The Palms has been a Lexington tradition since 1975. Originally, the Palms opened as an ice cream shop called the Palms Parlor. However, in 1984 the Palms began its transition into a restaurant and bar. Wade Leslie owned the Palms from 1986 to 2006,…

The College Inn was founded in 1957 by the Neofitse family. According to W&L student Will Massie Jr. “It began as a pool room and evolved into the College Inn when it added the restaurant. In 1963 the Neofitses bought the building and added a dance…

William Alexander, for whom the building is now named, came to America as a Scotch-Irish immigrant in the mid-to-late 18th century and became one of Lexington’s first settlers. Originally, Alexander’s family ran a store at Jordan’s Point, and…

According to a town map from 1787, plot Plot 21 of Lexington, Virginia was originally granted to James Lyle. Though Lyle owned this land, he never did much with it. In fact, this property changed hands on multiple occasions without much use at all…

In 1974 on a dreary day in Lexington, VA a stranger wandered into to town. His name was Mel Greenberg. He was, by all appearances, a director. Soon he began making promises about filming a movie in Lexington; it was to be a Civil War movie. Before…

Following cadet Thomas Blackburn's murder at the hands of law student Charles Christian, Christian was immediately apprehended while still covered in the blood of his victim. Despite the fact that there had been many a row between the two men, the…

Love drives people to do crazy things. .Some have even said that love is worth killing for. Such was the case one Sunday afternoon on January 15, 1854. A man in love with a woman who refused his affections committed murder in an effort to procure his…

Due to the trusting nature of the Lexington community, the townspeople were not immediately suspicious of Charles Figgat's absence. His brother-in-law actually believed that Figgat had journeyed to check on assets he had outside of Lexington. The…

Estelle’s Grill was founded in 1969 by Estelle and Michelle Bane. The duo remodeled the building into a mismatched bar and grill eatery; “Due to lack of funds original plans for painting a wall VMI colors and a wall W&L colors were never…

The day was February 14, 1895. It started out as a perfectly normal day with the townsfolk of Lexington. The birds were singing and people were roaming the streets carrying out their business. They were completely unaware of the betrayal that was…