Bridgewater is an

incorporated town An incorporated town is a town that is a municipal corporation. Canada Incorporated towns are a form of local government in Canada, which is a responsibility of provincial rather than federal government. United States An incorporated town o ...

Rockingham County, Virginia Rockingham County is a county (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 83,757. Its county seat is the Independent city (United States), independent city ...

, United States. The population was 6,596 at the 2020 census. It is included in the Harrisonburg, Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

William Magill first settled along the North River in 1746, and the area became known as Magill's Ford. According to the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Historical Society, the book ''History of Rockingham County, Virginia'' said John Dinkle built a carding mill there around 1810 and the settlement came to be called Dinkletown. By 1815, the Dinkle family additionally had a sawmill, stave mill, and gristmill in operation and opened the Dinkle Tavern on South Main Street ( SR 42) in a bric
house that still stands
Dinkle is also spelled Dinkel; the current town's main east-west street ( SR 257) stil
carries the name Dinkel Avenue
within the town limits. The first bridge across the North River was built in 1820 along the town's north-south axis (present-day SR 42 / Main Street); and, for a time, the young community was known as Bridgeport. The Town received its charter from the

Virginia General Assembly The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, and the first elected legislative assembly in the New World. It was established on July 30, ...

on February 7, 1835, then incorporated as Bridgewater. Every February 7, the town holds an annual Charter Day celebration to commemorate the granting of the charter. Bridgewater College is located within the town, and was first established in 1880. The college has grown along with the town, now enrolling more than 1,800 students. Since the creation of the town in 1835, Bridgewater has endured six major floods, including a devastating flood in 1949 that claimed two lives. As a result, the

US Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wor ...

constructed a long earthen

levee A levee ( or ), dike (American English), dyke (British English; see American and British English spelling differences#Miscellaneous spelling differences, spelling differences), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is an elevated ridge, natural ...

to protect large portions of the town against future flooding. Since the mid-1990s, the town has held a "Summer's End Celebration" on

Labor Day Labor Day is a Federal holidays in the United States, federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday of September to honor and recognize the Labor history of the United States, American labor movement and the works and con ...

each year. The event has grown to include a 5k race, carnival rides, and live music, and is attended by thousands of people.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , nearly all of it being land. Most of the town is located within a bend of the North River near the confluence with Dry River. Floods have wrecked the town occasionally. The northern areas are partly shielded from flooding with an Army Corps of Engineers levee. The wooded

monadnock An inselberg or monadnock ( ) is an isolated rock hill, knob, ridge, or small mountain that rises abruptly from a gently sloping or virtually level surrounding plain. In Southern Africa, a similar formation of granite is known as a koppie, an ...

called Round Hill (elevation approx. 1750 feet) dominates the town's western skyline.

Transportation

The main highways providing access to Bridgewater are

Virginia State Route 42 State Route 42 (SR 42) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. Running parallel to and west of Interstate 81, SR 42 consists of three sections, with gaps filled by secondary routes in between. Some of SR 42 lies along the ol ...

and

Virginia State Route 257 State Route 257 (SR 257) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs from SR 902 and SR 924 near Briery Branch east to Interstate 81 (I-81) near Mount Crawford. SR 257 connects I-81 and U.S. Route 11 (US ...

. These two highways overlap from Bridgewater northwards to

Dayton Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

. SR 42 runs north-south and connects with U.S. Route 33 in Harrisonburg. SR 257 runs east-west and connects with

Interstate 81 Interstate 81 (I-81) is a north–south (physically northeast–southwest) Interstate Highway in the eastern part of the United States. Its southern terminus is at Interstate 40, I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee, Dandridge, Tennessee; its nort ...

near Mount Crawford.

Demographics

As of the 2020 census, 6,596 people, 2,137 households in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was 2,618.5 people per square mile (941.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 89.0%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 5.2%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, with no other races exceeding one percent. For comparison, the 2010 census reflected a population 92.2%

and 2.4%

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 4.1% of the population in 2020, down from 4.9% in 2010. According to the 2011-2015 American Community Survey 5-year estimates, the median income for a household in the town was $55,205, and for a family was $62,483. Males had a median income of $45,533 versus $36,919 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $24,854. About 4.7% of families and 5.4% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 6.7% of those under age 18 and 3.8% of those age 65 or over.

