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Virginia County
Lee County, Virginia
Cumberland Gap and Virginia's far southwest corner - from Cumberland Gap National Historical Park (the famous mountain pass where Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee meet was the gateway through which hundreds of thousands of settlers followed Daniel Boone's Wilderness Road into Kentucky and the American frontier in the late 1700s - Cumberland Gap National Historical Park preserves this pivotal passage in American westward expansion on Lee County's doorstep) to Lee County's position as Virginia's westernmost county (reaching further west than any other Virginia county, Lee County's Appalachian valleys and ridges border both Kentucky and Tennessee, giving it a distinct tri-state Appalachian character shaped by coal, agriculture, and the deep mountain culture of the region).
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Office: Lee County E-911 – a consolidated Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) and Dispatch Center
Notes: Dispatches the Jonesville and Pennington Gap Police Departments, the Lee County Sheriff’s Department, Virginia State Police, and 9 volunteer fire departments (Thomas Walker, Jonesville, Pennington Gap, St. Charles, Keokee, Stickleyville, Dryden, Blackwater, and Jasper). CodeRED is the county’s emergency notification system. Lee County Sheriff’s Office non-emergency line: (276) 346-7777.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-58 and US-421 are primary corridors; the historic Wilderness Road (later “The Trail of the Lonesome Pine”) passed through the county as the final front of the Kentucky Trace
Transit: No dedicated fixed-route county transit identified; confirm current regional options directly with the county
Notes: Lee County is so far west that it sits closer to eight other state capitals (Raleigh, Columbia, Atlanta, Nashville, Charleston WV, Frankfort, Columbus, Indianapolis) than to its own capital in Richmond – a genuinely striking geographic fact.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Lee County Building Safety & Inspection Department – Lee County Courthouse, 2nd Floor, Room 206, P.O. Box 367, Jonesville, VA 24263
Services: The county is the building-permit issuer for unincorporated Lee County and for the incorporated towns of Jonesville and Pennington Gap; a permit is required for new construction, additions, major renovations, asbestos disturbance, fire/smoke-rated assembly repair, electrical wiring, fire protection systems, mechanical systems, fuel supply systems, tank installation/closure, manufactured homes, and demolitions
Notes: Forms may be filled out on a computer but must be printed and brought in person to file. A Contractor’s License Tax applies if the value of work is $100,000 or more (rate $0.0016 per $100), and must be paid before any permits are issued. All building permits carry a 2% state surcharge. Residential solar photovoltaic systems are covered by an electrical permit and require a structural engineer/architect’s roof-load certification before installation on an existing roof; standby generators require a separate permit.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
State VSO: Virginia Department of Veterans Services – dvs.virginia.gov (statewide office locator for the nearest Veterans Service Representative)
Notes: Confirm current local point of contact directly with dvs.virginia.gov
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Lee County Public Library, part of the Lonesome Pine Regional Library system – 539 Joslyn Avenue, Pennington Gap, VA 24277 | (276) 546-1141 | Fax: (276) 546-5136 | [email protected]
Hours: Mon/Wed/Fri 8:30 AM–5:00 PM, Tue/Thu 10:30 AM–7:00 PM (some sources list 11:30 AM start), Sat 10:00 AM–2:00 PM
Key Assets: Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, shared by Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee, centered on the historic Cumberland Gap mountain pass through the Appalachians that settlers used to travel west, once blazed by Daniel Boone; the park includes the Kentucky-Virginia-Tennessee tripoint (accessible by trail, marked by Tri-State Peak at 1,990 feet elevation), Hensley Settlement, the Pinnacle Overlook, Sand Cave, and White Rocks overlooking the Virginia towns of Ewing and Rose Hill; Gap Cave, entered just over the Virginia line near Ewing, has a surveyed length of 18.5 miles, making it the 42nd-longest cave in the United States
Notes: Lee County is a dry county for hard liquor, though retail sales are permitted – worth knowing for visitors. Confirm current park hours and trail conditions directly with the National Park Service before visiting, as some attractions (Sand Cave, Hensley Settlement) require significant hiking.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
GIS Portal: Lee County GIS – accessible via leecova.com
Parcel Search: Lee County Commissioner of the Revenue records
Addressing/911: Coordinated through Lee County E-911; a Road Naming & Addressing Ordinance and Road Name Change Petition process are both publicly available
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Lee County Animal Pound – off Highway 58, south on State Route 70, then Bus Shop Road, Jonesville, VA | Mailing: PO Box 367, Jonesville, VA 24263
Hours: Office typically staffed Monday–Friday, 8:00–10:00 AM (confirm directly, as this is a very limited window)
Notes: This is a genuinely small, resource-constrained facility with only 2 animal control officers covering the entire county, who also personally handle shelter cleaning and animal care with no separate secretary or shelter staff. The shelter has 16 kennels and is legally required to take in stray dogs; by its own account, when no kennels are available, dogs may be euthanized to make space – a difficult but honestly stated operational reality rather than something to assume won’t happen. The independent rescue network PAWS of SWVA has worked with Lee County’s Animal Control Officers to network and pull dogs from the shelter. If you’re looking to help, transferring/networking dogs out is the most direct way given the shelter’s capacity constraints.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Environmental Complaints: Virginia Department of Environmental Quality – deq.virginia.gov
Notes: Contact Lee County Administration directly for current refuse collection and recycling program details, as specifics were not independently confirmed for this entry
NOTES
Lee County, Virginia’s westernmost county under the fitting slogan “Where Virginia Begins,” is where the historic Cumberland Gap cuts through the Appalachians – the mountain pass Daniel Boone once blazed and thousands of settlers later used heading west, now preserved at Cumberland Gap National Historical Park. The county’s animal shelter operates under genuinely difficult resource constraints – just two officers covering the whole county with no separate shelter staff, and an honestly stated risk of euthanasia when kennel space runs out – worth knowing plainly rather than smoothed over. All contact information above was sourced from official county and National Park Service pages as of this writing; phone numbers and hours should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit.
