Brown's Island 5.74

Brown's Island is an artificial continental island on the James River in Richmond, Virginia, formed by the Haxall Canal. Part of the city's James River Park, it is the popular venue of a large number of outdoor concerts and festivals in the spring and summer, such as the weekly Friday Cheers concert series or Dominion Riverrock. The Rivanna Subdivision Trestle crosses over the island.GeographyBrown's Island was formed in 1789 with the beginnings of the Haxall Canal. For many years, there were two islands, Brown's and Johnson's Island with a spillway in between. Today, the islands are one.HistoryPre-industrialThe island's first settler was Elijah Brown, for whom it was named. He acquired the land in 1826. A later owner named Neilson tried to rename the island as Neilson's Island, but it did not last.During the American Civil War, the island was the home of the Confederate States Laboratory. The C.S. Laboratory produced ammunition, friction primers, percussion caps, and other ordnance for the Confederate war effort. On Friday, March 13, 1863, an explosion occurred in a section of the laboratory that killed forty five individuals and left twenty three others injured. Most of the killed and injured were young girls who were the labor force used on the island.Industrial ageIn 1894, the Richmond Union Passenger Railway opened a coal power plant on the island. In 1899, a hydroelectric power plant on the island's east side, running off the Haxall Canal. Virginia Power also opened a coal power plant nearby in 1936.