While many are aware that today marks the 250th anniversary of "the shot heard round the world" at the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775, it also marks the 250th anniversary of the James River batteau!
On that same day, more than 600 miles to the south, brothers Anthony and Benjamin Rucker first launched their distinctive new boat on a tributary of the James River at the foot of the Blue Ridge in Amherst County, Virginia. Thomas Jefferson witnessed the event and wrote, “Rucker's battoe is 50 f. long, 4 f. wide in the bottom & 6 f. wide at the top. She carries 11 hhds. [hogsheads] & draws 13 1/2 [inches] water.”
True to Jefferson's description, the James River batteaux were flat-bottomed pole boats, typically 6’ wide, 40’ to 70’ long, and drawing only about a foot of water. These craft were specially designed to carry as many as 10 to 15 hogsheads of tobacco, each weighing in around a thousand pounds, over the shallow, rocky waterways of the upper James. The design was so successful that it was quickly adapted to streams and rivers across the upland South from Maryland to Georgia, revolutionizing the culture and economy of the Southern piedmont.
The vast majority of James River boatmen were African American slaves and freedmen whose labor was the lifeblood of Virginia's economy. Afforded greater independence than blacks in other lines of work, period accounts also testify to the cultural impact of these men, with the James River providing a fertile ground for early African American banjo traditions.
If you are interested in exploring these unique aspects of our country's heritage, join the Southeast Coalition of Authentic Reenactors (SCAR) for Batteaux & Banjos, June 14–16 2025, at beautiful James River State Park deep in the heart of the Old Dominion! Batteaux and Banjos is held the third weekend in June every year to coincide with the James River Batteau Festival, one of the country's most unique grassroots festivals, during which participants from communities along the river and beyond recreate the eight-day, 120 mile trip from Lynchburg to Maiden’s Landing near Richmond on functioning replicas of the original James River batteaux. Visitors to Batteaux and Banjos will be able to watch the batteaux up close as they pass by the park headed downriver on Monday, June 16. If you're lucky, they may even stop and let you step aboard!
Barrow Wheary
While many are aware that today marks the 250th anniversary of "the shot heard round the world" at the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775, it also marks the 250th anniversary of the James River batteau!
On that same day, more than 600 miles to the south, brothers Anthony and Benjamin Rucker first launched their distinctive new boat on a tributary of the James River at the foot of the Blue Ridge in Amherst County, Virginia. Thomas Jefferson witnessed the event and wrote, “Rucker's battoe is 50 f. long, 4 f. wide in the bottom & 6 f. wide at the top. She carries 11 hhds. [hogsheads] & draws 13 1/2 [inches] water.”
True to Jefferson's description, the James River batteaux were flat-bottomed pole boats, typically 6’ wide, 40’ to 70’ long, and drawing only about a foot of water. These craft were specially designed to carry as many as 10 to 15 hogsheads of tobacco, each weighing in around a thousand pounds, over the shallow, rocky waterways of the upper James. The design was so successful that it was quickly adapted to streams and rivers across the upland South from Maryland to Georgia, revolutionizing the culture and economy of the Southern piedmont.
The vast majority of James River boatmen were African American slaves and freedmen whose labor was the lifeblood of Virginia's economy. Afforded greater independence than blacks in other lines of work, period accounts also testify to the cultural impact of these men, with the James River providing a fertile ground for early African American banjo traditions.
If you are interested in exploring these unique aspects of our country's heritage, join the Southeast Coalition of Authentic Reenactors (SCAR) for Batteaux & Banjos, June 14–16 2025, at beautiful James River State Park deep in the heart of the Old Dominion! Batteaux and Banjos is held the third weekend in June every year to coincide with the James River Batteau Festival, one of the country's most unique grassroots festivals, during which participants from communities along the river and beyond recreate the eight-day, 120 mile trip from Lynchburg to Maiden’s Landing near Richmond on functioning replicas of the original James River batteaux. Visitors to Batteaux and Banjos will be able to watch the batteaux up close as they pass by the park headed downriver on Monday, June 16. If you're lucky, they may even stop and let you step aboard!
See you on the River!
8 months ago | [YT] | 10