The 1829 Rappahannock Canal extended 50 miles upriver with locks and dams, built to carry Spotsylvania gold ore and other cargo to Fredericksburg. After the 1849 California gold rush collapsed Virginia mining and railroads arrived in the valley, the canal company went bankrupt and closed in 1853. The lower section was sold to Fredericksburg Water Power Co. and converted into a mill race; canal traces survive along the Canal Path and Old Mill Park.
Quick facts
- ·The 1829 Rappahannock Canal extended 50 miles upriver with locks and dams, built to carry Spotsylvania gold ore and other cargo to Fredericksburg. After the 1849 California gold rush collapsed Virginia mining and railroads arrived in the valley, the canal company went bankrupt and closed in 1853. The lower section was sold to Fredericksburg Water Power Co. and converted into a mill race; canal traces survive along the Canal Path and Old Mill Park.
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