Wednesday, May 27, 2026

Question: Before it was renamed Roanoke in 1882, what was the name of the small Virginia town where the city now stands?

Answer: The small railroad town of Big Lick was renamed Roanoke in 1882, two years before it was officially incorporated as a city. Travelers, farmers, and tradesmen heading there from places like Bent Mountain often stopped at the natural spring that gave the nearby Cave Spring community its name.