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James Rumsey Monument

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1914. North end of Mill St. overlooking the Potomac River
  • (West Virginia Collection within the Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division)
  • James Rumsey Monument (Rhonda Reymond)

A fluted granite column of the Ionic order, standing 75 feet above a tall plinth and capped with a stone globe, commemorates the first successful public demonstration of a steamboat, which James Rumsey conducted in 1786 on the Potomac River far below. The platform around the column affords a panoramic view of the Potomac valley and the many piers that have supported successive bridges at this crossing.

Writing Credits

Author: 
S. Allen Chambers Jr.

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