Occoquan () is a town in eastern

Prince William County Prince William County lies beside the Potomac River in the Commonwealth of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 482,204, making it Virginia's second most populous county. The county seat is the independent city of Manassas. A part ...

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 ...

founded in 1804. The population was 934 at the 2010 United States Census. The current mayor is Earnest W. Porta Jr. Today, the town is a restored artists' community, with shops, outdoor dining,

ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...

walks, and a town boat

dock The word dock () in American English refers to one or a group of human-made structures that are involved in the handling of boats or ships (usually on or near a shore). In British English, the term is not used the same way as in American Engl ...

, as well as historic buildings dating back to the 19th century.

History

Occoquan is derived from an Algonquian Doeg Indian word, meaning "at the end of the water". Located on the

Occoquan River The Occoquan River is a tributary of the Potomac River in Northern Virginia, where it serves as part of the boundary between Fairfax and Prince William counties. The river is a scenic area, and several local high schools and colleges use the r ...

, Occoquan was long a site of

indigenous peoples There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

' habitation. Like the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

colonists A settler or a colonist is a person who establishes or joins a permanent presence that is separate to existing communities. The entity that a settler establishes is a settlement. A settler is called a pioneer if they are among the first settli ...

after them, they relied on the river for transportation and trade, as well as fish. Early in the 1600s Capt. John Smith sailed and explored the Occoquan River. In 1608, when the first European reached Northern Virginia, the Tauxenent tribe (also known by the English as the "Dogues") had its main village at the mouth of the Occoquan River. This tribe was more closely associated with neighbors such as the

Piscataway Piscataway may refer to: *Maryland (place) **Piscataway, Maryland, an unincorporated community ** Piscataway Creek, Maryland ** Piscataway Park, historical park at the mouth of Piscataway Creek ** Siege of Piscataway, siege of Susquehannock fort sou ...

s (located across the

Potomac River The Potomac River () is in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and flows from the Potomac Highlands in West Virginia to Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography D ...

in what is now Maryland) than the other Algonquian-speaking tribes to the south. The local chief was called a Tayac, who was subservient to an "emperor" located in Prince George’s County. By 1765, Anglo-American colonists had established an industrial settlement at Occoquan, with

grist mills A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separat ...

and

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

warehouses. The Merchants Mill established by

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

Nathaniel Ellicot may have been the first automated grist mill in the nation. It operated for 175 years until destroyed by fire. During the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, the post office passed letters and packages between North and South. River silting reduced ship traffic to Occoquan and ended its days as a port, as did the shift in traffic to

railroads Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to road ...

Local attractions

A number of structures in town, including many in the downtown commercial area, are part of the Occoquan Historic District 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 ...

(NRHP). Rockledge, the former house of the town's founder, is also listed as a significant structure on the NRHP. Historic houses in Occoquan include a 17th-century house at 206 Mill Street and Rockledge Manor, a Georgian mansion built in 1758 by John Ballandine and British architect

William Buckland William Buckland Doctor of Divinity, DD, Royal Society, FRS (12 March 1784 – 14 August 1856) was an English theologian, geologist and paleontology, palaeontologist. His work in the early 1820s proved that Kirkdale Cave in North Yorkshire h ...

. Two hotels in the town date back to the early 1800s: the Hamill Hotel built in 1804 and the Occoquan Inn built in 1810. The oldest brick structure in Occoquan, the Hamill Hotel once housed

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

troops under General

Wade Hampton Wade Hampton may refer to the following people: People *Wade Hampton I (1752–1835), American soldier in Revolutionary War and War of 1812 and U.S. congressman * Wade Hampton II (1791–1858), American plantation owner and soldier in War of 1812 * ...

. The Mill House Museum in Occoquan is operated daily except Wednesdays by the Occoquan Historical Society. The Odd Fellows Hall on 308 Commerce Street dates back to 1889 but was renovated to add an upstairs porch.

Geography

Occoquan is located at (38.682916, −77.260830) on the north side of the peninsula known as Linton Neck. 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 0.2 square mile (0.5 km²) of which, 0.2 square mile (0.4 km²) is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1 km²) (15.79%) is water. Occoquan lies on the south bank of the

at the

Fall Line A fall line (or fall zone) is the area where an upland region and a coastal plain meet and is noticeable especially the place rivers cross it, with resulting rapids or waterfalls. The uplands are relatively hard crystalline basement rock, and the ...

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 759 people, 418 households, and 186 families living 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 4,868.7 people per square mile (1,831.6/km²). There were 443 housing units at an average density of 2,841.7 per square mile (1,069.0/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 85.51%

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 ...

, 8.17%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

, 0.53% Native American, 1.58% Asian, 0.13%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 1.58% from other races, and 2.50% from two or more races.

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 6.46% of the population. There were 418 households, out of which 11.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.6% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 6.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 55.3% were non-families. 45.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.82 and the average family size was 2.54. In the town, the population was spread out, with 11.1% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 36.2% from 25 to 44, 33.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.8 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 92.3 males. The median income for a household in the town was $48,750, and the median income for a family was $77,420. Males had a median income of $50,938 versus $30,833 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 $33,007. None of the families and 5.7% of the population were living 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 no under eighteens and 14.9% of those over 64. As of the census of 2010, there were 934 people living in the town of Occoquan.

Transportation

Primary access to Occoquan is provided via

Virginia State Route 123 State Route 123 (SR 123) or Virginia State Route 123 (VA 123) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs from U.S. Route 1 in Virginia, U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Woodbridge, Virginia, Woodbridge north to th ...

, which runs north to

Interstate 66 Interstate 66 (I-66) is a 76.32 mile east–west Interstate Highway in the East Coast of the United States, eastern United States. The highway runs from an interchange with Interstate 81 in Virginia, I-81 near Middletown, Virginia, on its w ...

and south to

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

. Additional local roads provide access to neighboring portions of unincorporated Prince William County.

Notable people

References

External links

Town of Occoquan

Prince William County Government

Lake Ridge - Occoquan Patch: A local community news site covering Occoquan and the surrounding area.

Official Occoquan guide to shopping, dining, and event information

Friends of the Occoquan
{{Authority control Towns in Prince William County, Virginia Populated places established in 1765 1765 establishments in the Colony of Virginia