Appalachian Highlands Local Living Guide

New to Appalachian Highlands, or still weighing it? Start here. What each town is actually like, what homes really cost, and what's going on this week.

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Forest trail at Breaks Interstate Park — Credit
Photo: vastateparksstaff / CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

The towns

They're not interchangeable. Open any one for what you'd pay, how the schools rate, and what it's like to live there day to day.

Wise County Courthouse - Front View — Credit
Photo: Skye Marthaler / CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons · Resized and re-encoded for web

2017-06-12 12 25 17 View east along Virginia State Route 74 (Coeburn Avenue) just east of U.S. Route 23 Business and U.S. Route 58 Alternate Business (Park Avenue) in Norton, Virginia — Credit
Photo: Famartin / CC BY-SA 4.0 · Openverse · Resized and re-encoded for web

Lee County Courthouse, Virginia — Credit
Photo: Nyttend / Public domain · Wikimedia Commons · Resized and re-encoded for web

Dickenson County Courthouse — Credit
Photo: Nathan Yates / CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons · Resized and re-encoded for web

Russell County Courthouse — Credit
Photo: Doug Kerr / CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons · Resized and re-encoded for web

SMALL CHURCH AND HOME PERCHED ON A HILLSIDE NEAR KEEN MOUNTAIN AND RICHLANDS, VIRGINIA, IN BUCHANAN COUNTY. MANY... - NARA - 556355 — Credit
Photo: Jack Corn / Public domain · Wikimedia Commons · Resized and re-encoded for web

Wise County

The region's population center, home to UVA Wise and the towns of Wise, Big Stone Gap, Coeburn, Appalachia, and Pound. The High Knob highcountry of the Jefferson National Forest rises along its southern edge.

Norton City

An independent city surrounded by Wise County and the least populous city in Virginia. Flag Rock Recreation Area sits directly above its compact downtown.

Lee County

Virginia's westernmost county, wedged between Kentucky and Tennessee. Cumberland Gap National Historical Park anchors the far tip, with Pennington Gap the largest town and Jonesville the county seat.

Dickenson County

Virginia's youngest county, formed in 1880, with its seat at Clintwood. Breaks Interstate Park on the Kentucky line and the John Flannagan Reservoir carry most of the recreation traffic.

Russell County

Farm valleys along the Clinch River between Clinch Mountain and the coalfields. Lebanon is the county seat, and the Clinch here is known for its exceptional freshwater mussel diversity.

Buchanan County

The only Virginia county bordering both Kentucky and West Virginia, with its seat at Grundy, a downtown rebuilt uphill after repeated flooding. Home to the Appalachian School of Law and the Appalachian College of Pharmacy, and the lowest real-estate rate of the seven localities at $0.39.

Tazewell County

Bluefield, Richlands, and the town of Tazewell carry most of the population, and the preserved coal town of Pocahontas sits on the West Virginia line. Burke's Garden, Virginia's highest valley, and the Back of the Dragon route on VA 16 are the landmarks.