Woolen Mills to Riverview Park w/a Little History - Easy 3.5 Miles - Dogs OK
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We will meet in the lower parking lot near the foot bridge over Moore's Creek, then walk up the hill to East Market Street, where it terminates at the Rivanna River.
As early as 1785, mills had been established here at the confluence of those two bodies of water, where an early dam stood. On the last day of the brief March 1865 Civil War occupation by Union troops under command of Generals Phil Sheridan and George Armstrong Custer, the mill was inadvertently set afire while soldiers were busily tearing up the railroad tracks. They also burned the Free Bridge over the Rivanna River.
Prior to the war, the mill produced uniforms for military schools across the country, including West Point. Despite another fire in 1888, the mill continued in operation until the 1960's.
On our way to Riverview Park, we pass several houses built for mill employees, the company store that was built in the late 1700's, and the historic chapel.