Natural Bridge State Park
Next: Centennial Park🚗 15 min · approx.
Directions to next stop ↗If you spend time exploring Natural Bridge State Park, this itinerary should take a half day. For supplemental background about each stop, visit the links provided. Once considered one of the seven natural wonders of the world, Natural Bridge is a 215 ft-tall limestone arch in southern Rockbridge County. In 1774, Thomas Jefferson purchased Natural Bridge from King George III for 20 shillings. Jefferson later hired Patrick Henry, a free Black man born into slavery in eastern Virginia, to live on the property as a caretaker. Henry built a cabin 150 yards from the arch, protected the 157-acre tract from trespassers, paid the annual property taxes, and escorted visitors to the bridge, including Jefferson and his granddaughters. He also farmed an arable section of the property. Henry lived there from 1817 until his death in 1829. The RHS website shares more information about Patrick Henry. On the website you will also find information about Natural Bridge and its inclusion in the Green Book, a travel guidebook that listed restaurants and lodgings that welcomed Black travelers during the Jim Crow era. A video also surveys an exhibit curated by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts called “Virginia Arcadia: The Natural Bridge and American Art,” featuring several artifacts and images held in Rockbridge County: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWq_By-fFGc&t=1403s
- Where
- 6477 S Lee Hwy, Natural Bridge, VA 24578
- Phone
- +1 540-291-1326
About
Natural Bridge State Park, dedicated on September 24, 2016, is home to the 215-foot tall Natural Bridge, a limestone gorge carved out by Cedar Creek. The park is more than just the bridge, however. Beautiful forests and rolling meadows showcase the area’s karst terrain. Surrounding mountains and the James River valley display nature’s splendor. The park was named an International Dark Sky Park in 2021, which means stargazing here is top-notch. Check the park calendar for stargazing events. Natural Bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a National Historic Landmark in 1988.