Discover 7 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Martinsville (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Martinsville Speedway, Virginia Museum of Natural History, and Martinsville Historic District. Also, be sure to include Piedmont Arts in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Martinsville (Virginia).
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Martinsville Speedway
Car racing track in Henry County, Virginia. Martinsville Speedway is a NASCAR-owned stock car racing short track in Ridgeway, Virginia, just south of Martinsville. At 0.526 miles in length, it is the shortest track in the NASCAR Cup Series. The track was also one of the first paved oval tracks in stock car racing, being built in 1947 by partners H. Clay Earles, Henry Lawrence and Sam Rice, nearly a year before NASCAR was even formed. It is also the only race track that has been on the NASCAR circuit from its beginning in 1948. Along with this, Martinsville is the only NASCAR oval track on the NASCAR track circuit to have asphalt surfaces on the straightaways, then concrete to cover the turns.[1]
Address: 340 Speedway Rd, 24115 Martinsville
Virginia Museum of Natural History
Museum in Martinsville, Virginia. The Virginia Museum of Natural History is the state's natural history museum located in Martinsville, Virginia founded in 1984. The museum has several different award-winning publications, is affiliated with the Smithsonian Institution, and has more than 22 million items. This includes the first intact stromatolite head ever found in Virginia, which is one of the largest complete 'heads' in the world, at over 5 feet in diameter and weighing over 2 tons.[2]
Address: 21 Starling Ave, 24112-2921 Martinsville
Martinsville Historic District
Martinsville Historic District is a national historic district located at Martinsville, Virginia. It encompasses 94 contributing buildings, 1 contributing site, and 3 contributing structures in the central business district of Martinsville. The buildings range in date from the early-19th century through the mid- 20th century and include notable examples of the Romanesque, Federal, and Colonial Revival styles. Notable buildings include the Henry County Courthouse, People's Bank, Globman's Department Store, Ford Building, U.S. Post Office, the Masonic Temple, the Henry Hotel, the Martinsville Hotel, First National Bank Building, the Knights of Pythias Building, Oakley Apartment / Office Building, the Chief Tassel Building, First United Methodist Church of Martinsville, Richardson's Motor Co. Gravely Pin Factory, and Sale Knitting Plant.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.[3]
Address: 191 Fayette St, 24112-2619 Martinsville
Piedmont Arts
Museum in Martinsville, Virginia. Piedmont Arts or the Piedmont Arts Association is a nonprofit art museum and educational outreach center in Martinsville, Virginia. It is a Museum Partner of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond and is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums.[4]
Address: 215 Starling Ave, 24112-3832 Martinsville
East Church Street–Starling Avenue Historic District
East Church Street–Starling Avenue Historic District is a national historic district located at Martinsville, Virginia. It encompasses 117 contributing buildings, 1 contributing structure, and 1 contributing object in a residential section of Martinsville. The buildings range in date from the range in date from the mid 1880s to the mid-1950s and include notable examples of the Tudor Revival and Colonial Revival styles. Notable buildings include the James Cheshire House, the Obidiah Allen House, John W. Carter House, Christ Episcopal Church, G.T. Lester House or the “Wedding Cake House”, John W. Townes House, Vaughn M. Draper House, and Martinsville High School and Gymnasium Building. Located in the district are the separately listed John Waddey Carter House, Scuffle Hill, and the Little Post Office.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006.[5]
Little Post Office
Little Post Office is a historic post office building located at Martinsville, Virginia. It was built in 1893, and is a small one-story, gable front brick building with a frame rear extension. The exterior and one-room interior of the building are detailed in the Queen Anne style. It was used as a contract post office by star route mail delivery supervisor John B. Anglin from 1893 to 1917.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997. It is located in the East Church Street-Starling Avenue Historic District.[6]
Martinsville Novelty Corporation Factory
The Martinsville Novelty Corporation Factory is a historic factory complex located at Martinsville, Virginia. The main factory was built in 1929, and is a long, three-story, brick building that was constructed for the purpose of manufacturing small pieces of furniture called "novelty" pieces in the furniture trade. Associated with the main factory are the contributing wood storage area and the kilns where the wood was dried; a long, metal Quonset hut; a railroad spur and trestle; a long concrete-block and frame storage building; and a small, rectangular, brick building that at one time housed a restaurant that served the employees of Martinsville Novelty and W. M. Bassett Furniture factory. The Martinsville Novelty Corporation was the last significant furniture concern established in Martinsville before the Great Depression. The factory closed in 1995.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2010.[7]