EXMORE, VIRGINIA – Exmore visitors and residents can now take a step back in time with a history walking tour. Volunteer researchers Cara Burton and Jim McDaniel have created an informative and historically-rich walking tour based on oral history interviews, courthouse records, newspaper clippings, photographs, and other resources. The “A Step Back in Time” tour is being introduced at the Exmore Town Hall on Thursday, December 7 from 3:00 to 5:00 pm, prior to the Town’s Old-Fashioned Christmas event. Everyone is invited to attend the free event to get tour information and view a local history photo display in the Exmore Town Hall, 3305 Main Street.
This Downtown Exmore walking tour, which is less than one-half mile, covers both sides of Main Street, Commercial Avenue, Front Street and Bank Street. There are 24 stops with descriptive overviews based on extensive research by Burton and McDaniel. The stopping points and their stories will be available on the Town of Exmore’s website, www.exmore.org, and accessible via a QR code that will be available for scanning in January 2024.
Exmore became an important produce packing and distribution hub due to its central location and to the arrival of the railroad in 1884. The tour starts with Exmore’s beginnings and follows its growth, making it one of the largest Eastern Shore of Virginia towns on the scenic Ocean Highway. The town had almost every amenity of the day, from hotels and boarding houses, to a variety of shops and markets, movie theatres and its own utility company.
This project is part of Exmore’s Virginia 250 celebration, recognizing the nation’s history and independence since 1776. More information can be found at va250.org.
To learn more, and to experience some moments in history, plan to attend the tour debut at the Town Hall on December 7, at 3:00 pm, visit www.exmore.org, or email visitexmore@exmore.org.
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