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Shenandoah Valley

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The Shenandoah Valley region of western Virginia and West Virginia is bounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains to the east and the Appalachian and Allegheny Plateaus to the west. It is located within the Ridge and Valley region and is a portion of the Great Appalachian Valley.

Geography

Named for the river which stretches much of its length, the Shenandoah Valley encompasses seven counties in Virginia (Frederick County, Clarke County, Warren County, Shenandoah County, Page County, Rockingham County, and Augusta County) as well as two counties in West Virginia (Berkeley County and Jefferson County). Between Roanoke in the south and Harpers Ferry in the north, where the Shenandoah River joins the Potomac, the Valley contains municipalities of various sizes like Staunton, Harrisonburg, Winchester, Lexington, Waynesboro, and Front Royal. The northern section of the Shenandoah Valley is split in half by the Massanutten Mountain range.

History

The word Shenandoah was derived from a Native American expression for "Beautiful Daughter of the Stars." The Valley Pike (or Valley Turnpike) began as a migratory trail for tribes such as the Delaware and Catawba and became the major thoroughfare of wagons and in time, motor vehicles. By the 20th century, the Valley Turnpike was a toll road, eventually being acquired by the Commonwealth of Virginia and becoming U.S. Highway 11. For much of the length, the newer Interstate 81 parallels the old Valley Pike.

The Shenandoah Valley is a productive agricultural region. Despite the great promise of the rich farmland of the Valley, the Blue Ridge Mountains, crossed by Governor Alexander Spotswood's legendary Knights of the Golden Horseshoe Expedition at Swift Run Gap in 1716, were a major obstacle to colonial expansion from the east. Instead, the Valley was first settled by German and then by Scots-Irish immigrants from Pennsylvania in the 1730s. The former were known as "Shenandoah Deitsch." Both stocks came south into the Valley from the Potomac River, in contrast to the largely English settlement of the Virginia Tidewater and Piedmont regions.

The Shenandoah Valley was known as the breadbasket of the Confederacy during the American Civil War and as such, was major site of battle between Union and Confederate forces. It is also the location of the Shenandoah Valley American Viticultural Area.

Transportation

See also

External links



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Last updated on Friday February 29, 2008 at 21:30:40 PST (GMT -0800)
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