Martin's Station at Wilderness Road State Park

Martin's Station at Wilderness Road State Park

A replica of Martin's Station provides an impressive venue for historical interpretation and reenactments of life on the Virginia frontier in the late 18th century.

Joseph Martin was building the fort in 1775 when Daniel Boone and the axemen came through the area on their way to Cumberland Gap and Kentucky. This outpost was the last supply depot for those venturing into Kentucky. Beyond this site, all travel was on foot and horseback. All provisions were carried on pack horses. Martin's Station operated for about 15 months before it was abandoned in the face of attacks by Cherokee and Shawnee warriors in the summer of 1776. Martin had first attempted the settlement six years earlier after winning a competition for land grants offered by the Loyal Land Company. Daniel Boone and his small party of longhunters were surprised to find Martin there then when they were making their first trip across the Cumberland Gap in May 1769.

The actual site of historic Martin's Station is in Rose Hill, a few miles east of Wilderness Road State Park.