Young’s Monument

Young’s Monument on Powell’s Mountain

Young’s Monument is a gravestone that marks the burial site of Henry Young and his wife, Lucinda. Young was, according to most sources, shot and killed by Union soldiers in a gap at the head of Buffalo Creek near the summit of Powells Mountain in 1861. He was buried near where he fell.

According to local legend, the soldiers ambushed Young, believing him to be a rebel sympathizer or member of a local Confederate militia, and his body was buried quickly by members of his family who feared being discovered by Union troops still patrolling the area.

Portion of USGS map showing Young’s Monument; present site marked X.

In 1970 the remains of Young and his wife were moved during construction of the U.S. Route 19 expressway and re-interred at their present location within a low enclosure of concrete block adjacent to a small cemetery near the summit of Powell Mountain.

Another local legend held that Young’s headless ghost haunted the road, now known as Young’s Monument Road.