|
|
Feature article
|
 |
|
 |
The June Tolliver House
By Leigh Ann Laube
 |
| The June Tolliver House Offers Glimpse into 19th Century Living |
BIG STONE GAP — Chances are, John Fox Jr. never crossed paths with the little girl from Keokee who came to live in a boarding house here in the late 1800s.
Elizabeth Morris was homesick and didn’t stay in Big Stone long, but her story left a lasting impression on Fox, a Big Stone resident who died in 1919.
When Fox wrote "The Trail of the Lonesome Pine," he based the character of the young June Tolliver on a variety of women, including Elizabeth Morris.
"The Trail of the Lonesome Pine," which opened in 1964 and is now the longest-running outdoor drama in Virginia, tells of the love that develops between June Tolliver and Jack Hale, a handsome young mining engineer, and depicts the great boom in Southwest Virginia when the discovery of coal and iron ore forced the proud mountain people to adjust to a new way of life.
Elizabeth Morris lived in the boarding house — now known as the June Tolliver House — while she attended Duff Academy. The boarding house was originally built as a residence by the Duff family, one of the early Big Stone families.
"It was completed in 1892. Mr. Duff passed away shortly after the house was built and Mrs. Duff made it into a boarding house," said a volunteer at the June Tolliver House.
The June Tolliver House is a registered Virginia and National Historic Landmark, with 19th century furnishings and mountain handicrafts. It is located next door to the Trail of the Lonesome Pine Playhouse.
The house is open May through December, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesdays through Saturdays, and from 2 to 5 p.m. on Sundays. It is also open prior to "Trail" performances. The drama is performed every Thursday through Saturday nights during June, July and August.
There is no admission fee to the house, but donations are appreciated. Tours are conducted.
"They will learn what a house of this age looked like," the volunteer said. "We have tried to restore it with furnishings bought or donated to look like what a house of this period would look like."
On the second floor of the house, visitors will find a treasure of information about the schools in that area.
The curator of this exhibit, retired Wise County educator Garnett Gilliam, has a collection of monograms, sweaters, uniforms, musical instruments, yearbooks, and thousands of pictures, all telling the story of the Appalachia, Big Stone Gap, Bland, Central, East Stone Gap, and Powell Valley high schools.
For more information on the June Tolliver House, call (540) 523-4707.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
