Crooked Road makes 2010 list of ‘America’s Dozen Distinctive Destinations’

Photo: Jim Baldwin (right), President of The Crooked Road Board of Directors, talks to the audience after receiving the award from Robert Nieweg (left).

by Doug Thompson

The National Trust for Historic Preservation named Virginia’s Crooked Road Heritage Music Trail to its 2010 list of “America’s Dozen Distinctive Destinations” Wednesday in a ceremony at the Floyd Country Store.
“The Crooked Road pays homage to a rich Appalachian heritage,” Robert Nieweg, director of the Southern Field Office for the National Trust for Historic Preservation, said in presenting a plaque recognizing the honor to Jim Baldwin, President of the Crooked Road Board of Directors.
“The trail weaves together unique historic districts that share a past steeped in a rare and uniquely American music culture,” Nieweg added.
Each year, the National Trust selects communities around the country that offer “cultural and recreational experiences different from those found at the typical vacation destination.”
“The Crooked Road certainly fits that description,” Nieweg said. “That’s why it was an easy selection.”

Baldwin said Virginia’s musical heritage is a valuable asset to the Commonwealth’s growing tourism industry.

About 35 people area and state officials attended the ceremony Wednesday.

The Floyd Country Store and its Friday Night Jamboree is one of eight key venues on the Crooked Road, a 300-mile route that winds through 19 towns in Southwestern Virginia.

Other venues include The Ralph Stanley Museum & Traditional Music Center, Carter Family Fold, Rex Theater & Old Fiddler’s Convention and the Blue Ridge Music Center.

Floyd County’s Director of Economic Development & Tourism Lydeana Martin called the Crooked Road “great and part of what is unique about Southwest Virginia.  It’s great to see it get the recognition.”

Country Store owner Woody Crenshaw said the Crooked Road began as a conversation between Todd Christiansen, Executive Director of the Southwest Virginia Cultural Heritage Commission, and Joe Wilson, chairman of the National Council for the Traditional Arts, over drinks in a bar.

“There is some dispute over whether the drinks were beer or moonshine,” Crenshaw noted.

Wilson acknowledged the evening by noting that he and Christensen tried to save the state “from alcoholism.”

Christensen said the Crooked Road recognizes a unique part of Virginia’s musical history.

“Music is – and always has been – important to the region,” he said.
Christensen also played a key role in helping Floyd secure a state grant for downtown revitalization.

Nationally-recognized guitarist and instrument maker Wayne Henderson entertained those attending at the beginning of the ceremony. After the event, Floyd Music School Mike Mitchell and students Hannah and Laurel Brooke joined Henderson’s group on stage.

The ceremony also included a video about the Crooked Road prepared by Two-Rivers Multimedia Solutions.