Tredegar Spike Mill

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, November 3, 2009

1. Tredegar Spike Mill Marker

Inscription. You are now standing in the middle of the footprint of the Tredegar spike mill. Since its beginnings in the 1830s, the Tredegar Iron Works relied on railroads as a major market. Spikes were one of the most important products Tredegar made and, even after leaving their James River site in 1957, Tredegar continued to produce spikes into the late 1980s at a plant in Chesterfield County.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Railroads & Streetcars. A significant historical year for this entry is 1957.

Location. Marker has been permanently removed. It was located near 37° 32.161′ N, 77° 26.767′ W. Marker was in Richmond, Virginia. It was in Gambles Hill. It could be reached from Tredegar Street 0.1 miles west of South 5th Street. This marker is located outside the Civil War Visitor Center at Tredegar Iron Works. Touch for map. Marker was at or near this postal address: 470 Tredegar Street, Richmond VA 23219, United States of America.

We have been informed that this marker is no longer there and will not be replaced. This page is an archival view of what was.

Regionally, this

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marker was in Central Virginia.

It was also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it was in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it found itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. within walking distance of this location: Touch for a list and map of all markers in Richmond.

Other markers no longer nearby. Rutherfoord’s Mill (was a few steps from this marker but has been permanently removed); Cupolas from the Virginia State Penitentiary (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Worker Housing (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Rail Lines at Tredegar (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); President Lincoln Visits Richmond (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been confirmed missing); The Canal and the Civil War

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, November 3, 2009

2. Tredegar Spike Mill Marker

(was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Raceways (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); a different marker also named President Lincoln Visits Richmond (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Tredegar in 1951 (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Belle Isle and Old Dominion Iron and Nail Works (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Tredegar Iron Works (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); The Richmond-Petersburg Railroad Bridge (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Francis Turbine (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Adapting Power (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Company Store (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); The Bulldozer Press (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed).

Spike Mill water turbines image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, November 8, 2009

3. Spike Mill water turbines

More about this marker. On the upper left is a photograph of the spike mill with the caption, “In 1859 Joseph Reid Anderson built the first spike mill (above) on the ruins of the former Rutherfoord flour mill, just north of where you are standing along the canal.” Also on the left is a site map with the caption, “The 20th century Spike Mill was a much larger building, housing spike machines and several rolling mills.”

On the lower left is a schematic of the mill's power plant with the caption, “From the mid-19th century to the 1950s the rolling mills, spike machines and other equipment were powered through the use of water turbines, sophisticated water wheels housed in the pit behind you. Water flowed down the hill from the canal in underground “raceways” (the brick openings), and was channeled through metal tubes into the metal cases you can see below ground. The shafts coming upward from the turbines turned a set of gears, transferring power to equipment."

On the lower right is a photograph of a mill in operation with the caption, “Spike production involved reheating meta “billets,” and rolling them into long thin rods. These

Spike Mill raceway from the canal image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, November 8, 2009

4. Spike Mill raceway from the canal

rods would then be cut into shorter pieces about six feet long. After another heating, the rod was fed into a machine that cut and formed the spike automatically. The photo to the left is a spike machine recovered at the Tredegar plant in Chesterfield County.”

Credits. This page was last revised on January 20, 2026. It was originally submitted on November 11, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 944 times since then and 15 times this year. Last updated on January 19, 2026, by Evan Dwyer of Richmond, Virginia. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on November 11, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.