White's Ferry

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White's Ferry on the Potomac River

White's Ferry is a cable ferry service operating across the Potomac River, north of Leesburg in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. Located six miles west of Poolesville, Maryland, it is the only ferry still operating on the Potomac River. The General Jubal A. Early carries cars, bicycles, and pedestrians between Maryland and Virginia.

1 History
2 Current operations
3 Location
4 External links
5 References

[edit] History

Early settlers recognized that the relatively still waters of the Potomac River at the location would provide an ideal location for a ferry. The first known ferry operation at the location was Conrad's Ferry in 1817. After the Civil War, former Confederate officer Elijah V. White purchased it and made many improvements to the service. He named his ferry boat in honor of his former commander, General Jubal Anderson Early.

More than a convenient river crossing, the ferry provided a place of commerce between the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal and the surrounding community. Farmers from Virginia used the ferry to get their crops to markets in Maryland and Washington, D.C. via the canal. In the days before modern refrigeration, a farmer's access to reliable transportation meant the difference between prosperity and watching a year's worth of work rot in storage. Together, the ferry and the canal shortened the time it took farmers to get their goods to market. To further assist them, White built a granary along the canal to store grains until they could be loaded and shipped via the canal. Its stone remains can still be seen in the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park near mile marker 35.5.

[edit] Current operations

White's Ferry continues to serve the needs of its local community. However, on September 13, 2006, the United States Coast Guard ordered White's Ferry to be shut down, because the operator is unlicensed and because of unspecified safety concerns. The ferry is continuing to operate in spite of this order.^[1] Subsequently, the Coast Guard chose to allow White's Ferry to remain open pending appeal of said safety violations, but the Ferry risks an $8000 fine.^[2]

The hard rock group Clutch, from nearby Germantown, Maryland, titled a song after White's Ferry on their 2007 album From Beale Street to Oblivion.