By Larry Hypes
Contributing Writer
From coast to coast and also from Elliston to Blacksburg, the big birthday year is here. Both the United States of America and Montgomery County will be celebrating their respective Semiquincentennial; that is, their 250th year anniversaries in 2026.
Montgomery County, whose official birthdate will not arrive until Dec. 31, is one of 98 counties in the Commonwealth of Virginia and was named in honor of Revolutionary War general Richard Montgomery. He was an acclaimed soldier who did not live to see his namesake area designation – he perished a year earlier in 1775.
Montgomery County was formed from the former Fincastle County, which itself had earlier been pried loose from nearby Botetourt County. Various accounts point to the year 1738 as the one when the first settlers may have arrived in this local area of what is now a part of the famed New River Valley. The initial group may have included Germans, some English and French individuals. The noted explorer Dr. Thomas Walker, whose travels took him not only through the Blue Ridge but also into Cumberland Gap and across the area which would become the great Pocahontas Coalfield region, almost certainly passed nearby around 1750.
Montgomery’s name is chronicled, as is the official title of the USA.
The nation is also referred to as “America” because of an Italian and a German, two nationalities that also did much to make the nation and the area such great successes. It was the explorer Amerigo Vespucci who realized that this land was truly the “new world” and Martin Waldseemuler a cartographer (mapmaker) first used the name “America” in Vespucci’s honor in a map produced in 1507, exactly 100 years before the settlement of Jamestown. Many believe that our country’s birthday is July 4, 1776, but that is not exactly true. The Declaration of Independence was completed on July 2 but formally signed and presented two days later.
Virginia is noted as the tenth state since its delegates ratified the Constitution on June 25, 1788, making it the tenth state to do so.
Montgomery is one of the most significant areas of Virginia, holding the third-largest public university in the state, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, long known as “VPI” and now universally called “Virginia Tech.” It is also the county’s largest employer.
Just as the railroads played a pivotal role in the development of America, Montgomery County continues to be a vital segment of the Norfolk Southern (formerly Norfolk & Western) main line and will welcome the addition of AMTRAK service sometime in 2027 at the Cambria Station facility in Christiansburg.
Although the USA has 50 states, the national government in the District of Columbia (Washington, D.C.) is its own separate entity. Washington is named for George Washington, first President and hero general of the Revolutionary War. Built on land donated by Virginia and Maryland, it splits the difference between North and South and is also located there because Washington himself wanted the seat of government close to his nearby Mount Vernon home and he had much influence in the site selection.
Here in Montgomery County, the two most influential areas are Christiansburg (the county seat) and Blacksburg (home to Va. Tech).
When Democrat Abigail Davis Spanberger takes the oath in Richmond as Virginia’s governor Jan. 17, she will become the first woman to hold that office, although there is discussion about exactly how many governors Virginia has had while trying to resolve between colonial days and other divisions during the state’s existence.
Montgomery County, solidly Republican more than a century ago, has since shifted in sentiment toward Democratic candidates in national elections, having voted against the Republican ticket in the last three elections.
Nevertheless, spirited participation in local, state and national issues has been a hallmark of county citizens and leaders over the decades. All deserve the opportunity to celebrate the upcoming 250th anniversary birthdays.
Get ready to light the candles in about seven months for Good Old Uncle Sam.
