Falling Creek has two distinct but related industries superimposed upon one another. One was the 1619-1622 first iron blast furnace in the New World, heralding the great industrial might of what became the United States. The other is a 1750-1781 iron forge, begun by a wealthy industrial entrepreneur, and continued as part of the manufacturing base in the fight for American independence in the Revolutionary War. Both were ended by wartime events. Both water powered industries at Falling Creek were lost from view only to re-emerge in the late 20th and early 21st centuries as signature site types.
Today, Falling Creek is part of the Chesterfield County Parks system. If you stand on the promontory to the north of where old Marina Drive ends, you can see the entire site.
Open dawn to dusk.
Free.
