Pumphouse Park: A Shining Swath of Nature

BY KATHERINE CALOS - Staff Writer
Published: August 18, 2008

What would Richmond be without the James River? Certainly not the city it was, the city it is, or the city it will be.

Its lifeblood would be gone, leaving Richmond without access to markets in the Colonial era, without water-powered industries during the Industrial Revolution, without drinking water and the majestic pump house that pushed it into homes, without fishermen catching dinner or just a thrill, without boaters challenging the rapids or lolling in the still water, without a swath of nature streaking through the heart of the city.

Without the river, Richmond wouldn’t be Richmond.

At an annual picnic for Friends of James River Park, members of the organization told why.

“I love living near the water. I particularly love the rough part,” said Kirsten Taranto, who lives on Church Hill near the view that gave Richmond its name because it reminded William Byrd of a river bend at Richmond-upon-Thames in England. “I can sit at Belle Isle on the benches and hear the water going over the stones. The main reason I like living here is the river,” she said.  Active Appreciation Stephanie Saccone’s appreciation is more active.

“I like to go jogging or riding my bike around Belle Isle. In the morning, around 7 or 8 a.m., there’s never anybody out. It’s a perfect run or bike ride.”

Check our photos
of the Pumphouse Park, part of the James River Park System

“I like it,” she said, “because it’s peaceful.” If there’s a symbol of the city’s on-again, off-again appreciation of the river, it may be the Pumphouse where the Friends hold their annual gathering.

Built in 1882, it looks more like a Gothic church than a utilities building. It fell into ruins after it was abandoned in 1926, and now it’s being gradually restored as part of the James River Park System. 

Cutting-edge Technology

“Richmond was on the cutting edge of technology to get water from pipes instead of springs or wells,” said Ralph White, park manager, as he led a tour group inside the 8-foot-thick stone walls.

Powered by water from the Kanawha Canal, the Pumphouse sent a dinner-plate-sized column of water uphill to the reservoir in Byrd Park. It represented the epitome of science and optimism about the approaching century.

“The public loved it,” White said. “They had a walkway so people could marvel at the pumps that made life so easy — just go to the kitchen and turn the tap.”

A double ceiling over the pumps was needed to mount a gantry crane for working on the machinery.

“They had a massive roof, massive stone walls, people coming to marvel. Why not make further use of the development?” White asked. “And, they did. They used it as a dance floor.” The second floor was an open-air pavilion.

In 1905, a new wing included a furnace to keep the water from freezing. Experiments with water-powered electric turbines proved so successful that the original equipment was bypassed. Growth of the city to the west required more water than the single pumping station could handle. By 1926, the Pumphouse had outlived its purpose.

Twice the building was sold to church groups, for $1 each time, White said.

“It was so well built that they couldn’t get out stone one.” 

Turning it Around

Vandals damaged the building in the 1980s before it was turned over to Parks and Recreation. Volunteers worked to undo the vandalism and the consequences of neglect. In one of the more impressive instances, Chris Knoop devoted a year to carpentry, using a dozen carjacks to raise the roof and repair a corner.

This summer, attention has turned to electricity for the building and bateau rides on the canal that once powered the building.

The idea is to offer a civilized way to appreciate Richmond’s natural resource.

“We want to reach out to a demographic that’s not catered to,” White said. “We’ve reached out to the buff athletes, to the wilderness fans, but the sedate adults have not been catered to. “My dream would be to have chamber music on Sunday afternoon and tours. You could listen and absorb the ambience.”

Along Richmond’s river, people have been dreaming for centuries. Often enough, those dreams come true.

Things to do in James River Park

Ralph White, park manager, suggests some lesser-known pleasures.

Ride a bike. Riverside Drive at the Pony Pasture is scenic and has a speed limit of 15 mph, making it safe for road cyclists. The service road through the park is an easy introduction to off-road gravel. Belle Isle’s loop is fairly gentle. The back trails on both sides of the river can be challenging.

Go snorkeling. From the ramp on Tredegar Street, wade slightly upstream to reach a deep trench on the side of the island. When the river is around 4 feet or below, go out at noon when the sun is shining directly into the trench, and you’ll see large bass and schools of sunfish. At the Pony Pasture, about 100 yards along the road from the gate you’ll see a tiny island in the river. Wade out and you’ll find a drop-off where the water goes from about 4 feet on the ledge to about 10 feet. In the deep water, you may find flathead catfish as big as 30 pounds. For younger kids, go to the lower part of the Pony Pasture rapids when the water level is low. Put on a facemask and crawl up the rapids where the water is about 10 to 12 inches deep. Look around the rocks to see little sunfish, baby bass or “thrill of all thrills — a small eel,” White said. “Eels breathe in a frightening fashion. They gasp. They have these snaggly teeth and they come out at you. It’s a wonderful thrill, but it’s safe.”

Go canoeing or kayaking beneath a full moon. On a warm night, it’s magical. White suggests putting in at the Huguenot Bridge, paddling west into the sunset and having a picnic at Bosher’s Dam. Put your lifejacket back on and try floating next to the boat as you return, looking up at the moon. “The water is the same temperature as the air,” White said, “and you can’t tell the difference between the air and water.”

Take a walk. Along the north bank, if you follow the Pipeline Walkway west from 14th street to Brown’s Island, you’ll see cascading waterfalls and a great blue heron rookery. At Pumphouse Park, you can see the first canal in America, which George Washington intended to be the first part of a waterway to Ohio. In 1791, when Washington toured the project, “he waited under the arch for a delegation of Richmond City Council members to join him for lunch,” according to a historical marker at the site. “They were late and he dined alone.”

Take a photo. West of the Boulevard Bridge, at Pumphouse Park among other places, you can get some great views of the James River railroad bridge, which was fashioned after a Roman aqueduct. At the Pony Pasture, the mist rising over the river at sunrise can be spectacular in the fall.

Go fishing. At the Z dam at Williams Island, fly-fishers can cast below the dam and spin rods can work the water above the dam. Mayo Bridge is a good place to catch migrating species such as shad and rockfish in April and May. The Pony Pasture has bass and sunfish year-round. Ancarrow’s Landing may have as many as 50 people spread out along the stone dock seeking white perch on a rising tide.

Learn more: www.jamesriverpark.org