Located between the Blue Ridge and the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia, Smyth County has had a profound effect on many aspects of local, state, American, and world history. In Images of America: Smyth County, take a journey back through time and visit the town recently named the "Most Historical Spot in America." Travel across the homestead of the first Virginians, who fought the first recorded battle of the new land, and find out how Smyth County is rewriting the history books. See the racetrack in Smyth County where the "Babe Ruth of NASCAR" took the checkered flag. Tour Civil War sites and homes where Stoneman's Raiders took refuge during battles for the most valuable site of the Confederacy.

Johann Thomas Copenhaver (d.ca. 1758/1760) immigrated from Germany to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania in 1728, and Woolf (Wolfgang) Copenhaver (d.ca. 1763)--probably his father--immigrated in 1732. Descendants and relatives lived in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Nebraska, Florida and elsewhere.

This work begins in the 1700s, prior to the county's establishment, and records interesting incidents and major historic events of the day, as well as the names and character of many early settlers. There are also rare documents such as Colonel John Buchanan's journal, William Campbell's letter to his wife, and the Tory warning to Campbell. The history then describes the first permanent settlement, and the tumultuous times of Dunmore's War and the American Revolution. Genealogical data and family history are woven into the narrative throughout the volume. This is a complete and relatively modern history, which includes aerial view photographs. Chapters include: Head of Holston Surveys, Col. John Buchanan's Journal, Permanent Settlement, Dunmore's War, The Revolution, County Organization, Political Notations, Churches, Schools, Newspapers, Industries, Banks, Transportation, The War between the States, Negroes of Smyth, World War, Southwestern State Hospital, Towns, Benjamin Franklin Buchanan, Villages and Communities, and Laurel Farm. The original index is retained and lists nearly any name or subject you will want to find.