Occoquan, Va.’s Mill Street buzzed on Nov. 18 as locals and visitors gathered for the holiday tree lighting and artisan pop-up market near River Mill Park, where hot cocoa and s’mores were served. HolidayFest, one of the town’s time-honored events, is one reason Mayor Earnie Porta is often told that the town feels like “part of a Hallmark movie.”
Twenty miles southwest of Washington on the banks of the Occoquan River, the historic town of Occoquan is home to just over 1,000 residents. “It’s sort of a small-town oasis in what otherwise is a very busy, busy area,” said Porta, who was drawn to Occoquan in 2001 for its river access and renowned crafts shows. “Even when it’s busy down here, people come and feel like they’re in an oasis.”
Festivals, concerts and events — from the 50-year-old Fall Arts & Crafts Show to the Old Hollywood Murder Mystery around Halloween — lure visitors and residents year-round and fuel the local economy, Porta said.
There’s something for everyone, he said, although it takes a bit of exploring the town’s main streets — Mill, Union and Commerce — to uncover the “tucked away” gems. “Then people can get a sense of all the things there are in Occoquan that might interest them, whether it’s retail, whether it’s restaurants, whether it’s historic sites.”
Sixty of the town’s structures — a colorful medley of 19th and 20th-century buildings — are part of the Historic District, which was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. A 1916 fire destroyed much of the historic district. “As a result,” Porta said, “in town today, there’s not one dominant style of architecture.”
Porta leads historic tours, pointing out a few sites that survived the fire, including Rockledge, a 1758 Georgian-style mansion built by John Ballendine, who established Occoquan’s iron and milling operations in the 1750s.
In the summer, Porta takes his tours to the water, explaining river-related town history while kayaking or paddle boarding on the Occoquan River.
Settlers date to the Algonquian-speaking Dogue Native Americans, who named the area Occoquan, or “at the end of the water.” Many others explored the area, including Captain John Smith, who sailed the Occoquan River in 1608 and Union and Confederate troops during the Civil War.
Historically, Occoquan’s primary industry was milling, but the town has also supported tobacco, iron, lumber, river ice, shipbuilding, riverboat excursions and rock quarry businesses, Porta said. The town was founded in 1804 by Nathaniel Ellicott, a member of one of the nation’s foremost Quaker milling families, and officially incorporated in 1874.
In the 1970s, a “double-whammy” from Hurricanes Agnes and Eloise proved a turning point for Occoquan, Porta said. The town started to rebuild into today’s blend of historic sites and more than 100 small businesses, including five art galleries and two chocolatiers.
“If you come here on the right day, they’re both making chocolate, and the town smells amazing,” said Sarah Hitchcock Burzio, vice president of the Visit Occoquan nonprofit. “We’re definitely a Hallmark movie,” said Burzio, who owns Hitchcock Paper Co., one of the shops accessible from Occoquan’s riverfront boardwalk.
Like many Occoquan stores, Burzio’s company offers some items made in town, she said. And while her shop has a “very healthy resident and regulars base,” most customers are tourists and others traveling Interstate-95, she said.
“I love when people come and say, ‘This is like Stars Hollow from Gilmore Girls,’” Burzio said. “Yes, it is! We have a gazebo, we have town meetings … and when something happens, everybody jumps in.”
Occoquan isn’t “just a sleepy old town,” Burzio said, but its history is evident along its streets. One clue is the lack of mailboxes for those in the 22125 Zip code. Resident Olivia McDaniel calls this “old-fashioned” but a welcome way to see neighbors who pick up their mail at the Occoquan Post Office on Mill Street. McDaniel works at Occoquan’s Mill House Museum, where, she said, the Occoquan Historical Society tries to “keep the whole history alive.”
What once was the administrative office of one of the first automated gristmills in the nation (circa 1759) — before the mill was destroyed by fire in 1924 — now holds town artifacts from 1755 onward, McDaniel said. The free-admission, one-room museum had more than 650 visitors during HolidayFest, she said.
Occoquan’s growing town events and “Hallmark movie” atmosphere are supported by volunteers and just four Town Hall staff, said Theo Daubresse, a town council member and real estate agent with Keller Williams Realty. “It’s one of the only places I’ve seen where the town almost survives because of the people who live there. … You feel compelled to volunteer because you love it. But then, you also get this cool sense of community.”
Living There: Occoquan is in Prince William County, Va., north of Woodbridge, and has a mix of condominiums, townhouses and some single-family houses. As of Dec. 5, there were four properties on the market, ranging from a two-bedroom, three-bathroom condo for $444,900 to a three-bedroom, four-bathroom Victorian-style townhouse for $1,195,000, Daubresse said. In the last 12 months, 26 properties sold, from $182,000 to $645,767, he said. The town is convenient for commuters to Washington and military bases, including Quantico and Fort Belvoir, he added.
Schools: Occoquan Elementary School, Fred M. Lynn Middle School, Woodbridge High School.
Transit: Occoquan is less than a mile from I-95, and about 21 miles from Reagan National Airport. The Virginia Railway Express Woodbridge Station and the Amtrak Lorton Station are within five miles. The Occoquan Express free shuttle service is available most Saturdays from the VDOT Commuter Lot at the corner of Route 123 and Old Bridge Road.