Point of Rocks—Appalachian Gateway

€ m Point of Rocks—Appalachian Gateway by Charles Rampp From thriving market town on a critical point in early transportation systems to a small, almost forgotten whistle-stop, Point of Rocks has lived through many changes, including a recent growth spurt. One of the important ways west from the Mid-Atlantic region, the Potomac's water gap in Catoctin Mountain received its present name from a "point" of rocks overhanging the river. The canal trace is still visible, its hiking and bike paths important assets of an extensive park, and long trains still haul bulk freight. A recent addition are the commuter trains—six daily each way—providing easy access to the Washington, D.C. area. Many old homes still boast their "flood marks"— while clustering close on small hills, housing developments rise. 36 A strong sense of community prevails. Founders Day in mid-August is the only largest event, but many other community get-togethers center around a refurnished elementary school where playing fields, swings, slides, and the mam building itself are being continually improved by a number of civic organizations. Many of the old settlers' names are preserved, some slightly changed. English , Scotch-Irish, and German predominate . Still a gateway to Appalachia, and also part of the hill country in its own right, the town began with a house erected in the early 1700s by George Snauffer, who gave what was soon a little settlement its first name: Trummelstown . A Swiss traveler, Luis Michel, had passed through the area just before, but didn't remain. He reported that the Piscataway Indians had built fish traps by the islands in the riverside where the town now stands. This area was the first part of Frederick County settled, and farmers began to grow crops of tobacco, corn, wheat, hemp, and rye on islands and on the bottomlands. Rafts were built and when high water was expected, the farmers loaded their crops and set out for Georgetown. Sometimes, when the river fell too rapidly, many rafts could be seen tied to the bank upstream from Great Falls, waiting for the river to swell again to make passage possible. The land lay within the enormous holdings of Charles Carrol of Carrolton, who eventually became the last survivor of the famous signers of '76. As the land was subdivided, the early holdings were given names distinctive of the origin or adventures of the new owners: Bayberry Tree, Huckleberry Hill, Flag Pond, and the unforgettable: "Hooks Neglect recovered by a Hard Struggle." This last farm covered seven hundred and forty-eight acres and was claimed or more probably reclaimed by James Hook in 1775. No conflicts with Indians are recorded, though there was a Tuscarora Village at the mouth of the Monocacy, a few miles downstream. An early traveler reported an Indian longhouse at Point of Rocks, along with their nearby burial ground. The town's status as a transportation gateway grew rapidly following July 4, 1827. While President John Quincy Adams was digging the first symbolic shovelful of earth from what was to be the C and O Canal, Charles Carrol was carrying out a similar ceremony for the B and O Railroad at Baltimore. The first important destination of both was to be Point of Rocks. Fighting off both cholera and legal disputes about the right-ofway on the narrow strip through Catoctin Water Gap, both railroad and canal were on their way west past the Point by 1832. The town grew, becoming the market for Loudon County, Virginia, which had no railroad, and was soon one of the largest grain-handling towns in the East. A wooden bridge built in 1850 was flood-destroyed and replaced with a double structure of white pine. One side of the bridge was for hauling iron ore to the works at Furnace Mountain, just across the river, and the other was for the rest of the traffic. Some of the worn mountain rocks proved valuable, containing a quartzite locally called "Calico Rock." Brightly Eolished pillars quarried from the islands ecame part of the National Capitol. The Civil War found the inhabitants divided in allegiance. Old records show that ten men from the Point joined the...