Editing Bridgewater, Virginia (section)

== History ==
William Magill first settled along the North River in 1746, and the area became known as Magill's Ford.<ref name=HoltonLoveless2010>{{cite book|last1=Holton|first1=Bob F.|last2=Loveless|first2=Carleen|title=Bridgewater|date=2010|publisher=Arcadia Publishing|location=Charleston, SC|isbn=978-0738586502|page=10|language=en}}</ref> 

According to the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Historical Society, the book ''History of Rockingham County, Virginia'' said John Dinkle built a carding mill there around 1810 and the settlement came to be called Dinkletown.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Witters |first1=Faye |title=Dinkel Cemetery - Bridgewater College (in Rockingham County Virginia Tombstones by Cemetery) |url=https://www.rocktownhistory.org/static-pages/cemeteries/cem/cem344.html |website=Dinkel Cemetery - Bridgewater College - Rockingham County Virginia Tombstones by Cemetery |publisher=Harrisonburg-Rockingham Historical Society |access-date=28 December 2024}}</ref> By 1815, the Dinkle family additionally had a sawmill, stave mill, and gristmill in operation and opened the Dinkle Tavern on South Main Street ([[Virginia State Route 42|SR 42]]) in a brick [https://www.google.com/maps/place/215+S+Main+St,+Bridgewater,+VA+22812/@38.3804191,-78.97851,3a,30.3y,309.37h,91.67t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sI8AqRfw4O-fIbWrkxcj3oQ!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26pitch%3D-1.6663617426952868%26panoid%3DI8AqRfw4O-fIbWrkxcj3oQ%26yaw%3D309.37474408565583!7i16384!8i8192!4m6!3m5!1s0x89b4967ec48fb5f1:0xf914b2f4e104000f!8m2!3d38.3805701!4d-78.9787229!16s%2Fg%2F11cpfmm54d?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI0MTIxMS4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D house that still stands].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bridgewater |first1=Town of |title=History (archived) |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126053340/https://bridgewater.town/reference/history/index.php |website=History of Bridgewater |publisher=Town of Bridgewater |access-date=28 December 2024}}</ref> Dinkle is also spelled Dinkel; the current town's main east-west street ([[Virginia State Route 257|SR 257]]) still [https://www.google.com/maps/dir/38.3837754,-78.9746177/38.3711651,-78.9508055/@38.3826996,-78.9739593,370m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!4m1!3e0?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI0MTIxMS4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D carries the name Dinkel Avenue] within the town limits.  

The first bridge across the North River was built in 1820 along the town's north-south axis (present-day SR 42 / Main Street); and, for a time, the young community was known as Bridgeport.<ref name=HoltonLoveless2010 /> 

The Town received its charter from the [[Virginia General Assembly]] on February 7, 1835, then incorporated as Bridgewater.<ref>{{cite web|title=Charter - Bridgewater|url=https://law.lis.virginia.gov/charters/bridgewater/|website=law.lis.virginia.gov|publisher=Commonwealth of Virginia|access-date=May 14, 2018}}</ref>  Every February 7, the town holds an annual Charter Day celebration to commemorate the granting of the charter.

[[Bridgewater College]] is located within the town, and was first established in 1880.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.bridgewater.edu/about-bc/history-college | title=History of Bridgewater College | access-date=November 28, 2017 | publisher=Bridgewater College | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171110061728/http://www.bridgewater.edu/about-bc/history-college | archive-date=November 10, 2017 | url-status=dead }}</ref> The college has grown along with the town, now enrolling more than 1,800 students.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bridgewater.edu/about-bc | title=About Bridgewater | access-date=November 28, 2017 | publisher=Bridgewater College}}</ref>

Since the creation of the town in 1835, Bridgewater has endured six major floods, including a devastating flood in 1949 that claimed two lives.<ref>Holton & Loveless 2010, p.7.</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=College Town Surveys Losses|newspaper=[[Daily News-Record]]|date=June 20, 1949|location=Harrisonburg, VA|page=1|volume=106|issue=36}}</ref>  As a result, the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers|US Army Corps of Engineers]] constructed a long earthen [[levee]] to protect large portions of the town against future flooding.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Harter|first1=Dale|title=The Flood of 1949 in Bridgewater|journal=The Harrisonburg-Rockingham Historical Society Newsletter|date=Summer 2008|volume=30|issue=3|page=4|url=http://www.heritagecenter.com/Web_Pages/OnLineResearch/MoreRecords/Newsletters/HRHS%20Newsletter%20Summer%202008.pdf|access-date=May 14, 2018}}</ref>

Since the mid-1990s, the town has held a "Summer's End Celebration" on [[Labor Day]] each year.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Vanderhoek|first1=Mark|title=Town Prepares To Celebrate Summer's End|newspaper=[[Daily News-Record]]|date=August 29, 2003|location=Harrisonburg, VA}}</ref> The event has grown to include a 5k race, carnival rides, and live music, and is attended by thousands of people.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Potter|first1=Ellie|title=Celebrating Summer's End|newspaper=[[Daily News-Record]]|date=September 4, 2017|location=Harrisonburg, VA}}</ref>