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Southwest Virginia Museums Bounce Back With History Hunt

History Hunt SWVA Facebook Page

350 years ago, Thomas Batts and Robert Fallam became the first European explorers to reach southwest Virginia.They had a number of different objectives on their journey, but one stood above the rest…

“So they actually really thought that when they came out on the other side of the Appalachian Mountains, they would see the Pacific Ocean," says Morgan Herbert, executive director of the Edith Bolling Wilson Birthplace Museum in Wytheville.

Her museum is one of 16 in the southwest Virginia participating in a history scavenger hunt this summer to commemorate the expedition.

“It’s kind of a fun, safe way to get families and visitors back into museums without having one major, concentrated event where you’ve got like a ton of people at one time," she explains. "This allows people to spread it out and go at their own pace.”

History Hunt Southwest Virginia runs from Memorial Day to Labor Day. You can find more information here.

Nick Gilmore is a meteorologist, news producer and reporter/anchor for RADIO IQ.