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A new state historical marker has been approved for downtown Lexington.
The Virginia Department of Historical Resources announced last week that the Virginia Board of Historic Resources approved five new markers on March 16 during its quarterly meeting, including one for Lexington that will highlight businesses in the city that welcomed Black travelers during the period of racial segregation in the 20th century.
The marker will recall businesses that appeared in the Negro Motorist Green Book, a guide for Black travelers published from 1936 to 1966 that featured lodgings, restaurants, and other public accommodations across the country that served African Americans. The Green Book listed several stops in Lexington.
According to the approved language for the marker, which will be titled “Lexington and the Green Book,” these accommodations “welcomed Black travelers during the segregation era, when many roadside businesses refused to admit Black people or served them on an unequal basis.” The marker also highlights one of the tourist homes: “Listed in the guide for many years was the elegant Franklin Tourist Home, operated by Zack and Arleana Franklin just east of here at 9 Tucker St. Chauffeurs whose wealthy employers were staying at one of the town’s hotels were frequent guests.”
The marker will then go on to list other accommodations in Lexington: the Rose Inn and Washington Café on North Main Street and the J.M. Wood Tourist Home on Massie Street.
The proposed location for the marker is 106 E. Washington St.
The Historic Lexington Foundation sponsored the marker, which also sponsored a marker due to be installed soon in the Timber Ridge area. That marker will denote Timber Grove, the first settlement in what would become Rockbridge County. The marker has been fabricated and will be installed by the Virginia Department of Transportation. The city of Lexington will be responsible for the installation of the “Lexington and the Green Book” marker.
