Glencoe Mansion allows you to explore the history of Radford and beyond from the early Native Americans to the present with engaging and informative exhibits. Special exhibits also highlight America’s past cultural history. The exhibits focus on Radford history and show that history in context with statewide, national and global events and forces. At Glencoe Mansion there is something for everyone to explore!
The history of Radford is forever connected with its location along the New River. The rich lands by the river, which had originally drawn Native Americans, also attracted later settlers; and the need to cross the river for traveling pioneers led to the development of population centers. These factors gave rise to the beginnings of Radford. Growing transportation technology, ingenuity, and yes, the location by the New River all fueled the growth of the City. To this day Radford refers to itself as the River City.
At Virginia’s helm from 1978 to 1982 was Governor John N. Dalton who called Radford his home. Through the work of Governor Dalton and others Virginia achieved a viable two-party election system. Governor Dalton’s campaign team employed the latest in technology of the era (now commonplace practices) and the sparkling personality of his wife Eddie Dalton and her recipes to propel him to the commonwealth’s highest office. (Pictured: Governor Dalton stands next to his father Judge Ted Dalton, a former Virginia legislator and U.S. District Judge.)
Southwest Virginia played a crucial role during the Civil War--a role that has been overlooked for the past century and a half. Many know the Confederacy only survived the amount of time it did because of Virginia’s industrial strength, but few know that much of that great strength depended on the all-important resources of Southwest Virginia.
The story of the frontier heroine Mary Draper Ingles is well-known and has achieved legendary status. This woman was taken into Native American captivity and along with one other woman walked over 400 miles to return back home. Mary Draper Ingles’ extraordinary story is not an isolated event but part of a larger narrative of empire and development.
The area we now know as Radford had been inhabited long before European settlers arrived. For millennia Native Americans took advantage of the area’s location by the New River for food, transportation and more. In the 1970s, prior to the construction of what would later become Bisset Park, two seasons of excavations revealed this extensive history with the Trigg Site. (Pictured: artifact from the Trigg site.)
As the world experienced an ever-increasing tension in the years leading up to World War II, the nation prepared. The government instituted the development of munitions manufacturing sites throughout the country, and one such site was near Radford and thus took on the name of the Radford Arms and Ammunition Plant. This plant fueled a population boom that has forever changed the face of the City and surrounding community.
Radford’s rail history began in the 1850s as the Virginia & Tennessee Railroad made its way from Lynchburg, Virginia to Bristol, Tennessee. The construction of a rail bridge over the New River and a nearby station, known as Central Depot, helped lay the groundwork for modern-day Radford, which has continuously been shaped by the rail.
December 2019 - January 2020
December 2018 - January 2019
December 2017 - January 2018
Focusing on the history of the Glencoe Mansion and of the Wharton family
Featuring the works of talented local artists.
Sites and artifacts of interest on and around the Glencoe Mansion grounds.
