Scottsville, Virginia has an outdoor park called Canal Basin Square that's a fun day trip for people who love canals.
Located on a horseshoe bend in the James River, Scottsville’s outdoor transportation history park is on the site of an old James River and Kanawha Canal turning basin.
There are eight exhibits in the park that tell the story of transportation from the time of the Monacan Indians through the canal era to the railroads. The signage makes for nice self-guided tours from dusk to dark. A pathway leads up the levee where visitors can take a scenic walk along the James River.
Period Boats
The park features a bateau replica – that’s one way people did river travel in the 18th and 19th centuries on the James in Virginia -- which participated for a number of years in the annual Bateau Festival held for a week each June with a stop in Scottsville. There is also a canal lock built to scale and a packet boat under construction by volunteers. The park is also a Virginia Civil War Trails site.
The brainchild of none other than George Washington, the James River and Kanawha Canal project was designed to open a water route to the west and facilitate freight and passenger transportation.
Scottsville’s Canal Basin Square is located at 249 Main Street on Route 6 near the intersection with Route 20 to Charlottesville. The town lies 68 miles west of Richmond in Albemarle County.
For overnighters, there are six quaint inns and historic Bed & Breakfasts in Scottsville.
