VA EDITION
Ever wonder what those highway signs say?
Now you’ll know.
Hands-Free History reads historical markers as you pass them, through any connected device. So sit back and enjoy the ride with Hands-Free History!
GPS status · Location off
Ready when you are. Tap GO to start a trip and find a story.
2,688 Virginia markers
Want a 30-second overview?Turn On Location. Choose Audio. Then Press GO.
You’re on Autoplay
I’m Hope, and I’ll be your narrator today.
I’m on autoplay, so I’ll be narrating and advancing the app for you throughout your journey. If you want to mute my voice, just tap “Audio Off”. Or if you want to pause the story, tap “Pause Story” and I’ll stop right where I am. Let’s get going!
Autoplay: I read and turn the pages. Mute: my voice off. Pause: stop me where I am.
Search in progress
Searching continues until you close the app.
I’m Hope. And I’m Michael. We’re your narrators for Hands-Free History. When you press GO, we’ll start searching and notify you when we find the next historical marker. The road is calling. Let’s go!
Marker story. Official marker.
Marker inscription.
Audio coming soon. Read the story below.
Virginia Department of Historic Resources.
Source: Virginia Department of Historic Resources.
Stories play in recorded narrator voices when a recording exists. Otherwise read the story below.
30-second How To Overview
Tap Audio On, then tap GO. Mount your phone before driving and connect it to Bluetooth. Hands-Free History searches silently and reads each story it finds. Pause Story and Play Story pause and resume only the voice, never the search. The search continues until the app is closed. Only use your phone when stopped.
Trips save automatically. Found stories save automatically to Saved Stories.
Only use your phone when stopped. Location is used to find markers near you.
Saved Trips
No trips yet. Turn Location on and press GO to start one.
Saved Stories
No saved stories yet. Find a marker with GO to save it here automatically.
VA edition — Virginia Department of Historic Resources Historical Highway Markers.
Stories play in recorded narrator voices when a recording exists. Otherwise read the story below.
Your saved trips and stories are stored locally and are not shared.
Show Me How To
- Tap Location: Off to turn it on and allow location access. Tap Location: On to stop tracking.
- Tap Audio Off to turn audio on. Audio On turns audio off. If a story has no recording yet, read it below.
- Tap GO to start a trip and find the nearest marker. Pause Story pauses only the story audio; it never stops the search. Play Story resumes the story audio.
- Found stories are saved automatically to Saved Stories.
Only use your phone when stopped. Location is used to find markers near you.