How Do I Get To Smithfield?
Directions
From the East and South (from Roanoke, Floyd, Wytheville, Bristol, Charlotte, etc.):
From I-81, take Exit 118-B towards Blacksburg
Follow Route 460 Bypass towards Blacksburg and Virginia Tech.
Take the Prices Fork Exit to the right (Downtown).
Follow Prices Fork Road (Route 412) to West Campus Drive (Virginia Tech entrance) and turn right.
At the bottom of the hill, turn right onto Duck Pond Drive.
Follow Duck Pond Drive around to Smithfield Plantation Road.
Turn right onto Smithfield Plantation Road and proceed to Historic Smithfield
From the West (from Giles County or West Virginia):
Follow Route 460 and the Route 460 Bypass towards Blacksburg and Virginia Tech.
Take the Prices Fork Exit to the left (Downtown).
Follow Prices Fork Road (Route 412) to West Campus Drive (Virginia Tech entrance) and turn right.
At the bottom of the hill, turn right onto Duck Pond Drive.
Follow Duck Pond Drive around to Smithfield Plantation Road.
Turn right onto Smithfield Plantation Road and proceed to Historic Smithfield.
Donate to Historic Smithfield
Your gift will help support our educational programs for students of all ages, expanding on the
legacy of this beautifully preserved living museum. The approaching 250th commemoration of
Smithfield provides a nice launch point of programming leading to a similar commemoration of
the 1776 American Revolution! Generous support helps all visitors appreciate the impact of
William Preston’s original homeplace, his family and surrounding community on the evolution
of our great nation as the world’s longest democracy.
About Historic Smithfield
Historic Smithfield, completed in 1774, interprets a period in Colonial America where westward expansion intersects with early conflicts between indigenous peoples and European settlers, including an enslaved community for nearly a century. Today, Smithfield exemplifies the enormous growth of Virginia by immigrants and their descendants – establishing the largest of America’s colonies among the original 13 colonies.
Smithfield was the Preston family homestead of four Virginia governors, national cabinet secretaries, national and state legislators, and military leaders. The Prestons played prominent and decisive roles in the sphere of education, including the establishment of the University of Virginia, Virginia Military Institute, and Virginia Tech.
Today, the original house and grounds of Smithfield provide an interpretive site offering an unfiltered perspective on the past, valuable insight for the present, and inspiration for the future. The complex histories of the region’s indigenous peoples, the Preston family, and the enslaved community reflect on Courage, Leadership, and Education -- all values that are incorporated in better understanding the past and significant progress which has been made in the centuries since.