About Lee County
Lee County is Virginia’s westernmost county and Cumberland Gap heritage county – the historic mountain pass that opened the American frontier anchors the county’s identity while the surrounding Powell Valley’s Appalachian coal and agricultural communities reflect the deep mountain culture of Virginia’s far southwest corner where three states converge.
Jonesville (the county seat, population ~1,000) is Lee County’s governmental hub in the Powell Valley, serving the county’s mountain communities near the Kentucky and Tennessee borders.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Lee County Assessor at 33 Main Street, Jonesville, VA 24263, phone 276-346-7714. VA assessed at 100% fair market value.
Courts & Legal
Lee County Circuit Court at 33 Main Street, Jonesville, VA 24263, phone 276-346-7763, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CIRCUIT COURT CLERK
33640 Main St, Jonesville, VA 24263
(276) 346-7763
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Lee Circuit Court Clerk’s Office, Jonesville (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Lee County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Lee Circuit Court 33640 Main Street, PO Box 326, Jonesville, VA 24263 (276) 346-7763
Lee County was founded October 25, 1792, named for Henry Lee III, Virginia’s westernmost county – closer to nine other state capitals than to Richmond, county seat Jonesville (largest town Pennington Gap). Virginia has NO separate probate court – probate (“qualification”) is handled entirely by the Circuit Court Clerk’s Office.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Virginia calls the probate process “qualification” rather than “appointment,” and it happens administratively at the Circuit Court Clerk’s Office, not before a judge, unless a dispute arises.
Small Estate Affidavit (Va. Code § 64.2-601, the “Virginia Small Estate Act”) – available when the decedent’s entire personal probate estate (excluding real estate) does not exceed $75,000, at least 60 days have passed since death, and no personal representative has been appointed or has a pending application in any jurisdiction. If a will exists, it must first be admitted to probate (recorded with the Clerk) even though no executor is appointed. As of July 1, 2026, the affidavit must be filed on the statewide form (CC-1685).
Single Small Asset Release (Va. Code § 64.2-602) – any person or institution holding a single asset of $35,000 or less may release it directly to a successor once 60 days have passed since death and no personal representative has qualified, without any affidavit required at all.
Real Estate Affidavit (Form CC-1612) – if the decedent owned only real estate, this can be recorded directly in land records without full probate. Real estate generally cannot be transferred through the small estate affidavit process.
Full Qualification / Administration – the standard path for larger or more complex estates. The personal representative appears before the Clerk, takes an oath, files the will and death certificate, and typically posts a surety bond. The estate is then supervised by a Commissioner of Accounts throughout administration.
Step 2: filing for administration
The person seeking to qualify as executor or administrator brings the original will (if any) and a certified death certificate to the Lee Circuit Court Clerk’s Office.
The Clerk reviews the will’s validity and admits it to probate.
The personal representative takes an oath and qualifies, posting a bond if required; the Clerk issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
The Commissioner of Accounts oversees the estate going forward.
The personal representative notifies creditors, pays valid debts, and manages estate assets.
Remaining assets are distributed to beneficiaries or heirs, and the estate is closed once final accounting is approved.
What it costs
Virginia imposes a PROBATE TAX on most wills admitted to probate and grants of administration: $1 state tax + $0.33 local tax for every $1,000 of estate value. No tax is imposed on estates valued at $15,000 or less.
Filing fees for qualification vary by estate size; confirm current Lee County fees directly.
Virginia does NOT impose a state estate tax or inheritance tax – repealed for deaths on or after July 1, 2007. Only the federal estate tax may apply, and only to very large estates.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
33640 Main St, Jonesville, VA 24263
(276) 546-1121
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
VOTER REGISTRAR
33640 Main St, Jonesville, VA 24263
(276) 346-7763
ELECTIONS
Lee County Electoral Board, 33640 Main St, Jonesville, VA 24263
(276) 346-7763
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health District
Lenowisco Health District, 189 Hospital Dr, Jonesville, VA 24263
(276) 346-2011
Department of Social Services
32485 Wilderness Rd, Jonesville, VA 24263
(276) 346-7711
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Cumberland Plateau Health District (Virginia Department of Health) – serves Lee County
Services: Immunizations, WIC, environmental health, vital records
Notes: Planning District One Behavioral Health Services, 34084 Wilderness Road, Jonesville, VA, (276) 346-3590, provides 24/7 emergency behavioral health services including walk-ins, home visits, and jail interventions – a separate resource from general public health
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