Built in 1779 and one of the oldest buildings west of the Blue Ridge, this Abingdon restaurant has hosted presidents, a French king, and a murdered woman who reportedly still occupies the second floor.
222 E Main St, Abingdon, VA 24210
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$
Dinner restaurant; entree prices vary. Reservations recommended.
Access
Limited Access
1779 stone building on two levels; stairs to upper floor where primary haunting accounts originate
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1779 · Oldest Building in Abingdon · Civil War Hospital · Historic Post Office · Notable Historical Visitors · Southwest Virginia History
The Tavern at 222 E Main Street was built in 1779, predating the incorporation of Abingdon itself. It served from its earliest years as a tavern and overnight inn for stagecoach travelers moving west along the Great Road. It was also the first post office west of the Blue Ridge, a function that made it a mandatory stop for correspondence moving in and out of the region.
The building's historical ledger includes an unusual list of notable guests. President Andrew Jackson stopped here during his travels through southwest Virginia. Louis Philippe, then in exile from France before he became king, visited the building; Pierre Charles L'Enfant, the designer of Washington, D.C.'s street plan, also passed through. Henry Clay is documented as another guest.
During the Civil War, The Tavern was converted to a hospital, serving both Confederate and Union wounded at different times during the conflict's course through southwest Virginia. The evidence is concrete and still visible: charcoal marks numbering 12 hospital beds remain on an upper floor wall, undisturbed since they were drawn during the war.
The building has operated continuously as a food-and-drink establishment across most of its 245-year history. The bar is claimed to be the oldest in Virginia. Today the restaurant serves dinner Wednesday through Sunday with a menu focused on American fare, and the building remains a centerpiece of downtown Abingdon's historic district.
Sources
The murder story is the core of The Tavern's ghost lore, and it is specific: a young woman — described in accounts as working as a prostitute — was killed by a client on the second floor in the early 1800s. The account appears consistently across multiple Abingdon ghost tour operators and local historical sources.
The reported phenomena are concentrated upstairs. After closing, lights have been seen in the second-floor room from the street outside. Staff and late-night guests have described seeing a silhouette of a woman at the window. Phantom footsteps are the most consistently reported phenomenon — heard by staff when the upper floor is confirmed empty.
A news article in the Bristol Herald Courier quoted the then-owner directly: "By midnight, we try to be outta here." The quote is notable because it comes from the property operator rather than a paranormal investigator, and the framing — practical rather than promotional — gives it weight that tour-operator accounts lack.
The Civil War hospital history adds a secondary layer. The charcoal bed-numbering marks still on the upper floor represent real death: wounded soldiers died here, and the marks are a physical trace of that. Colonial Ghosts, which runs documented tours of Abingdon, has included the Tavern in its tour itinerary with specific reference to both the murder account and the hospital history.
Notable Entities
The Tavern is a featured stop on Appalachian Ghost Walks tours of Abingdon, which include the building's haunted history and the accounts of its most-reported apparition. Check Appalachian Ghost Walks for current tour schedule and booking.
Dine in one of the oldest buildings west of the Blue Ridge. The charcoal marks numbering 12 Civil War hospital beds remain visible on an upper floor, and the bar is claimed to be the oldest in Virginia. Reservations recommended.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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Scotsman William Michie obtained a license to operate an ordinary on November 11, 1784, and the tavern he built served as the social and lodging hub for the Buck Mountain area of Albemarle County. In 1927, Josephine Henderson purchased the property and had the entire building moved seventeen miles to its present location near Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, reopening it as a museum-restaurant in 1928.
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