Virginia State Route 204
State highway in Westmoreland County, Virginia, US
State Route 204 (SR 204) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. Known as Popes Creek Road, the state highway runs 1.73 miles (2.78 km) from SR 3 near Potomac Mills east to George Washington Birthplace National Monument in northwestern Westmoreland County.
SR 204 is a Virginia Byway.
Route description
SR 204 begins at an intersection with SR 3 (Kings Highway) just north of Potomac Mills, the former site of a mill on Popes Creek. The state highway heads straight east-northeast through a forested area with intermittent farmland. As SR 204 approaches George Washington Birthplace National Monument, the state highway passes between fields and is flanked by rows of trees. The state highway reaches its eastern terminus at the entrance to the national monument, just east of which is a four-leg roundabout that contains in its center a replica of the Washington Monument.
History
SR 204 was designated in July 1933. The section from SR 3 to the George Washington Birthplace was a renumbering of State Route 610, and a second section from US 360 north to Oak Row was a renumbering of State Route 609. In August 1933, the southern section extended north to a church 0.7 miles (1.1 km) north of Oak Row.
“Virginia State Route 204” enters the record as state highway in Westmoreland County, Virginia, US. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Virginia, State and Route can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Virginia State Route 204” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Virginia, State and Route provides the most credible route into that argument.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Dec 21, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q2508038. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1933.
Modern boundaries and familiar names can conceal earlier jurisdictions or structures that do not align with the present site. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Virginia State Route 204”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Virginia State Route 204 primary sources, Virginia State Route 204 archive and Virginia research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Virginia State Route 204”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Virginia State Route 204” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.