Community policing and safety

Chief Phillip Read leads a ten-officer police department, which also polices the town of Mt. Crawford. Bridgewater consistently ranks in the top 10 safest communities in Virginia. Most recently, Bridgewater was ranked #2 by Safewise in their “Virginia’s 20 Safest Cities of 2020” based on the town's low “violent crimes per capita” and “property crimes per capita” as listed in the FBI's Uniform Crime Report. Bridgewater also is frequently ranked as one of the best places to live in Virginia, most recently ranked #3 in “Best Places to Live in Virginia for 2020” by HomeSnacks. Bridgewater's police department puts an emphasis on community policing.

Parks and recreation

The Town of Bridgewater is home to 13 parks, totaling almost 100 acres. The parks provide everything from picnic shelters, BBQ grills, riverwalks and fishing, bird watching, a fitness trail, playgrounds, tennis courts, and athletic fields. The parks and recreation also include a nine-hole golf course and an 18-hole miniature golf course, an arboretum, and an ice skating rink.

Generations Park

Opened in 2015, Generations Park features ice skating during the winter season. Ice skating season begins on Thanksgiving Day and is open daily through the beginning of March. The skating is free for all town residents who present a B-Rec pass. A nominal fee is charged for non-residents. Throughout the rest of the year, Generations Park is home to pickleball courts and hosts the After Dark at Gen Park concert series and Eve of Independence celebration.

Sandy Bottom Par-3 and Mini-Golf

Located at 610 East College St., Sandy Bottom Park is home to Bridgewater's Par-3 nine-hole golf course, and an 18-hole miniature golf course. The park facilities also include a practice green, restrooms, several picnic tables, two gazebos, and ample parking. The Par-3 and Mini-Golf remain open from April 1 through October 31. The courses are free for all town residents who present a B-Rec pass. A nominal fee is charged for non-residents. Mini-Golf is also available for private parties.

Oakdale Park

The biggest and busiest of the town parks, Oakdale is home to the Summer's End Celebration as well as the North River Library and the Bridgewater Little League Program. The park has three picnic areas (Shelter Nos. 1 and 2 each have 10 tables, and Shelter No. 3 has 16 tables with restroom facilities attached). Park amenities include a basketball court, a four-square court, football/soccer field and walking track, two playgrounds (one for preschool children, the other for school-aged children), BBQ grills and water spigots at the shelters, four horseshoe pits, plenty of off-street parking, and open areas to run and play. Baseball field #4 is available for public use.

Other park features

* Bridgeview Park: home to quarter mile fitness walking trail, children's fitness center, and riverfront bench swings.

* Edgebriar Park: has a handicap-accessible fishing pier, backgammon and chess inlaid game tables, a water garden with a waterfall and a variety of fish and plants, riverfront swings, a gazebo, and a Civil War historical marker. * Wildwood Park: allows fishing and includes a playground, wooded trails, picnic shelter, BBQ grill, and a platform called Downrush Vista overlooking the North River. * Wynant Park: this small pocket park has a playground, hammock, and picnic table. * Bird Sanctuary: with 3/4 of an acre, this park has quiet seclusion and shelter provided by trees and shrubs for bird watching. * Dinkel-Harris Gateway at Warm Springs Turnpike Park: details the historical significance of what was once known as the Warm Springs Turnpike. * Cooks Creek Arboretum: this eight-acre park includes many trees planted by Bridgewater's Turner Ashby High School students, a walking path, and several picnic tables. * Harrison Park: home to the Doug Will Tennis Center with two indoor tennis courts and two

pickleball Pickleball is a racket or paddle sport in which two or four players use a smooth-faced paddle to hit a perforated, hollow plastic ball over a net until one side is unable to return the ball or commits a rule infraction. Pickleball is played i ...

courts as well as an outdoor basketball court and playground. * Whitelow Park: named for Bridgewater resident Carlyle Whitelow, this park includes a walking trail, play structure, gaga pit, and swing set. * Veterans Park: a memorial park honoring Bridgewater veterans.

Sipe Center

In 2019, Bridgewater opened the Sipe Center as a performing arts venue, movie theater, and municipal meeting hall. In 2017, the town purchased the deteriorated 19th-century W.H. Sipe Company, Inc. building (located at the intersection of Main and College streets) and, due to the old wooden hulk's structural issues, demolished it. The Sipe Center, which replaced the old building, is a purpose-built multi-use theater with some exterior decorative elements inspired by the original Sipe building. Sipe Center shows weekly movies and hosts diverse monthly performances including live music, magic shows, and children's theatre. The town council meetings are also held in the Sipe Center.

References

External links

Official websiteSipe Center websiteCommercial site BridgewaterVa.com
{{authority control Towns in Rockingham County, Virginia Populated places established in 1835 1835 establishments in Virginia Towns in Virginia