Mount Solon is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

Augusta County Augusta County is a county in the Shenandoah Valley on the western edge of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The second-largest county of Virginia by total area, it completely surrounds the independent cities of Staunton and ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, United States, southwest of Harrisonburg and north of Staunton. It is part of the Staunton– Waynesboro Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

The earliest settlers of Mount Solon were the Scots-Irish and the

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

. In 1799, James Cochran, of minor notable political fame further south in North Carolina, established a small mill and residence on the small creek, which would eventually run through the center of town. Owing to the mill's and the town's centrality between the two growing markets of Harrisonburg and Staunton, several businesses sprang up, and the once-isolated town began to prosper. In the early 1900s, there existed a Ford dealership, a gas station, the Mount Solon Bank, Cochran's mill, and a few other shops gathered around an expanding downtown. Moreover, the ill-fated Chesapeake and Western Railroad (C&W) ran an important rail line through Mount Solon, thus ensuring secure connections to a variety of external agricultural markets throughout the region. The

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, however, severely impacted both the

Shenandoah Valley The Shenandoah Valley () is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the eastern panhandle of West Virginia in the United States. The Valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the east ...

and the town of Mount Solon. Following the closure of the old mill in the late 1930s, many townspeople left Mount Solon in search of better jobs. When the C&W withdrew its support, and was later consolidated with

Norfolk Southern The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...

, the once-thriving little town became a

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

virtually overnight. Today, only a few dilapidated local shops remain in town and few indicators of Mount Solon's former glory days remain intact. The Old Mount Solon Bank presents a fine example of postbellum architecture and the recently restored Lincoln Manor House at Spring Meadows Farm provides an excellent illustration of a Shenandoah Valley plantation house. Local lore says that around the first quarter of the 20th century, explosives were used to blow a hole in the northwest corner (newer brickwork repair visible in photo) during a robbery. Long Glade Farm and the Mt. Zion Schoolhouse are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

Mount Solon in the Civil War

During the Valley Campaign of the American Civil War, General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson held a meeting with General Richard Ewell in Mount Solon on May 17, 1862. Gen. Jackson left the

Battle of McDowell The Battle of McDowell, also known as the Battle of Sitlington's Hill, was fought on May 8, 1862, near McDowell, Virginia, as part of Confederate States Army, Confederate Major General (CSA), Major General Stonewall Jackson's 1862 Jackson's Val ...

for Mount Solon where he met up with Gen. Ewell.

Attractions

Mount Solon is known most for Natural Chimneys Regional Park, which is owned by

and represents a favorite regional recreation space. The name originates from the seven towering rock formations located inside of the park, the tallest of which is 120 feet. These limestone formations seem like chimneys from a certain viewpoint. Besides the Olympic-sized swimming pool at Natural Chimneys, there are also numerous campground sites throughout the park. On the third Saturday in August every year, a

jousting Jousting is a medieval and renaissance martial game or hastilude between two combatants either on horse or on foot. The joust became an iconic characteristic of the knight in Romantic medievalism. The term is derived from Old French , ultim ...

tournament is held at Natural Chimneys. This is the oldest continually held sporting event in the United States. Due to the importance of this equestrian tournament, the National Jousting Hall of Fame is located at Natural Chimneys. Currently, Mount Solon plays host to the Red Wing Roots Music Festival, which emphasizes bluegrass and Americana musical acts.

Stokesville Observatory

Close by Mount Solon is the Stokesville Observatory, with the telescope owned and operated by the

James Madison University James Madison University (JMU, Madison, or James Madison) is a public university, public research university in Harrisonburg, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1908, the institution was renamed in 1938 in honor of the fourth president of the ...

Physics Department. The observatory is not open to the general public, although it is open to reservations for special tours.SHENANDOAH VALLEY STARGAZERS
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References

External links

{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Augusta County, Virginia 1799 establishments in Virginia Unincorporated communities in Virginia