and now embracing nineteen present-day counties of Virginia and seventeen of West Virginia. Numerous lists of genealogical importance are scattered throughout the text and especially the appendices, where researchers will discover several thousand ancestors linked to Washington County during the 100 years commencing with the American Revolution. In addition, a separate section is devoted to biographical sketches of more than 100 prominent citizens and includes inset portrait illustrations.