Bonsack, Virginia
| Bonsack, Virginia | |
|---|---|
| Unincorporated community | |
 
|
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| Coordinates: 37°14′46″N 80°10′30″W / 37.24611°N 80.17500°WCoordinates: 37°14′46″N 80°10′30″W / 37.24611°N 80.17500°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Virginia |
| County | Roanoke |
| Elevation | 1,135 ft (346 m) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 24019 |
| Area code(s) | 540 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1495131 |
| Other names | Read Mountain |
Bonsack is an unincorporated community in eastern Roanoke County, Virginia, United States. The community is located near the junction of US 460 and US 220 Alternate.
Bonsack was located along an early road called the "Trader's Path," from Augusta County, Virginia, now part of Highway 460. Established in 1740, the Trader's Path and led from Lynchburg, Virginia to Big Lick, Virginia, and was used to bring settlers and traders from central Virginia into the Roanoke Valley. A large number of German Baptists, also called "Church of the Brethren," settled here after the Revolutionary War, and the community had several different names, including "Glade Creek" and "Stoner's Store". It was named "Bonsack" after the family donated land for a depot and track for the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad, which was constructed in 1852.
"Two blanket factories were located in Bonsack during the Civil War. Legend has it that one blanket factory was burned to the ground by the Yankees. However, the second was spared because its owner, with fingers crossed, promised not to sell blankets to the nearby Confederate merchants down the road in Roanoke City." The blanket factories were owned by Jacob Bonsack (1819-1889). By 1860, the woolen mills employed 18 men and had a value of $21,000.00.
During the Civil War, Bonsack was raided by troops from Union General David Hunter in June 1864. The troops burned the woolen mill and the train depot. They also confiscated food and destroyed personal property. "A number of the railroad-related resources that do survive have been heavily altered, so additional historical research would be needed to document their connection to the railroad. For example, at Bonsack, a turn-of-the-century house survives that was once the stationmaster's house, but this connection would not be obvious merely from an examination of the building. While some railroad resources, such as depots, were often built specifically for that purpose, in other cases, older buildings were reused as the community's needs changed."
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Wikipedia