White's Ferry (closed)

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The only vehicular crossing of the Potomac River between I-495 to the east and Route 15 at Point of Rocks to the west. White's ferry (originally called Conrad's Ferry) was in nearly continuous operation from 1782 through 2020, and in the age of the automobile has offered commuters a shortcut between Montgomery County, Maryland and Loudoun County, Virginia.

A decade-long legal battle over the ferry's right to use its Virginia landing site resulted in the supposed permanent closure of the ferry in December 2020. The owners of the adjacent Rockland property alleged that there was no historical record stipulating a public ferry landing on the Virginia side. Nonetheless, since 1952 Rockland's owners had allowed the operation of the ferry in exchange for a $5 annual licensing payment. Legal proceedings were filed around 2010 following the ferry operator's unpermitted expansion and alteration of the Virginia landing, which was seen as a breach of the existing agreement. Rockland's owners had hoped to either purchase the ferry outright or otherwise come to some new legal agreement and were reported to be surprised that the ferry operators decided to abruptly close. The long-term future of the ferry is uncertain, but there will likely be negative impacts on vehicular traffic on the Route 15 corridor in Virginia.

loudounnow.com/2020/12/28/after-decade-long-legal-battl...