Bridgewater, Virginia
Bridgewater is an incorporated town in Rockingham County, Virginia, United States. The population was 6,596 at the 2020 census. It is included in the Harrisonburg, Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. History William Magill first settled along the North River in 1746, and the area became known as Magill's Ford. The first bridge across the North River was built in 1820, and for a time the young community was known as Bridgeport. The Town received its charter from the Virginia General Assembly on February 7, 1835, then incorporated as Bridgewater. 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. The college has grown along with the Town, now enrolling more than 1,800 students. Since the creation of the Town in 1835, Bridgewater has endured six major floods, including a devastating flood in 1949 that claimed two lives. As a result, the US Army Corps of Engineers constructed a long earthen levee to protect large portions of the Town against future flooding. Since the mid-1990s, the Town has held a "Summer's End Celebration" on Labor Day each year. The event has