Rivanna Navigation Company

It seems significant that William H. Meriwether, whose relationship to the above gentleman is not known, had an early interest in developing at "Pireus." On December 7, 1829, when the Rivanna Navigation Company was improving the Rivanna River in order to operate a line of canal boats and packets between Charlottesville and Richmond, Meriwether purchased from that organization the right to construct a dam across the River just above the mouth of Moores Creek. Within a few years, he was receiving rent from two partners, Robert S. Jones and James S. Crewdson, for a factory driven by water power and making various products. Included in the equipment were a saw mill and machinery for processing cotton and wool. By 1846, the partners were succeeded by two others, Henry W, Jones and James A. Crewdson. The subsequent connection of Henry W. Jones with the enterprise before 1860 is a further clue that the factory of 1829 was the predecessor of the present business.--Harry Poindexter