Operating Hours & Seasons

Open seven days a week, year-round, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Closed Thanksgiving Day, December 25, and January 1.

Directions

Plane
Air service is available to both Roanoke, VA (25 miles from the park) and Lynchburg, VA (50 miles from the park).

Car
The park is located in Franklin County, VA, 16 miles northeast of Rocky Mount, VA via VA 40E and VA 122N; 25 miles southeast of Roanoke, VA via US 220S, VA 40E, and VA 122N; and 50 miles southwest of Lynchburg, VA via US 460W and VA 122S.

Public Transportation
Public transportation to the park is not available. A personal or rental vehicle is required.

Contact Information

Mail:
Booker T. Washington National Monument
12130 Booker T. Washington Highway
Hardy, Virginia 24101

Phone:
540-721-2094

Fax:
540-721-8311

(540) 721-2094

Plan Your Visit

Booker T. Washington National Monument is the former Burroughs Plantation. In 1850, James and Elizabeth Burroughs moved their children and a few slaves to this 207-acre tobacco farm in southwestern Virginia. The plantation cook, a female slave named Jane, would give birth to three children within the next ten years. Her middle child would simply be called Booker.

Here you are able to explore the small plantation where Washington first longed for an education, pondered what freedom meant and eventually took his "first breath of freedom."

Park Closure

The park preserves the site where noted educator Booker T. Washington was born and lived in slavery for nine years. It is administered by the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. A fourteen-minute video presentation and guided tours of the historic farm are offered. There are exhibits and a bookstore in the visitor center.

Booker T. Washington National Monument is one of 391 units of the National Park Service, the agency entrusted with the care of our nation's natural and cultural treasures. Booker T. Washington National Monument is located in Franklin County, Virginia on Virginia State Route 122. The park is open seven days a week from 9:00 to 5:00 p.m. Admission, parking, and all programs are free.

Plan A Field Trip

Curriculum-based Education Programs are offered Monday through Friday as weather and staff availability permit. These tours generally last 45 minutes to 1 hour. Reservations are required in advance. To reserve a date for a program, call the park at (540) 721-2094. We suggest that you book your selected date as far in advance as possible. Dates in April, May, and October fill up quickly. We do not accept rain dates; however, every effort is made to reschedule a tour to everyone's convenience. There is no admission fee. The park is open daily from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.