Cootes Store is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either hav ...

Rockingham County, Virginia Rockingham County is a county located in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 83,757. Its county seat is the independent city of Harrisonburg. Along with Harrisonburg, Rockingham County forms the Harrisonburg ...

, United States. Located in the

Shenandoah Valley The Shenandoah Valley () is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Rid ...

, it is situated north of Harrisonburg, south of Bergton, and west of Timberville. The border with

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the ...

is nearby, as is the edge of

George Washington National Forest The George Washington and Jefferson National Forests is an administrative entity combining two U.S. National Forests into one of the largest areas of public land in the Eastern United States. The forests cover of land in the Appalachian Mountain ...

. Cootes Store is within a gorge where the

North Fork Shenandoah River The Shenandoah River is the principal tributary of the Potomac River, long with two forks approximately long each,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed August 15, 2011 in t ...

breaks, at the crossroads of Route 613 and Route 259.

Etymology

The name of the community is derived from that of Samuel Cootes, owner of the

eponym An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

ous store. He was a prominent local landholder and member of the community, who later served as a member of the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two parts of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...

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in the '' Rockingham Register'', dated Saturday, January 23, 1836

History

Isolated villages needed a general supply store, and Cootes supplied that need for two Virginia towns, Cootes Store and Dovesville (renamed Bergton). Located a mile from Brocks Gap, Cootes Store was a rendezvous point for working men meeting on a Saturday afternoon, given its strategical location. Historic photographs reveal that from earlier times it was always an agricultural community with cowboys. In 1870, merchants began using the Shenandoah River from Brock's Gap to Cootes Store for transporting people and goods. By 1900, Cootes Store had a one-room public school. In 1936, Cootes Store and Bergton were affected by the Great Flood. At worst, the water was four feet deep and washed away many barns, cottages and other features in the area. Today, the community consists of many barns.

Transportation

Around 1880, a covered bridge was built over an older bridge at Cootes Store to cross the river's North Fork, placing the road at a higher level. Like other towns along the Shenandoah River, Cootes Store also boasted a swinging bridge.Turner & Ritchie, p. 42 Cootes Evergreen Magazine 1921

Gallery

File:Cootes Store2.jpg, File:Cootes Store3.jpg, File:Cootes Store4.jpg, File:Cootes Store5.jpg,

References

External links

Official site
{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Rockingham County, Virginia Unincorporated communities in Virginia