Residents prepare for 41s James River Batteau Festival
Haden Tolbert , 10 News
LYNCHBURG, Va. – It is almost time to get in the water for the 41st Annual James River Batteau Festival.
The eight-day event highlights authentic merchant boat replicas, which were key in the beginning stages of Virginia’s economic prosperity.
Beginning on the Lynchburg waterfront, the festival moves along a 200-year-old route, stopping each day at historic towns and communities.
“My hope is that they are going to take away: an appreciation for a history that is vital to our development as a country that not that many people know about; they’re gonna take away some of the history lessons of the enslaved people and the freed people who were running these boats - and they’re also, my biggest hope, is that they are gonna come away with an appreciation of the river and the ecology around it.”
Daniel Tucker, Chairman
It all begins this Saturday and the journey will end up in the Richmond area at Maiden’s Landing June 27.
