Roadside Commerce

Sussex County · dedicated 2015 · Route 460 at intersection with Sussex Ave. in Wakefield

Virginia's highway system took shape during the 1920s as automobile ownership expanded rapidly. State Route 52 was established in 1928 to connect Suffolk with Prince George County. In 1933, this road became part of the new U.S. 460 from Roanoke to the Chesapeake Bay. The highway was later extended to St. Louis, Missouri, but its western terminus was eventually fixed at Frankfort, Kentucky. To accommodate travelers’ needs, entrepreneurs opened gas stations, motels, and cafes along the roadside. Among these was the Virginia Diner, which D’Earcy and Laura Davis established here in 1929 inside a refurbished Surry, Sussex and Southampton Railroad car.

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under a mile from where William Gabby lived in the 1760s

what this marker records spans 1777 to 1789, overlapping William Gabby's years here

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Roadside Commerce

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