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1734
Occoquan
was identified as a town early.
There
were public warehouses for tobacco, which was then shipped to many
foreign
ports.
1749
Charles
Ewell and John Ballendine established iron furnaces on the Occoquan River
in 1755.
1757
A water
powered Country Grist Mill operated until 1890.
1758
John
Ballendine built Rockledge, his 11 room home overlooking the town. Ballendine,
an industrial entrepreneur of his
time,
is considered the founder of Occoquan.
1759
Merchant's
Mill, so called because it was owned by merchants
from
the local towns and communities, became the second grist mill in Occoquan.
It operated until 1924 when it was destroyed by fire.
1765
The Miller's
House (now the Mill House Museum operated by Historic Occoquan, Inc.) was
built and is the only
remaining
part of the Merchant's Mill.
1790
Merchant's
Mill became fully a automated grist mill. The grain was completely processed
from barge or wagon to the mill
and returned
to the carrier with the aid of one man. George Washington used this automated
operation as a model for the
Mount
Vernon Grist Mill.
1795
A permanent
bridge located at the site of the present foot bridge replaced the ferry.
This Pratt Iron Truss Bridge served
the Great
Mail route for Washington, D. C. to the south. This meant that all southbound
traffic-the equivalent of US Route #1
and #95
passed through the town of Occoquan. The bridge was destroyed by Hurricane
Agnes in 1972. A new bridge located
several
hundred yards downstream was opened in 1974.
1804
Hammill
Hotel was built by William Selectman to meet the need for accommodations
on the main route to the south. The
red brick
hotel, which is still standing, is located on the corner of Union and Commerce
Streets. It served as headquarters for
Confederate
General Wade Hampton during the winter of 1862.
1804
Occoquan
was formally established as a town and chartered by the General Assembly.
It was located on 31 acres of
land
owned by Nathaniel Ellicott, James Campbell and Luke Wheeler.
1828
One of
the first Cotton mills in Virginia was built. It was four stories high.
Both wool and cotton were processed on the
1000
spindles. It was destroyed during the Civil War by the Union Army.
Early
1800's
Occoquan
consisted of: 50 dwellings, bake houses, several mercantile shops, saw
mills, a cotton
factory, hotels
and lodging
establishments, 2 flour and grist mills,
eaterys and barrooms, forges, active shipping of railroad ties by river
barge
1885
Ebenezer
Baptist Church was established by former slave Lewis Henry Bailey. This
church, located on the corner of
Washington
and Commerce Streets, is still active.
Mid
19th Century
As early
as 1836 Occoquan began to decline as a thriving industrial town. This was
principally caused by:
1.Estuaries and the Occoquan River began to fill with silt.
2.In time, vessels could no longer reach the mill.
3.Farming moved further to the back country.
4.The Orange and Alexandria Railroad diverted trade from Occoquan.
5.The Great Southern Mail Route disappeared from the streets of Occoquan.
1850-1950
Occoquan
had become, mainly, a convenience center with the decline of industrial
operations. The flour mill
continued
to operate until 1924. There were also grocery stores, general merchandise
stores, banks, churches, a theater, a drug
store,
boat rentals and fishing supplies.
1950-Present
Occoquan
is experiencing a new kind of growth. It has gone from an industrial center
to one of small businesses.
It now
has shops in which to buy gifts, novelties, books, and antiques. There
are restaurants and sandwich shops.
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