Noland's Ferry began operating in the mid-1700s and carried travelers, their wagons, carriages and livestock across the
Potomac River between
Loudoun County,
Virginia and
Frederick County, Maryland. During the
American Revolutionary War it was used by the U. S. Army and during the Civil War, by the armies of both the North and South. The ferry remained in operation until the early 1900s. Philip Noland was the first Noland to run the ferry and his wife was the daughter of Francis Awbrey (also Aubrey). is the daughter of William Luckett who had a nearby ferry that Thomas took over. Because the
Potomac River is totally in Maryland, as is Noland's Island, approval from Virginia's House of Burgesses appears not to have been critical. In the
yellow fever epidemic of 1793, in an attempt to keep the fever out of Virginia, the governor ordered that Nolands and six other Potomac ferries limit travel for those coming from Philadelphia who were required to wait on the Maryland side of the river for six days and were only allowed to proceed if they were without symptoms.
Potomac River crossing Travel between Virginia and Maryland necessitated crossing the
Potomac River, the fourth largest east coast river, which has always been an obstacle for travel over land. Several ferries were established to serve that area and Noland's Ferry ran from Leesburg to
Maryland for over 150 years. Noland's Ferry Road leads to a boat ramp on the C&O canal outside Washington, D.C., which was the ferry's Maryland location. In Leesburg, just across the river, the location is marked by Noland's Ferry Road and a house on that road which was built around 1800 by a Noland who ran the ferry. Noland's Island is nearby in the Potomac River.
Carolina Road The ferry was often used by travelers heading to the Carolinas. The location of the
Carolina Road in Northern Virginia is near today's Route 15. In the 1700s, Noland's Ferry was a link between the Virginia and Maryland sections of the Carolina Road.
Revolutionary War Noland and Luckett family members were strong supporters of American independence. William Luckett was a colonel in the Maryland militia and Thomas No[w]land fought in the Maryland "Flying Camp", a quick response group. Thomas Hussey Luckett and David Luckett were members of the Continental Army. During the
Revolutionary War, the American army sent troops and
POWs across the ferry and stored munitions in the ferry warehouses. and Washington wrote in his diary that he ate at "Knowlands Ferry" on August 9, 1785.
Unfinished ferry house Sometime after the Revolutionary War ended, a large house was built on the grounds of the ferry and although construction was completed enough to be weathertight, key elements of the house were not finished, including interior woodwork and plaster. and the mystery as to why was the subject of a
Washington Star magazine article in 1949 with the inaccurate title "200 Year Old House That Was Never Finished". ==References==